[straitjacket lies . . . ]

the straitjacket lies we tell:

undesirable midriff chicken thieves
the long hock of american frippery
gentlemen strategists and exponents of farewells to rooks and frontispieces
filaments upon the dockyards of miracles
an inexorable western expansion
employed by eugenecists of privilege
and destruction

uneven accountability for our past
never look back
no reiteration required

What I’m Reading:

The real ogres are the ones who are complete gentlemen.

— Matthew Thomas Meade / “Sunshowers” / Strip Mall: Stories