Tag Archives: language

Squawk Transmission 1 & 2

Posted on March 3, 2026 by JMN

By this time I should have acquired enough sense to realize that the cause of wars is sin.(Thomas Merton, The Seven-Storey Mountain) GREENLAND FROTTAGEThe sub-scalpal domain north of the eyeballsIs given to a chronic restivenessnessSharp as a rhinoceros’s horn.It knows … Continue reading →

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Glimpses and Manias (I’m So All About This Painting)

Posted on February 28, 2026 by JMN

This thumping doodle by Lee Krasner — whatever it is, I like it, not least because it looks like some kind of writing devised by a sensibility going for broke. For that matter it could be the shower tile of … Continue reading →

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(The Ruler Protests the Land That He Rules)

Posted on February 26, 2026 by JMN

(The ruler protests the land that he rules.)Don’t tar my riff, piggy, snarls the boar.Blast the damned Beatitudes with gas!(The ruler protests the land that he tools.)Blare the Ten Commandments in the schools!Your cities are the Sodoms of Gomorre!(The ruler … Continue reading →

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The Gentleman From Kentucky Rises to Eruct

Posted on February 23, 2026 by JMN

“Eruct” is a cultismo in English but common currency in Spanish as “eructar.” It means “to belch.” Let’s conjugate! ¡Conjuguemos! Present IndicativeI belch — eructo (eructas, eructa, eructamos, eructáis, eructan)Preterite IndicativeI belched — eructé (eructaste, eructó, eructamos, eructasteis, eructaron)Imperfect IndicativeI … Continue reading →

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Elephants Are Eminently Sentient

Posted on February 21, 2026 by JMN

ELEPHANTS ARE EMINENTLY SENTIENT Of course they are, you ninny. So is anAmoeba in its way. But these big beastsIn magnitude are titans of sweetness;Matriarchal, family prone, pacific,Communicative browsing herbivores. Pressed upon a time into the miseryOf cock-besotted, bipedal mammalians,Elephants … Continue reading →

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Degrees, Accolades, Publications, Affiliations (DAPA)

Posted on February 17, 2026 by JMN

DAPA and something about gender orientation and ethnicity are common data points in Poetry’s thumbnail profiles of contributors to the magazine. They’re like snapshots of bodybuilders flexed for pose-off. Musculature duly noted, but here’s what’s truly interesting: How do you … Continue reading →

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Upon this Slab Build Ye a Breakaway Church

Posted on February 13, 2026 by JMN

If I named God, I would name him more like a boatthan a dog, but more like a dog than a dead relative.(Leslie Sainz, from “When I imitate myself, I am a number of certain people,” Poetry, January-February 2026) The … Continue reading →

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Translation of ‘October With Wings’ by Azurea20

Posted on February 7, 2026 by JMN

“Translating a piece of verse can be the sincerest way of reading it.” Huda J. Fakhreddine No sé. I don’t know. They’re important words in any language. I know that I feel, if not what I feel, when a poem … Continue reading →

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Annals of Journalism

Posted on February 4, 2026 by JMN

Some burger joint names are hard to pin down. The following excerpt is from MySA (“My San Antonio”). Whataburger rival ramps up expansion with new $1M Texas outpost. This is the third Shack Shack coming to the Austin area in … Continue reading →

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Fire in the Casus Belly

Posted on February 1, 2026 by JMN

The Secretary of War and the Commander of War mustered the Brass at the Department of War. First the SOWThen the COWSettled the hashGood and properOf the BrassAt the DOW.B-B-B-BOOM!K-K-K-POW!NOBEL FOR PEACE!N-N-N-NOW! (c) 2025 JMN — EthicalDative. All rights reserved

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