Category Archives: Anthology

My collected writings and those of family members.

‘Our Lady of the Westside” by Antonio López

Posted on December 15, 2023 by JMN

“When Davis’s poems are poetry, they are powerful.” (Langston Hughes, on Frank Marshall Davis) I’ve no basis for discerning what’s verse and what’s poetry other than whether it jostles a personal needle. I compare a poetry moment (loosely) to another … Continue reading →

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Poetry Isn’t About

Posted on December 10, 2023 by JMN

I read verses that stir me,but can’t remember what they said.They don’t mean what they say,they are what they say.I read them again to be stirred;they keep not meaning, only being,leaving in my mind a memoryof being stirred by words.Grasping … Continue reading →

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‘Truth’ Is Straight-Up Naked, Dude

Posted on November 25, 2023 by JMN

“You have said the actual truth.” (Musk) (Michelle Goldberg, “Why on Earth Are Jewish Leaders Praising Elon Musk?” New York Times, 11-20-23) UNSTABLE GENIUSES, THEY GO AND COMEThe dude bogarts a joint and jinxes X,hocks the truth with loogies of … Continue reading →

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‘Cuando Me Vaya’ by Javier Sánchez

Posted on November 20, 2023 by JMN

The Spanish text I translate to English here is from Las palabras de Javier (November 16, 2023). In reading poetry of the day I brace for being left in the lurch, for being denied more than a cerebral engagement, at … Continue reading →

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Badonkadonks, Ta-Tas and Bunga Bunga

Posted on November 10, 2023 by JMN

Italian prime minister Georgia Meloni is in the news for rinsing her hands of longtime, live-in boyfriend Andrea Giambruno, caught prospecting for group sex. Reportage has reached again for bunga bunga, which keeps this reliable trope of male-hormonal culture merrily … Continue reading →

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Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Backside

Posted on November 7, 2023 by JMN

“The whole secret of politics is knowing who hates who.” (Kevin Phillips) “MY pronoun,” said Cruz, “is ‘kiss my ass.’”On Ted’s form of address I’ll take a pass.A smooch bestowed on the croup of this solonis honor paid to the … Continue reading →

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‘After the Music, We Want Meaning’

Posted on November 4, 2023 by JMN

“We love the balance and control of rhyme even if it unbalances us, but, after the music, we want meaning.” (Adam Gopnik) When Adam Gopnik writes, “No prosody can immunize poetry against the test of experience… What’s always at stake … Continue reading →

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Keening in the Key of Claws (‘We’re Out of Things to Say’)

Posted on November 2, 2023 by JMN

“The guns are available and the targets are soft.” (Stephen King) Been to the broke-heart mountain.Been to the Jesus well.Thoughts and prayersfor the Shepherd’s cause,the Founders’ flaws,the House of Laws,from We the People’s hell. (c) 2023 JMN — EthicalDative. All … Continue reading →

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Otiose Odium Yodel

Posted on October 29, 2023 by JMN

“Trashing his opponents and setting his huge fan base on them is a tactic Trump has used for years.” (The Guardian) The person who commits lèse majestéon the pugnacious lord of Magalagoincurs a stiff barrage of coo-coo ack-ackfrom keyboard hoplites … Continue reading →

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Decasílabos Sigilosos

Posted on October 26, 2023 by JMN

My favorite Spanish word is sigiloso.It comes to me unbidden of a suddenfrom that place frondoso in my noggin,the quarter that is menos lugareño,con tan poco apego to the localthat I can be exotically vocal. Resulta que me_evoca English “sigil,”a … Continue reading →

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