Rogue Planet

They had promulgated Congress for

The first day of the year,

It would bite into vacations

At the time they most occur,

It would clog the airborne ferries

Overflow the season’s trains,

‘Whose idea was this, anyway?

You’d think they’d have more brains!’

 

But the seven thousand members duly

Packed their travel bags,

Posted credit for their spouses,

Sent away their dogs and cats,

For a summons from ‘The Lorder’

Was not lightly overlooked,

When he said ‘You will attend!’ they

Hurried off, their passage booked.

 

They converged within the Capital

By the Acropolice,

And they filed past the machine guns

In that city known as Neese,

While a rocket called ‘Galactic’

Towered high above the dome:

‘This begins to look perturbing!’

‘Yes - I wish I’d stayed at home!’

 

Once inside the giant building

That had been a mausoleum,

Now reclaimed at last for government,

Where tombstones still were seen,

The members settled nervously

Each in his numbered seat,

Their sense of pride was tempered

By their memories of defeat.

 

It was less than fifteen years since their

Corsairs regained the ground

That had been the scene of violence,

Rape and mayhem, all around,

With the citizens assaulted

From their heads down to their feet,

By the battle-weary misfits who

Had ruled each tawdry street.

 

‘We are here to beg the question,’

Said The Lorder, as he stood,

‘Do we execute these henchmen,

Do we lock them up for good?

There are thousands in our cellars,

Overflowing all our jails,

Do we risk a massive breakout or

Provide the coffin nails?’

 

Then a mutter filled the Chamber

From a crowd of bleeding hearts,

They had vetoed execution,

They were men of many parts,

‘We may not commend the slaughter

Of so many evil men,

If this Chamber votes for butchery

We’ll be as bad as them!’

 

So the arguments were entered

Back and forth throughout the day,

There would soon be an election

A new Lorder, anyway,

Neither side gained the advantage

The hostility was rife,

Though there was another option,

Banish all of them, for life!

 

‘We can send the ship ‘Galactic’

With a thousand at a time,

Take each shipment deep in space

So they will suffer for their crime!

We can drop them on some planet

Where they’ll perish from their dearth…’

‘Do you know of such a planet?’

‘Yes! The Old Rogue Planet, Earth!’

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Mark]

The coup de grace of this great poem is the realization that the debate in question took place either long into the future, after Earth had already spent her wad and was consigned to the self-inflicted sorrows, OR long into the past, and today's earth is but the product of that short-sighted decision. The parallel to Great Britain's treatment of HER societal dregs--ship them to the other side of the planet, to Australia--cannot be ignored, and might even (in the latter case) have been some kind of racial memory at work! Another unforgettable, ironic, macabre, rib-tickling head-scratcher from the master of teaching verse.

[Mark]

Just gotta applaud another reviewer's comment: "A mash-up of Blake and Shelley, with just a touch of Dr. Seuss thrown in..." Perfect!

[Ocean]

Old Rogue Planet Earth or Australia. David you've captured the spirit of humankind. Criminals according to the establishment yet once they were set free from it, they created a life for themselves and (in the main) wiped the slate clean and started anew. Most went on to lead fulfilling lives but within the majority it seems there will always be some who go astray. Is it they who are bad or us who make them so. Great debate there. Your poem captures that darkness and is brilliant in its vision

[A love for poetry]

Oh, I laughed at the ending line. GREAT! GREAT! GREAT!

--We can drop them on some planet--The Old Rogue Planet, Earth!

Such a wise man you are in your poetry Dave!

[MOON]

Love the last line , the dregs of humanity there . great write as usual.

[Ocean]

If we send all the bad ones away then we'll all live happily ever after because, of course, now, only the good ones will remain!! Out of sight, out of mind, beautiful world but now all, completely blind

[Lena M. P.]

This reminds me of a book I just finished reading called Battlefield Earth. Most of earths population was wiped out and taken over by a foreign race. They considered our planet next to nothing and very disposable sending outcasts to earth to work. Mankind won out in the end but it was touch and go for quite awhile. Remarkable writing with your usual twists and turns to the end which leave us saying "Ah Ha!" Had me going again!

[Valentine]

David..with all that is going on in the middle east and our president refusing to talk to Benjamin of Isreal..we all may be soon blown off of planet eartha nd over to that galaxy..Neat write...reminds me on the news..l.ove and God bless.Lyn and you..Kathie

[Enid Blake]

It wouldn't surprise me lol :)
....no it really wouldn't ha ha!

[Extant]

I started reading thinking that the setting was Earth, only to find out that it wasn't. . . It's funny, and at the same time there are so many parellels to our own lives. If we ever did reach such a point of technological advance how would it change our everyday lives? Obviously the science around us would be altered, but what else would happen; what would the military start to look like, political campaigns, the prisons?

[Katie Lynn]

I enjoyed this a lot! I still can't get over how elegantly your poems flow and how easily images are called to mind. I love how you are starting to write more about sci-fi type topics, I'm very impressed with you. You, sir, are a brilliant man!

[Mic]

Ha! The Paget Theory... I like it! Would explain so much.

Another gem. Very well done Mr. Paget.