The Moat and The Minefield

A poem about alienation.

The moral high ground; what's that?

Does it have an ivory tower at its crest?

Is there an iconoclast living in that tower?

Does he always think he knows what's best?

Does he ponder the meaning of existence,

As he writes the laws of the land?

With no connection to others' reality,

Does he take the urgent matters in hand?

When events transpire that contradict his firmly held beliefs,

Does he surround the high ground with a moat?

Does he believe his moat will keep him safe,

Because nobody else can build a boat?

When his belief proves false, does he then

Put a minefield outside the moat,

In the hope that the promise of violent death,

Might keep his regime afloat?

Distance between the governing and the governed,

Leads to ruling in isolation,

While those who are supposed to be governed,

Experience only alienation.

Iconoclasts ruling from ivory towers,

Set on that moral high ground,

Are doomed to fail abysmally,

But other solutions are always found.

When theory clashes with reality,

The iconoclasts are pulled to the ground.

Pragmatism returns to the fore,

Lost values are rediscovered,

The new rulers are the realists,

Ethics, honesty and integrity are all recovered.

Real life is lived on the streets,

Not in ivory towers,

Needed change comes from peoples' hearts,

Not from studying political theory for hours.

Back to basics is what it takes,

When the world is as messed up as it is now,

Let's stop arguing about the Why,

And start talking about the How.

© 2017 The Iron Horseman

Reviews

[Cat]

Such a wonderful piece! Your use of complex language provided a serious tone to the piece, and assisted with the overall persuasion of it. I love the lines "Real life is lived on the streets,
Not in ivory towers,
Needed change comes from peoples' hearts,
Not from studying political theory for hours."

And I absolutely love the ending! Totally want that on a poster

[The Iron Horseman]

Thanks, Cat, and thank you again for giving me your input. I'm afraid i don't know anyone in the poster business, though! lol