Revisionist Poetry – “Satirical” – Discussions #2, v.4

Three polished opinions in a row, bronze-kissed for tourist photo ops:
one is the orator—always on, voice sold separately—
one is the diplomat—measured, market-tested, certified non-offensive—
and one is the “silent partner,” trademarked for dramatic effect.

Plaque reads: “We represent nuance. Buy a postcard.”
First statue throws headlines like confetti: “Vote for clarity!”
Second replies with buffered clauses: “Let’s convene a committee.”
Third folds its hands and files a permit for a press release.

Passersby perform civic duty by taking selfies; algorithms applaud.
A politician pauses for obligatory reverence, straightens a tie, leaves a card.
The child who drops a scribble at their base is asked for a donation.
The scrap is recycled into a pamphlet: “How to Solve Everything — 3 Easy Steps.”

They dream of patrons; they dream of grants stamped in gold;
they dream of being hung in a hall where echoes are paid in fees.
Change, in this catalog, arrives on schedule: seasonal, refundable.
Art becomes a supplier of optics—clean, captioned, and branded.

Still, once in a while, the wind flips a brochure into a gutter—
and under the gloss, a seed (probably mislabeled) starts to do its job.
Marketing calls it “organic growth”; the statues call it inconvenient.
Either way, the plaza keeps filling with questions and QR codes.

—Pick a side, take a photo, sign the petition. The souvenir shop waits.