Socialist Realism

Communism is pure evil,
It offers no freedom. 
On the other hand –
Capitalism, is all about 
Choice and option.

And in our free world,
We have inalienable rights.
To choose life’s recourses –
Between rotting public schools
And swanky private elites.

We may pick universal healthcare, 
Or join the elite insurance systems.
In pursuit of happyness –    
We may select manual menial jobs
Over executive positions.

Foods with pesticides, 
Or those organic produces. 
We eat or live how we like – 
The choice to dwell in slums 
Or to reside in ancestral palaces.  

Between career woman blues, 
And becoming voluntary moms.
As we age, amidst senile decay –
The choice to work past retirement
Or to opt for vacation homes.      

To consume the books that tell the lies, 
Or to drop out of institutional favors. 
Between emerging heroes or misfits –   
Have the choice to swear patriotism
Or be condemned as living terrors. 

Its a free world and we are its voters,
Elect our destinies from the parties galore.
If realism offered no solace anyway – 
Like Paris Hilton’s t-shirt has the solution
We can party and “Stop Being Poor”.

- By Saswat Pattanayak