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Tuesday, November 28, 2006

POSEURS IN VIET NAM

by Bonnie Naradzay


Mr. Bush, bedecked in the conical hat
of a paddy farmer and Asian sky-blue
garb, looked comical and worry-free
at the Heads of Countries photo-op.

Standing next to Putin, in matching hues,
he ribbed the man once head of the KGB
who'd just decreed the death by poison
for a London-based critic of his ruthless style.

Speaking in Ho Chi Minh City, Bush praised
the country for triumphing over certain
obstacles to be our steady trading partner.

"Democracy may take a while but wins out
in the end," he gushed. And Agent Orange
still disfigures the little children born here.


Bonnie Naradzay is a degree candidate at the Stonecoast MFA Program, having earned her M.A. over 35 years ago. She has a poem accepted for publication in JAMA and has published in many online journals, including Salt River Review, Beltway Quarterly, Innisfree, Potomac Journal, and Convergence.