Can you spare $2000-5000?

No? That's about how much of your money George W. Bush wants to give to Wall Street with his trillion-dollar bailout funded by taxpayers. What would you get for it? Pretty much nothing. CREDO thinks you -- all of us -- deserve better. Read some of the suggestions for making a fair deal and preventing future disasters, and nag your representatives to put some firm conditions on any money used for bailouts. After all, America is supposed to be a democracy, not an auction!

The following message came to me from CREDO:

No blank check for Wall Street.
If Wall Street firms can't meet a few basic conditions, they can get their money somewhere else.

Can your family spare a few thousand dollars for President Bush's Wall Street pals?
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=11

Congress is on the brink of making a one-sided deal to give George W. Bush a blank check -- offering nearly (or perhaps more than) a trillion taxpayer dollars to Wall Street to cover its bad debts. That works out tosomewhere between $2000 and $5000 from every American family. So what do the taxpayers get in return?

Nothing. No new regulation or oversight to help avoid this kind of crisis in the future. No public interest givebacks to help people whose homes are in the hands of the banks. Perhaps most shockingly of all, the taxpayers get absolutely no share in the profits if and when these finance giants bounce back, even though we are now assuming a great deal of the risk.

This is worse than a bad deal -- this isn't a deal at all. This is a blank check to some of the richest companies in the world.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=12

There is some good news, though: Congress doesn't have to agreet to a blank check. Instead, it can choose to impose a few sensible conditions on the bailout to ensure that it will be used responsibly. Here are a few suggestions courtesy of Robert Reich:

1. If the taxpayers are shouldering the risk, the taxpayers should reap any eventual benefits. We accomplish this by giving the government an equity stake in every company we bail out proportionate to the amount we give them.

2. If we're paying (more than) our fair share, the CEOs and executives should have to, too. All of the fat cats who got us into this mess should relinquish their stock options and salaries until they start showing us, their investors, that they can once again be profitable. Future salaries should be linked to profitability.

3. No more campaign contributions from Wall Street executives and PACs. Taxpayer dollars should be used to get our nation out of a crisis. They cannot be used to fund giant, powerful lobby operations that will be used to strong arm Congress into making bad policy.

4. Better regulations start right now. Wall Street can't expect to take thousands of dollars out of your paycheck without agreeing to increased transparency and more stringent oversight -- the kind that might have helped avoid this mess to begin with.

5. Bankruptcy judges get broader leeway to help homeowners. Why should we lose our homes so the CEOs can keep theirs?

If Wall Street doesn't like these conditions, then it is welcome to find private investors to help it out of this debacle. But if the American people are going to take this hit, then we must have a say in the terms of the deal -- even if we don't have an army of high-paid lobbyists at our disposal like they do.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=13

Congress must take swift and prudent action to avoid making a burgeoning crisis that much worse. You can help by making your voice heard to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Finance Chair Barney Frank, Senate Banking Chair Chris Dodd, and the de facto leaders of the two parties: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.

Click here to tell our elected officials that they are responsible to the taxpayers, not the Wall Street firms who line their campaign war chests. We can't afford to write another blank check for George W. Bush.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=14

Thank you for working to build a better world.

Kate Stayman-London, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=10&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=15
from Working Assets

Source:

1. What Wall Street Should Do To Get Its Blank Check
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1607&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=16
by Robert Reich

Can you spare $2000-5000?

No? That's about how much of your money George W. Bush wants to give to Wall Street with his trillion-dollar bailout funded by taxpayers. What would you get for it? Pretty much nothing. CREDO thinks you -- all of us -- deserve better. Read some of the suggestions for making a fair deal and preventing future disasters, and nag your representatives to put some firm conditions on any money used for bailouts. After all, America is supposed to be a democracy, not an auction!

The following message came to me from CREDO:

No blank check for Wall Street.
If Wall Street firms can't meet a few basic conditions, they can get their money somewhere else.

Can your family spare a few thousand dollars for President Bush's Wall Street pals?
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=11

Congress is on the brink of making a one-sided deal to give George W. Bush a blank check -- offering nearly (or perhaps more than) a trillion taxpayer dollars to Wall Street to cover its bad debts. That works out tosomewhere between $2000 and $5000 from every American family. So what do the taxpayers get in return?

Nothing. No new regulation or oversight to help avoid this kind of crisis in the future. No public interest givebacks to help people whose homes are in the hands of the banks. Perhaps most shockingly of all, the taxpayers get absolutely no share in the profits if and when these finance giants bounce back, even though we are now assuming a great deal of the risk.

