Parable of the Broken Window
for B.B.
Here’s a fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s an Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s an arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s an unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s an over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here are Silk Road middlemen who stack the bricks
of the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a backstreet dealer in Peoria who scores the stuff
from Silk Road middlemen who stack the bricks
of the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a teen at a Lake Shore dive who’s shoving fifties
into the hands of the dealer in Peoria who scores the stuff
from Silk Road middlemen who stack the bricks
of the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s an ex-Marine and absent father sending cash
to the teen at a Lake Shore dive who’s shoving fifties
into the hands of the dealer in Peoria who scores the stuff
from Silk Road middlemen who stack the bricks
of the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
Here’s a fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific
where the ex-Marine and absent father lives, sending cash
to the teen at a Lake Shore dive who’s shoving fifties
into the hands of the dealer in Peoria who scores the stuff
from Silk Road middlemen who stack the bricks
of the uncle in the Pashtun poppy fields, helping
the wife in Kandahar who forages for food
for the over-zealous enemy insurgent who RPGs
the unmanned probe that scans the countryside
over the arid oilfield near Tikrit that drills for crude
for the Exxon dude who discounts waste petroleum
to the loan shark who double-parks a pre-owned Cadillac
for the baker at La Reyna who delivers a baguette
to the painter who’s paid to caulk the pane of glass
in the fishing shack that sits on a pier by the Pacific.
But what if the window was never broken?
What if it broke but then was not repaired?
What other relative paths of usefulness or pay
might we enjoy, to keep us so fat and well prepared?
Written for Project Rendition performance at Momenta Art in Rendition Art Show, with David Levi Strauss and others, summer 2007.
