POSITIVE POETRY

Dear Santa Monica Mirror,

I offer this poetry effort to you mostly as a consequence of Tom
Elias' insightful piece in this week's issue of the Mirror ("No Good
Reason for Medipot Decision Counter to Voters' Wishes," July 10-16).
Perhaps poetry can achieve something positive to address the
prohibition that prosaic efforts have not.

It's a persona song, wherein the speaker/protagonist is a Drug
Enforcement Agent addressing his superior.

Sincerely,

Ivan

LYIN' JOHN P. WALTERS MARIJUANA BLUES

If you use, you lose

You're gonna get the blues

Federal pens and yada yada

John P. Walters

Man never falters

Ringer for Anslinger, who learned from

Torquemada

Stay off the Grass

Or he'll kick yo' ass

Yo' Uncle Sammy is in charge

Prepare for war

Forever more

Al Qaeda's gonna stay at large

The Berry ain't Mary

Jane, join the military

Enroll with the Border Guard

Or become a cop

You can kill some slop

And hide dem bones in a lumber yard

But don't smoke Weed

Thicky sticky seed

You know our Bible says it's so

Prepare for attack

Har Megiddo, Iraq

Anytown, and anywhere we wanna go

Compassionate care

Won't clean the air

We know 'bout the Purple Haze

We'll fix your cell

In a prison hell

So you can learn some Christian ways

Ya, nice to be high

Confuse and spy

That's why we-they-we call it "dope"

Save yo' soul

For a holy roll

Good Lord of love might be yo' hope

Bud helps stress

Don't say "Yes"

Drug corporations, Yo!

And the Daily Beat

And the Weekly Beat

There's even things dat dey don't know

So, if you use, you lose

Stay off the Green Grass

Berry ain't merry

Jane, don't smoke Weed

Compassionate caring, and nice to be high

Buds be bad, and it's all a lie!

Ivan Smason