{"id":2595,"date":"2016-11-22T13:03:25","date_gmt":"2016-11-22T18:03:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/toppun.com\/blog\/?p=2595"},"modified":"2016-11-22T13:03:25","modified_gmt":"2016-11-22T18:03:25","slug":"poem-that-arguable-grip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toppun.com\/blog\/2016\/11\/22\/poem-that-arguable-grip\/","title":{"rendered":"POEM: That Arguable Grip"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>He argued<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Fore cynicism<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Farced to choose between<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>What&#8217;s left<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>What is right<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>And he one handily<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>With won hand tied behind his back<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Soundly <\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Like the slow clap<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>With the only hope<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>That he is not contagious<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>And that joy can be found in abandon<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>In the grip of whatever he comes up with<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This poem continues in my perpetual theme of cynicism versus hope, with a tip of the hat to the post-election ennui experienced by much of the American electorate and non-electorate. \u00a0Like I have been known to say: cynicism is its own reward. \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Religious-Spiritual\/Buttons\/Got-Cynicism-SPIRITUAL-BUTTON.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Religious-Spiritual\/Got-Cynicism.gif\" alt=\"Got Cynicism SPIRITUAL BUTTON\" width=\"173\" height=\"173\" \/><\/a>This poem awards cynicism with one of my favorite insulting critiques: cynicism is like masturbation, except without the short-term pleasures or long-term benefits. \u00a0While experiencing the grip of cynicism qualifies as normal, cynicism strikes me as a profoundly maladaptive response to building a long-term, hope-filled relationship with reality. \u00a0If you argue for cynicism, on whose side are you on? \u00a0Of course, misery loves company. \u00a0Incorporate that company in your worldview and you win amputated possibilities and learned helplessness. \u00a0Cynicism is locked in lamentable necessity and wretched necessities. \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Religious-Spiritual\/Buttons\/The-cynic-says-One-man-can-t-do-anything-I-say-Only-one-man-can-do-anything-John-W-Gardner-quote-SPIRITUAL-BUTTON.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Religious-Spiritual\/The-cynic-says-One-man-can-t-do-anything-I-say-Only-one-man-can-do-anything-John-W-Gardner-quote.gif\" alt=\"The cynic says, 'One man can't do anything.' I say, 'Only one man can do anything.' John W. Gardner quote SPIRITUAL BUTTON\" width=\"172\" height=\"172\" \/><\/a>Hope lives in possibility and possibilities ordered by our deepest dreams. \u00a0Hope accepts the hard work of recognizing that our stymied yearnings are more of a reflection of the depth of our longings than mirror confirmation of our foes&#8217; oafishness. \u00a0Cynicism is fueled by the easy focus on others&#8217; shortcomings. \u00a0Hope is fed by the steadfast convergence of dreams and dreamers. \u00a0It is easy to fall for seasons of cynicism and its many accomplices; I only ask that we keep the spring of hope in the lineup and work to swell\u00a0the list of usual suspects&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Peace\/Buttons\/Enthusiasm-Trumps-Cynicism-PEACE-BUTTON.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Peace\/Enthusiasm-Trumps-Cynicism.gif\" alt=\"Enthusiasm Trumps Cynicism PEACE BUTTON\" width=\"172\" height=\"173\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Political\/Buttons\/The-first-step-in-the-evolution-of-ethics-is-a-sense-of-solidarity-with-other-human-beings-Albert-Schweitzer-quote-POLITICAL-BUTTON.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/toppun.com\/Political\/The-first-step-in-the-evolution-of-ethics-is-a-sense-of-solidarity-with-other-human-beings-Albert-Schweitzer-quote.gif\" alt=\"The first step in the evolution of ethics is a sense of solidarity with other human beings -- Albert Schweitzer quote POLITICAL BUTTON\" width=\"172\" height=\"173\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>He argued Fore cynicism Farced to choose between What&#8217;s left What is right And he one handily With won hand tied behind his back Soundly Like the slow clap With the only hope That he is not contagious And that &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/toppun.com\/blog\/2016\/11\/22\/poem-that-arguable-grip\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,9,15],"tags":[458,393,410,388,79,132,658,94,424,601,380,550],"class_list":["post-2595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-funny-poems","category-poems","category-political-and-philosophical-musings","tag-cynicism","tag-dreams","tag-helplessness","tag-hope","tag-joy","tag-normal","tag-poems","tag-poetry","tag-possibility","tag-reality","tag-work","tag-worldview"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>POEM: That Arguable Grip | Funny Poems, Poems, Political and Philosophical Musings | Top Pun&#039;s Poetry, Funny Puns, Free Posters, Public Health Radio Show! 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