- Hello Friends – putting a word out again for this anti-trump-regime anthology: Silence is Consent. I am very moved by the poems (and some other media) in the book; heartening to hear like-feeling souls. I will not be surprised when the trump regime institutes Lèse-majesté. Stakes are high. Please buy a copy. And share with your locals. Although on amazon (sorry), the editor is sending all profit to the ACLU. Click here to read amazing and inspiring anti-trump regime poems: free speech, peace, no one is free when some are oppressed.
CENTO DERIVED FROM SILENCE IS CONSENT
CENTO AGAINST the trump regime
All lines, phrases and words are from Silence is Consent – a poetic anthology
for poets to speak out against and in resistance to the agenda of Donald J. Trump,
edited by Christopher Bogart (2025).
Authors Note: In this cento I sought to create a poem that captured spirit – the angst, anger, compassion, and, to a degree, humor and hope – within the anthology as a whole. At least one line or phrase or single word was used from each poet. I hope the individual authors are happy with the result, even if their words may have been moved into a different context. Numbers identify the page number from where the lines in this poem were derived.
Future generations will look: 349
aliens come from other worlds. 348
They brand us felons 342
and the mob demands 336
“America,” 327
endless, monstrous. 326
Where in my heart can I find refuge now
since hate has gripped the world? 322
A US flag upside-down – a signal of distress. 313
The American people tossed and crushed by the orange wave. 308
The Orange Fecal Monster is back. 38
Progress reversed with the stroke of an idiot’s pen. 43
Coup to reinstate an orange plague. 48
Dudes vote for the penis amendment. 106
End of democracy. 36
Death comes to me. 81
O’er the ramparts some could see red glare of looming bigotry. 304
Therefore, Power to the People. 303
If we don’t ask for, no, demand it: 307
tariffs, tariffs, tariffs, 299
a blazing stateroom of clapping blonds, 295
they stop a car, 291
we watch as mute spectators 280
before a uniformed figure
begins the night stick beating 277
with police batons. 179
Billy clubs smash windows, bruise eyes, break bones. 156
There is always work to be done 274
in the rubble. 14
Watching black smoke billow from the high rise, 269
black poems pour from the air everywhere. 268
Freedom has left the building. 267
Reporters deemed the crowd stunned. 264
Nightmares of the news at 9. 95
More at eleven. 266
Others found ways to keep what they wanted, 253
as awful humans will, 263
beneath a banner of fiscal necessity, 251
shielding his own interests….. 251
while a wannabe dictator, 58, 249
greedy for power, 249
the grand grifter, 248
the bumptious bloviating bully, 248
dressed in an orange diaper, 52
loose-lipped TV show president, 245
devil, racist, rapist, 245
white supremacist, 32
sinful, sadistic manager, 159
malignant narcissistic personality, 126
tyrant, 90
reckless bully, 196, 115
Agent Orange, 38
mendacious president, 281
Orange Awk, 194
their leader who they are certain will make everything right, 243
portly orange king filled with waste, 168
a novice, 246
infected pustule, 239
deadly clown, 317
coward-leader, 260
clown ringleader, 120, 147
embarrassment of the world, 114
the Unmentionable, 237
He Who Shall Not Be Named, 118
the emperor of naked lies, 237
faux leader, false messiah, 212
forked tongue snake oil salesman, 100, 210
stubborn turd, 104
crack in the Liberty Bell, 121
dung flung at the Statute of Liberty, 121
does whatever the fuck he wants. 172
He doesn’t give a sh*t. 169
Morning news:
market crashed, 90
a woman in South Africa who will die, 154
test center closed, 81
no money for school lunches, 159
powers evict a pregnant woman, 227
billionaire feeding frenzy, 204
cancelled vaccines, 197
pardons cascade upon citizen villains, 187
fallacies compressed over feces, 102
undocumented fears, 185
homes bombed overnight, 229
looming men so alike in cruelty 220
an orange stops being one, 218
silence, 174
a new dark age. 199
Now, with dishes to wash, bills to pay, 19
think of Star Trek and Deep Space Nine,
anything to distract me from dwelling on
his evil eunuchs 159
and his minions 74
masturbating to kiddie porn, 70
poised to keep inventory low
and millions in their pockets, 74
angry men, spiders, snakes. 132
Where in my heart can I find refuge now
since hate has gripped the world? 322
We live in a time of upheaval, 5
our nation is a mess, 341
we need a transfusion. 2
He won. 1
The Orange Fecal Monster won. 38, 1
53% didn’t even vote. 143
The wax and wane of powers. 276
Massive demonstrations. 40
You can be sure the next time I saw him,
I’d punch him in the mouth.
