Saturday, January 26, 2013

Danger: Diatribe



image borrowed from bing


Danger: Diatribe

“Most sermons sound to me like commercials--
but I can’t make out whether God is the Sponsor
or the Product.”---Mignon McLaughlin.

The Super Bowl is soon upon us;
the entire planet awaits not only the event,
but more specifically, the commercials.

Sponsors spent millions per second,
work for months on the planning
of their minute masterpieces,
line up spokes-singers like
Stevie Wonder, Adele, 
Lady Gaga, or Taylor Swift
to sell soft drinks, beer, cars, & insurance,
vie for profits, accolades, awards,
and controversy.

We can barely wait to witness
how many layers of lipstick Flo is wearing,
the absurd CGI adventures of a gecko,
witches in a broom factory,
and a sexy red Cadillac racing
through the streets of Monaco
or the mountain roads of Tibet,

as Madison Avenue prepares to instruct us
on fashion, morals, underwear, politics,
beverages, transportation, reverse mortgages,
ecology, fossil fuels, fast foods, erectile dysfunction,
diarrhea, and adult diapers.

We would like to believe that we
are not other-directed, that we
have a semblance of sales resistance,

but now that TV commercials
are shoved down our minds
in movie theaters, our prodigy
are paralyzed with name-brand quests,
and technology has successfully invaded
every niche, damp place, and wrinkle
of our lives, goddamn it, every day
we begin to look more like lemming
standing in mile-long lines
for the next available techno-cliff.


Glenn Buttkus

January 2013

Posted over on dVerse Poets-Poetics

Would you like to hear the author read this poem to you?

18 comments:

Brian Miller said...

the next available techno cliff...ha...true that...i will admit i watch the superbowl for the commercials as much as the game...ha...its all a big game though...wanna look beautiful, drink this...how much can i train your mind in 10 seconds...oh and thats a cool mil or more...lemmings indeed...

Claudia said...

ha...smiling at the intro quote...and the people who create the commercials are doing a clever job, playing with the emotions of the people..their hopes, dreams, fears.. well played glenn

Susan Daniels said...

Love it, Glenn. The makers of commercials have found the perfect audience for them in my son, who comes to me excited about stuff we don't need a few times a day. Of course, he has an excuse--he's 7.

Anonymous said...

I think advertising hit an all-time low here in the UK when one company tried to make "mobile-phone shame" (that's cell phones in the US) something we should be aware of - and which could only be cured by replacing our already adequate phones with one of their products.

Will the madness ever stop?

Unknown said...

That was deep man. The issues were well addressed. Nicely done!

Myrna R. said...

Love all of this and agree. Yet, I'm a product of these times and I'm sure I'm influenced by so much commercialism. You wrote such a good social commentary.

Dr. Pearl Ketover Prilik (PKP) said...

Truly a brilliant poem on a critical issue of our times that is only burgeoning even as we write - and I wait for an ad to pop up on the comment board or subliminally as I hit publish. Bravo!

Tashtoo said...

I think they should try sponsoring some poetry at half-time...I'd happily whip up a video at no charge...the opportunities to do good that are missed in the name of profit gets me ranting every time...smart, sharp and stinging...your words have bite...I like! :D

Mary said...

Yes indeed, everyone looks forward to the Super Bowl commercials, especially those whose favorite teams are NOT there (sigh). Sames crazy to spend so much $$ per minute though....but that, I suppose, is consumerism. I enjoyed your perspective.

Anonymous said...

I've never been one for sports..and not much TV either..it does seem like those commercials take more importance each year..and they are funny.

Unknown said...

very true. Nice passion in here. Spot on verse. Great read. Thanks

Dave King said...

We can barely wait to witness
how many layers of lipstick Flo is wearing,
the absurd CGI adventures of a gecko,
witches in a broom factory,
and a sexy red Cadillac racing
through the streets of Monaco
or the mountain roads of Tibet,

Sums it up beautifully.

Yiota Karioti said...

Ohhh i just love the ending to this. The whole poem is true, of course. But yes, we soon turn into lemmings heading for that next available techno cliff...and we always think at the same time that we are immuned to all this brain washing...so much for "freedom of choice" fairy tale...

Anonymous said...

Excellent political-social-cultural commentary

lucychili said...

yes. at least we do seem to be our own media. although we self select for things we have in common. eg. poetry =) so it is harder to find objective 'truth'. great read

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