April 13, What Should We Do with Vladimir?

 

Whatever must we do with Vladimir

To hasten him onto his funeral bier?

His goal is the destruction of Ukraine

And, to that end he’s dropping bombs like rain.

 

When leaders of a country start a war

And leave behind just rubble, death, and gore,

Just for whatever reason they deem fit,

Must we just let them get away with it?

 

Because you wear a crown, is it okay

To bomb and murder and not have to pay?

To leave your murder victims where they lie,

Denying what you did, a brazen lie?

 

That is the set of facts that we now face,

The evidence is clear: rock solid case.

Though Joseph Stalin was allowed to thrive, (1)

Does that mean Vladimir should stay alive?

 

You can’t remove dictators with a vote.

Though revolution is an antidote,

Assassination means a fatal end,

So make damn sure you know what you intend.

 

Though Putin has a stranglehold on power,

Does he remember Caesar’s final hour?

Is there a “Brutus” in the Russian court

Who’ll end the reign of Vladimir the Short?

 

And, after Putin, then what might come next?

If curious, consult a history text,

When Rome erupted in a civil war,

The Senate and the People ruled no more. (2)

 

Augustus, “Imperator,” won the fight,

The promise for democracy: not bright:

The emperors who followed, often nuts,

More reigns were shortened by unkindly cuts.

 

• Joseph Stalin died in bed at 75.
• Senatus Populusque Romanus, (SPQR) “The Senate and Roman People,” the motto of the Roman republic, which ended with Caesar’s assassination.