1651 - Day of rest

Sunday, the day of rest, a restless day
For me as I do little but think lots
Or feel lots about things to do or say
Instead I rest and consume and put socks
On radiators. Ladies would be shocked
If they saw all my holy socks and pants
But at least some dust and grime has been swept
And thrown to the winds, where it briefly floats
Then softly, slowly on a hedge it lands
Parts of me back to nature for replay
Some useful carbon for the new idiots
Some energy to fuel some future plans
Sunday, the day of rest and entropy
Ideals remain for now but forms collapse

1650 - Japanese deluge

One of the biggest earthquakes of all time
Struck Japan's north-eastern coast yesterday
I watched the pictures of the waves that climbed
Over field and town, sweeping all away
Whole houses floating in the disarray
Shaky film of shaking skyscrapers in
Tokyo, making panic as the ground sways
The frightened faces like some movie scene
Luckily Tokyo was not quite within
The epicentre's fierce grip outlying
The coast further north, so it was Sendai
And surroundings deluged as waves swept in
Drowning untold thousands still in their prime
A nuclear power plant blew its roof away

1649 - Basket cases

King Charles I had relied on the Scots
To invade England and restore him to
Full power, but in '48 they lost
At Preston, and other rebellions too
In Kent, Wales and elsewhere that he had viewed
As means of regaining his old status
Along with Commons sympathy, fell through
Charles was beheaded in January, thus
Finally becoming a basket case.
Once England was assured, Cromwell then crossed
Over to Ireland where after a few
Quick and bloody battles, or massacres
Ireland was pacified, but at the cost
Of mass emigration, fear and sorrow

1648 - Pension tension

We'll all have to work till we're sixty-eight
And then our pensions will be rather small
Ironically, it's a result of great
Advances in healthcare and the peaceful
Decades we've lived through, meaning that we all
Live longer and cost more than in the past
The national wealth's no longer national
It never was, though we had all got used
To higher living standards. Now the cost
Cannot or will not be borne by the state
That wealth's privately owned, we cannot call
On it to live comfortably at last
When we retire. Read Lord Hutton's Report
And weep for dreams now lost beyond recall

1647 - United Nations of Bullshit

I don't understand what the UN's for
If member states refuse to intervene
To remove leaders set on civil war
Using their weapons to wipe their states clean
Of opposition at all costs. We've been
To Bosnia, Afghanistan, Iraq
To spread democracy, and yet it seems
Even Obama will not now attack
Gaddafi's meagre forces, fearing flak
From Muslims, even though Muslims are more
Likely to die. So NATO will be seen
As a self-serving army that will back
Away from missions that are only for
Humanitarian motives. It's obscene...

1646 - Flying to Southampton

It's been a hard day's night at work today
But I'm up to date with all the emails
And current issues. Tomorrow I fly
To Southampton, which obviously entails
An early rise, ready to hit the trail
To Manchester Airport Terminal Three
Getting there by eight o'clock without fail
To arrive in the south by nine thirty
Then a lift to the meeting, ten thirty
Start, four hours of discussion, then away
To fly back on the three thirty. No gales
Tomorrow, then, I hope, or it will be
A turbulent journey. A cloudless sky
Would be good to look down on towns and hills

1645 - Wonders of the TV

I've seen some pretty good stuff on TV
Starting last night with 'Civilisation'
Which was subtitled, 'Is the West History?'
Presented by a famous historian
Who goes by the name Niall Ferguson
Positing that the East will beat the West
But I think that probably won't happen
Then Brian Cox posed on the icy coast
And the desert, saying that we were blessed
To be alive now, because entropy
Would end everything, though it takes quite long
In 'Wonders of the Universe'... I've just
Watched a programme about HMRC -
My employer - and tobacco smuggling