This is worse than a bad deal -- this isn't a deal at all. This is a blank check to some of the richest companies in the world.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=12

There is some good news, though: Congress doesn't have to agreet to a blank check. Instead, it can choose to impose a few sensible conditions on the bailout to ensure that it will be used responsibly. Here are a few suggestions courtesy of Robert Reich:

1. If the taxpayers are shouldering the risk, the taxpayers should reap any eventual benefits. We accomplish this by giving the government an equity stake in every company we bail out proportionate to the amount we give them.

2. If we're paying (more than) our fair share, the CEOs and executives should have to, too. All of the fat cats who got us into this mess should relinquish their stock options and salaries until they start showing us, their investors, that they can once again be profitable. Future salaries should be linked to profitability.

3. No more campaign contributions from Wall Street executives and PACs. Taxpayer dollars should be used to get our nation out of a crisis. They cannot be used to fund giant, powerful lobby operations that will be used to strong arm Congress into making bad policy.

4. Better regulations start right now. Wall Street can't expect to take thousands of dollars out of your paycheck without agreeing to increased transparency and more stringent oversight -- the kind that might have helped avoid this mess to begin with.

5. Bankruptcy judges get broader leeway to help homeowners. Why should we lose our homes so the CEOs can keep theirs?

If Wall Street doesn't like these conditions, then it is welcome to find private investors to help it out of this debacle. But if the American people are going to take this hit, then we must have a say in the terms of the deal -- even if we don't have an army of high-paid lobbyists at our disposal like they do.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=13

Congress must take swift and prudent action to avoid making a burgeoning crisis that much worse. You can help by making your voice heard to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Finance Chair Barney Frank, Senate Banking Chair Chris Dodd, and the de facto leaders of the two parties: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.

Click here to tell our elected officials that they are responsible to the taxpayers, not the Wall Street firms who line their campaign war chests. We can't afford to write another blank check for George W. Bush.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=14

Thank you for working to build a better world.

Kate Stayman-London, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=10&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=15
from Working Assets

Source:

1. What Wall Street Should Do To Get Its Blank Check
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1607&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=16
by Robert Reich

Can you spare $2000-5000?

No? That's about how much of your money George W. Bush wants to give to Wall Street with his trillion-dollar bailout funded by taxpayers. What would you get for it? Pretty much nothing. CREDO thinks you -- all of us -- deserve better. Read some of the suggestions for making a fair deal and preventing future disasters, and nag your representatives to put some firm conditions on any money used for bailouts. After all, America is supposed to be a democracy, not an auction!

The following message came to me from CREDO:

No blank check for Wall Street.
If Wall Street firms can't meet a few basic conditions, they can get their money somewhere else.

Can your family spare a few thousand dollars for President Bush's Wall Street pals?
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=11

Congress is on the brink of making a one-sided deal to give George W. Bush a blank check -- offering nearly (or perhaps more than) a trillion taxpayer dollars to Wall Street to cover its bad debts. That works out tosomewhere between $2000 and $5000 from every American family. So what do the taxpayers get in return?

Nothing. No new regulation or oversight to help avoid this kind of crisis in the future. No public interest givebacks to help people whose homes are in the hands of the banks. Perhaps most shockingly of all, the taxpayers get absolutely no share in the profits if and when these finance giants bounce back, even though we are now assuming a great deal of the risk.

This is worse than a bad deal -- this isn't a deal at all. This is a blank check to some of the richest companies in the world.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=12

There is some good news, though: Congress doesn't have to agreet to a blank check. Instead, it can choose to impose a few sensible conditions on the bailout to ensure that it will be used responsibly. Here are a few suggestions courtesy of Robert Reich:

1. If the taxpayers are shouldering the risk, the taxpayers should reap any eventual benefits. We accomplish this by giving the government an equity stake in every company we bail out proportionate to the amount we give them.

2. If we're paying (more than) our fair share, the CEOs and executives should have to, too. All of the fat cats who got us into this mess should relinquish their stock options and salaries until they start showing us, their investors, that they can once again be profitable. Future salaries should be linked to profitability.

3. No more campaign contributions from Wall Street executives and PACs. Taxpayer dollars should be used to get our nation out of a crisis. They cannot be used to fund giant, powerful lobby operations that will be used to strong arm Congress into making bad policy.

4. Better regulations start right now. Wall Street can't expect to take thousands of dollars out of your paycheck without agreeing to increased transparency and more stringent oversight -- the kind that might have helped avoid this mess to begin with.

5. Bankruptcy judges get broader leeway to help homeowners. Why should we lose our homes so the CEOs can keep theirs?

If Wall Street doesn't like these conditions, then it is welcome to find private investors to help it out of this debacle. But if the American people are going to take this hit, then we must have a say in the terms of the deal -- even if we don't have an army of high-paid lobbyists at our disposal like they do.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=13

Congress must take swift and prudent action to avoid making a burgeoning crisis that much worse. You can help by making your voice heard to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Finance Chair Barney Frank, Senate Banking Chair Chris Dodd, and the de facto leaders of the two parties: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.

