counting black sheep by Marek Lugowski
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19.
the state of alabama took a man
with an iq of sixty nine
strapped him
tied him
fastened him
lodged him
secured him
isolated him
isolated him very very well
a bit too well actually...
into the electric chair and threw the switch
but
because of the faulty connection
the jolt was not enough
to kill him.
as he slumped in his chair
apparently unconscious
workers fixed the cables
apologetic workers fixed the cables
apologetic state of alabama fixed the cables
yo. the people of the great state of alabama
rested their judeo-christian case
and the people of alabama fixed them christian cables
and the switch was thrown
again.
this time
this second time
twenty one hundred volts
21 times 10 to the second
power
dropped
on the unbroken heart of
mr. franklin dunkins jr.
mister heartbreak franklin dunkins. junior.
nineteen minutes after his ghastly
ordeal had begun,
mister dunkins was dead.
was dead. was dead. was debt.
if this isn't cruel and unusual punishment
what is?
59.
as governor of california from 1959 to 1967
mister edmund g. (pat) brown. had to decide 59 times
to gas or not to gas that is
the question.
whether tis nobler in the mind
to suffer the swings and arrows of
outrageous... fortune...
2.
while we are on this fascinating subject
let us recall
fondly
mister willie francis's execution:
mister francis a 17-year old black youth
he survived you know.
well you didn't know
most likely
but survive he did you know
the first execution.
yes sir.
now you know. bbbzzzzzzit.
ruba dub dub. rub a dub dub.
rub a dub dub-dub
rub a dub dub.
it's willie's day. willie
wakes up and willie says...
i look around... it's love... i look around again...
it's fear...
hmm strange dream.
a new death warrant was signed and a year later
in his second trip to the electric chair
the electrifying chair
our majesty who art in hell
the most electrical chair
i am. henry the eighth. henry the eighth henry
the eighth i
am i am. i am...
in chair we thrust
i am.
he died. kraniec filma.
in georgia. in 1984.
mister alpha otis stephens struggled
for breath for eight minutes
that's 8 x 60 seconds equals 480 seconds plus:
gentle. men. there is a kind of usual
roundoff error in this punishment for
after the first two mean-nut surge was administered
his cells just had to be scrambled more thoroughly
a second time. that's all.
mr. raymond landry of texas. december 1988.
had the bad malpractice luck
of having the lethal injection procedure done
such
that
the needle popped out of his spasming alive
muscular forearm
oozing the seed of death. rejected by the rigor not quite
mortis of this inappropriate and unwilling vagina. yup.
well ray's arm ain't no dang pussy. it resisted.
pop!
squirts the klean phloor with poizonnnnn.
poor mr. executioner. poor mr. landry.
poor mr. janitor.
poor messrs. witnesses. poor ms. justice. she was not
yet satisfied...
she was not -- fucked well -- no sir. not at all.
the needle had to be reinserted and mr.
landry
had to
spasm. for. a few. more. minutes than.
one of them nice humane texan bullettes
would have takennnnn. ku klux.
3.
the question is not
what
whom
when
to kill. to kill. to keel.
the question is not
what
whom
when
they killed. they killed. they kilt.
the question is whether those of us
who are not criminals
want to be responsible
for inflicting horrifying acts
on them. on them. condemned.
10-4.
step right up ladies & gentlemen.
step right up! step right. step
up.
Copyright 1990 Marek Lugowski
Published September 1997
Apple and Oranges International Poetry Magazine
Maine, USA, Tom Fallon, editor.
-- Marek Lugowski
editor of A Small Garlic Press
5445 Sheridan Road 3003
Chicago, IL 60640
my home pages:
http://www.enteract.com/~marek/
http://homepage.mac.com/marek_lugowski/
