Per

photography  E X Q U I S I T E  C O R P S E

sharpens knives
just to exhaust the wet stone

no cuts into that side
no sword slipped lastly between the ribs

breaking off exacto blades
we heard that's what the neo-fascists do in Moscow

between the ribs

we heard they sweep the streets in Warsaw
we heard they wear suits now
    heard they always did
and appear on television

run in elections
run elections

maybe a punctured lung
when leaks mean nothing
air into air

the breathy language of political forecast
opinions about the weather
callous self congratulation
    saw it coming
or gaping denial
    how could this have happened
whichever is sexier at the micro moment

thin thin blades
layer cakes of argument
don't need a sword to slice a cake
can't eat a decent piece of logic
so cuts teeth on cookies sheets

    own own content

    Remember me on this computer

sharp sugarless baking
and learns to talk a mouthful 
until the wet stone dries
and knives in disuse rust 
from the moisture in the air