The growing absurdity of celebrating Jesus Christ's birthday in America's national capital.

Christmas in Washington D.C.

Washington D.C. is experiencing a colossal Depression of spirit, as the fiscal cliff  Looms ever closer, and the politicians refuse to cooperate, their own money's aplenty  (plus Retirement benefits), and with the cold rain...

The district never looked grayer, the sky

Is slate colored and all of those concrete

Hulks of administrative buildings create

Canyons to walk through, the only points of

Light being the anti-nuclear vigil in front

Of the White House, and Veterans for Peace vigiling a block north at the VA building.

And that is it! The rest is hopeless, as

Holiday decorations add a surreal touch

With north pole motifs and candy canes in

Department store windows, blinking strands 

Of colored lights surround grinning reindeer

Pulling Santa's sleigh hauling merry elves

With bulging sacks of electronic toys and

Small fir trees in windows decorated with

Every image pop culture ever conjured up,

But there is no place for peace and justice

Activists because years ago the Metropolitan

Police raided the radical Olive Branch Catholic

 Worker House, forcing the owner to sell, so

Now it's four condominiums, and ya know what?

Somebody needs to quickly alert the Federal

Government that Jesus Christ is still the

Reason for the season, and there is only

Eleven days left before Christmas.

Craig Louis Stehr

14.XII.'12