Walker County Commissioners Meeting: April 3rd

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Walker County Commisioners Meeting: April 3rd


Ned Yates is incensed that from here

on out it must be written down. 


He knuckles the podium with a frown 

and sputters out “You all oughta know 


by now that here in this county 

we’re not a buncha pencil-pushin geeks,” 


by which he means that just to speak

is barrier enough to get at what we’re 


after. Muffled laughter, and Mr. Yates mumbles 

what sounds like “scalawags,” to which 


commissioner Askew (despite his digs)

doesn’t camouflage his objection 


as he scrapes back his chair 

to wag a gnarled finger and shout 


“If you’re gonna keep mouthing off 

then say it to where I can hear it.” 


If only, Mr. Askew, it were all so easy 

as that; if only it were, at best, 


just a question of chest, as if were we

to shout a little longer, a little louder, 


we'd chance upon the missing word

sure untangle these, our many mutterings. 

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