SIGH

I saw the best minds of my generation
hysterical scared and feline shoving each other out of the way
to get on stage,
slurring starved hatred
Tired children in unique! jeans and alien hairskinteethandnails
who count calories like sins and acquire art for free
who have virtual personas, unaware of the lies they tell
who take refuge in the things they own and what they will own
who buy personality for $11 + 3.95 s+h
and philosophy from tea bags the morning after
who are always right
who scream in streets to get a second glance
from attractive passersby

this is our birthright
to have never found faith in
democratic processes, western medicine,
ninetofive, marriage, the police state
our own significance, our insignificance,
the future, the American Dream
and to then buy a car, a latte, a signified
to blindly run through ancient foreign cities with everything
except a way back
to preternaturally understand that the State of the Union isn't
to ingest our social skills, ability to interact
with humans
who look a little less like ME ME ME
Saturday night, Monday afternoon, Friday morning
are a chemical myopia:
dig for some truth in it
before becoming
distracted
cellphone upgrade SALE SALE SALE
credit debit left right wrong
free trade fair trade fear
caffeine benzedrine World War III
red blue nature culture walk or drive?
convenience conservative christians
Jihad Dancing With the Stars carbon offsets
disposable cups truths fucks
irony pretension & top 40
hyperreal haircuts

(dead white men
we look to you
and after a fleeting glimpse of what might be
find nothing except what was)

And deep beneath the numbing roar there are no bare voices,
no sweet naked nothings bestowed upon youmethemorit
we speak not of what we almost feel and cannot name:
ours are busy mouths, with minds + hearts steeped in what is.