I wouldn’t try to get along. 111
Last night my right hand went out to kill somebody. 143
Where in my heart can I find refuge now
since hate – fixing me in crosshairs –
has gripped the world? 322, 176
Still, the heart floats – whispering its truth, trembling,
refusing erasure. 15
Let poetry cleanse the literature of the illiterate;
Let poetry cure its readers of their rage. 166
On January 6, 2026, a spacecraft landed
on the White House lawn.
“The Donald” sat in a corner labelled “Go to Jail.” 52
TRUMP ceased to be president. 214
Future generations will look: 349
aliens come from other worlds. 348
Who were they – these aliens we so feared? 29
We are beautiful. Alive. 192, 145
© Dan O. April 2025
HAPPY TO BE INCLUDED:
"What Have the Dead Meant to You?" is included in the anthology Poetry is Dead II, Once You're Dead, You're Dead Forever (January 2025), ed. D.L. Lang. Buy book here. CONTRIBUTOR NOTE: Dan O’Connell is a four-time award winning poet, and multiple finalist and honorable mention. Although not a Dead Head, he has been to many Dead-related shows with Dead Head friends, and was struck by what Jerry Garcia said, quoted in the poem. This poem is written from Jerry’s perspective.
HAD A BLAST AT
BEAST CRAWL 2024
SATURDAY, JULY 27, 2024, 4 pm - 8 pm.
DOWNTOWN OAKLAND CALIFORNIA
THE THROWBACK SPECIAL
Featuring Dan O., Barbara Saunders, Eric Robertson, K.R. Morrison, and Paul Corman-Roberts
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A THIRD SET OF TEETH
A Third Set of Teeth - available as PDF ($20.00). 33 Poems. Some poems that fit together. Seems that the underlying theme is futility. You may relate. Please use:
Paypal: paypal.me/danielopaypal http://paypal.me/danielopaypal
or
Venmo: Daniel@Daniel-OConnell-54 http://www.venmo.com
Pay and let me know you want A Third Set of Teeth sent to your email!
Happy to have Visions of Hell published in the award-winning journal The Ravens Perch:
L’enfer, c’est les autre - Jean Paul Sartre, No Exit
https://theravensperch.com/visions-of-hell-dan-oconnell/
SHELTERED IN PLACE POEMS & ART:
A COLLABORATION
ARTISTS RESPOND TO POEMS
-- all Poems by Dan O.
NOW AVAILABLE AT thebp.site/259386
and select San Francisco locations, including MADRONE ART BAR
Table of Contents
Inscribed on a Wall at Prince Street Apartments While Sheltered
in Place
Art by Kerry Vineberg
Inscribed on my Living Room Wall While Sheltered in Place
Art by John Graham
Inscribed on my Kitchen Wall While Sheltered in Place
Art by Elisa Carozza
Thinking of Tu Fu While Sheltered in Place Pursuant to Government Orders
Art by Kenneth Wong
Walking Through Golden Gate Park During Shelter in Place
Art by Ashton Richards
Packing a Worst-Case Scenario Bag
Art by Paul Studtmann
Nearly Being Killed Before Shelter in Place Koan
Art by Michael Krouse
What’s Open?
Art by John Graham
First Inkling
Art by Tessa Shimizu
Watch I Go
Art by Elisa Carozza
After Re-reading The Art of War During Shelter in Place
Art by Tessa Shimizu
Sheltered in Place Death Poem
Art by Kerry Vineberg
The New Normal
Art by Paul Studtmann
Reflection After Disobeying Shelter in Place Orders to Protest Trump’s Regime
Art by Raymond L. Haywood
The Drinking (or Reading Roethke While Sheltered in Place)
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SHELTERED IN PLACE POEMS & ART -- all Poems by Dan O.
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