Economic Development Plan by Ken Poyner

I want you to be my economic whore.

I have plans to draw the life

Out of our ordinary citizens

And I need you to stroke

The back of my neck, tell me

It is for everyone's good. I need

To hear how the unity of disunion

Is struggle and how I would never

Break anyone's spirit by taking away

An opportunity for struggle. I am the driver

Of this train only, merely the master

Of this wagon, just the operator

Of this reaper. I need

For you to stand behind me,

Hands on my hips, your no more

Than biologically functioning lips

Pressed to my ear - half information,

Half sex - telling me it is the right thing:

That this is the right thing, that I am making

All creation better for everyone, and that I will

Gather praise in workday baskets: if only

From you, if only from me.

I take into my oligarchic keeping the hard

Hands of people who sweat to pay taxes

And when I imagine nothing of what I do

Is for them I can feel your fingers

At my belt, the panther reflection of your eyes,

The reassurance of luxuries yet to come.

Their children should be happy with scraps.

Author bio:

Ken Poyner has published several hundred poems in several dozen magazines. Work for the summer of 2011 is scheduled for “Fear of Monkeys”, “PANK”, “Pacific Review”, “Illumen”, “Sawbuck” and several other places. He is working on a poem series tentatively entitled “Having Your Robot and Eating Him, Too”. Ken’s wife just set 10 world records in power lifting and is largely the world’s premier female raw power lifter, at least in her weight division.