One man, aided and abetted by the archaic fear 
of being less than, chooses to rule uber alles
especially those darker, smarter, faster, more 
this or that. He starts a world war & almost wins. 
   
Peace seems to reign. Hope for equality, liberty, 
safety for all is renewed. Yet (this is the point)
Evil lays dormant, quietly planning. This time,
for eight decades, planning an enhanced agenda,

planning a new vocabulary. Loudly, Evil begins 
with the oldest of tropes: blame the other for 
whatever makes you feel diminished. Blame
the darker, smarter, those with different gods,

different ideas. Evil offers testimony for a world 
where rights for alles, meaning alles Aryan. (There, 
I said it out loud!) This cacophony of blame battles 
the smaller, quieter cacophony of rebellious protests.

The noise stuns for a moment yet vital questions 
remain: Will thinkers, protesters, the keenly 
observant learn, finally, to do more than run/move 
away when threatened? Will they do more to

convince those who deny there’s anything to worry
about that hell has begun? As ever, it’s up to you. 
Up to me. And here’s the kicker, that one man?
Then or now, he can’t keep a secret, he lets us

know what he wants, what he will do. The lessons 
are: (1) believe him and (2) become like him in one
particular way – – to plan our own necessary agenda 
to resist. May the sages, past and present, be heard.

Published in the 28th Annual Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) Poetry Issue of Poetry Super Highway.