"Overheard by a Democrat at the RNC...," "A Polygraph...," and "A Series of Active Inquiries in the Wake of Apple's Delivery"
Overheard by a Democrat at the RNC
or a Comment Uttered while Waiting at a Deli Counter?
- What the Hell is taking so long?
- Is it still alive?
- Is it fresh?
- Too bitter.
- Too old.
- Too salty.
- Thin cut, please.
- It wasn’t good the first time.
- Cut the crap.
- That’s false advertising!
- Ticket?
- Watch the weight.
- Eew, that stinks.
- Too high a price.
- I forget what I came in for.
- Next!
A Polygraph,
of s(p)orts (in four parts)
- Recite your name.
- Name your emotional state.
- State your place of origin.
- Describe your date of birth.
- Is blood thicker than water?
- Are family trees rooted in soil?
- Do hearts beat in chambers?
In isolation? - What is the color of pressure?
Does pressure modify color?
- Is reporting more or less reliable
than reports of truths everlasting? - Are obstacles overt?
Are covert obstacles more, or less, truth or hurt? - Do questions presented as a series raise concerns?
- Distinguish reform from familiar verbs.
- Is “No” a complete sentence?
- Is “Yes?” a query or a conversation?
- Clarify the term of an undesirable condition.
- Do assaults have a defined end?
- Do all endings have beginnings?
- True/False:
Electric signals are personal indicators. - Do bunny slippers reveal personal indicators?
- Define an electric syndication of worth.
- Is the word survivor more noun or verb?
- Respond with one word.
When is truth overheard?
- When privacy is stolen,
what does one put in their purse? - Define bill. Is truth bought or sold?
- If polygraphs puncture precarious states of truth,
why is their use perpetuated? - Stop. Erase all responses.
- To return truths to their original homes,
which compass dial direction is needed?
A Series of Active Inquiries in the Wake of Apple’s Delivery
- Popeye Goes for Green
when I first heard “AI”,
I thought of Popeye –
if only a can of spinach
could save humanity
I took a bite
and quickly realized,
the can was stocked
of worms and worry
- On (Spinach’s) Limits
I wonder what Popeye
would think of AI –
spinach only
an inch (4 consonants) removed
from pain,
and
a single nutrient (t) removed
from itch
if the can, once opened,
can never again be sealed,
what happens when the nutrients
are more greedy than green
- Things I did While the Apple Dropped from the Tree
- debated the nutritional limits of spinach
- held up my chin during Congressional testimony
- contemplated how many decimals north of the bottom is AI’s conscience
- explored spinach’s origins (internal data points more revealing than the container)
nap chin spin
snap pain inch
pinch chains panics
- On (Spinach’s) Limits
even Popeye’s spinach
has nutritional limits
too much of a good thing?
someone asks
No, I reply.
I believe it’s an allergy
Source: Apple’s Conference
With a fresh shipment of AI, this time in an apple bushel, I’m increasingly fearful of the bite of the tool.
Jen Schneider is a community college educator who lives, works, and writes in small spaces in and around Philadelphia. She served as the 2022 Montgomery County (Pennsylvania) Poet Laureate. She recommends Philly ASAP.