Tuesday, July 19, 2016

MONEY MAKETH MAN! (weekly poem)

MONEY MAKETH MAN!

(The Party’s Summer School on the theme of
‘Money’ is being held this weekend in Birmingham)

Our theme is taken from Erich Fromm’s book,  ‘To Have or To Be’
which contrasts the relentless pursuit  of MONEY in Capitalism –
the ‘having’—with  life in a genuine human society – the ‘being’.

Some worship MONEY, the Big C’s one god,
But for the masses, there’s crumbs off the cake;
For ‘wonga’, the ‘wherewithal’ and a ‘wad’,
The moneyed will get their ‘means’ on the make.

Boots licked for ‘lolly’ could mean ‘splosh’ to stash,
The missus needs ‘brass’ to big-up her bust;
‘Bucks’ for buckshee and a cache full of ‘cash’,
It’s ‘kneading’ the ‘dough’, for ‘bread’ and a ‘crust’.

Spivs shaft for ‘shekels’ and dudes dive for ‘dibs’,
It’s ‘pelf’ for the self when one’s getting ‘gelt’.
For some real ‘smackers’, don’t work for ‘his nibs’,
True wealth needs wage-slaves to toil at full pelt.

Gangs graft for ‘gravy’ and lust after ‘loot’,
They’re sometimes ‘quids’ in, when they’ve snatched some snout, (1)
For ‘filthy lucre’, they’ll put in the boot,
They’re into ‘having’ - especially clout.

Psychotics having a need to succeed, (2)
Like flashing their ‘funds’ for broke folk to see;
They’re in the grip of a gross, grasping, greed,
Egged on by ego and, ‘me, me, me, Me’!

Retirement terminates work’s drive for ‘dosh’,
Now pensioned off with a seat for our lav;
We’ve gone round the U-bend, tried to be posh,
Now we are truly, ‘the things that we have’!

(1) Snout = Tobacco.

(2) Studies show that psychotics tend to progress within Capitalism
because they are indifferent to peoples feelings and needs—thus
they are ruthless enough to impose the system’s full requirements.


© Richard Layton

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