Click here to tell our elected officials that they are responsible to the taxpayers, not the Wall Street firms who line their campaign war chests. We can't afford to write another blank check for George W. Bush.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=14

Thank you for working to build a better world.

Kate Stayman-London, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=10&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=15
from Working Assets

Source:

1. What Wall Street Should Do To Get Its Blank Check
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1607&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=16
by Robert Reich

Can you spare $2000-5000?

No? That's about how much of your money George W. Bush wants to give to Wall Street with his trillion-dollar bailout funded by taxpayers. What would you get for it? Pretty much nothing. CREDO thinks you -- all of us -- deserve better. Read some of the suggestions for making a fair deal and preventing future disasters, and nag your representatives to put some firm conditions on any money used for bailouts. After all, America is supposed to be a democracy, not an auction!

The following message came to me from CREDO:

No blank check for Wall Street.
If Wall Street firms can't meet a few basic conditions, they can get their money somewhere else.

Can your family spare a few thousand dollars for President Bush's Wall Street pals?
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=11

Congress is on the brink of making a one-sided deal to give George W. Bush a blank check -- offering nearly (or perhaps more than) a trillion taxpayer dollars to Wall Street to cover its bad debts. That works out tosomewhere between $2000 and $5000 from every American family. So what do the taxpayers get in return?

Nothing. No new regulation or oversight to help avoid this kind of crisis in the future. No public interest givebacks to help people whose homes are in the hands of the banks. Perhaps most shockingly of all, the taxpayers get absolutely no share in the profits if and when these finance giants bounce back, even though we are now assuming a great deal of the risk.

This is worse than a bad deal -- this isn't a deal at all. This is a blank check to some of the richest companies in the world.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=12

There is some good news, though: Congress doesn't have to agreet to a blank check. Instead, it can choose to impose a few sensible conditions on the bailout to ensure that it will be used responsibly. Here are a few suggestions courtesy of Robert Reich:

1. If the taxpayers are shouldering the risk, the taxpayers should reap any eventual benefits. We accomplish this by giving the government an equity stake in every company we bail out proportionate to the amount we give them.

2. If we're paying (more than) our fair share, the CEOs and executives should have to, too. All of the fat cats who got us into this mess should relinquish their stock options and salaries until they start showing us, their investors, that they can once again be profitable. Future salaries should be linked to profitability.

3. No more campaign contributions from Wall Street executives and PACs. Taxpayer dollars should be used to get our nation out of a crisis. They cannot be used to fund giant, powerful lobby operations that will be used to strong arm Congress into making bad policy.

4. Better regulations start right now. Wall Street can't expect to take thousands of dollars out of your paycheck without agreeing to increased transparency and more stringent oversight -- the kind that might have helped avoid this mess to begin with.

5. Bankruptcy judges get broader leeway to help homeowners. Why should we lose our homes so the CEOs can keep theirs?

If Wall Street doesn't like these conditions, then it is welcome to find private investors to help it out of this debacle. But if the American people are going to take this hit, then we must have a say in the terms of the deal -- even if we don't have an army of high-paid lobbyists at our disposal like they do.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=13

Congress must take swift and prudent action to avoid making a burgeoning crisis that much worse. You can help by making your voice heard to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Finance Chair Barney Frank, Senate Banking Chair Chris Dodd, and the de facto leaders of the two parties: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.

Click here to tell our elected officials that they are responsible to the taxpayers, not the Wall Street firms who line their campaign war chests. We can't afford to write another blank check for George W. Bush.
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1606&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=14

Thank you for working to build a better world.

Kate Stayman-London, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=10&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=15
from Working Assets

Source:

1. What Wall Street Should Do To Get Its Blank Check
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=1607&id=912-1494698-RT7uk9x&t=16
by Robert Reich

SQUEEEEE! Poetry Win!

Winners for the 2008 SFPA Poetry Contest have been posted:

• First Place: She Seemed So Quiet by Marion E. Boyer, Mattawan, MI


• Second Place: Artifacts of Intelligent Design by Elizabeth Barrette Charleston, IL


• Third Place: And I Fly by Frances Shi, Woodhaven, NY

Special thanks to stillnotbored for posting the results and asakiyume for alerting me to the post. Congratulations to all the other poets whose poems placed or earned judicial recognition.

Also, thank you, my audience, for your support and inspiration. "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" came out of the August 12 Poetry Fishbowl, inspired by prompts from chlorophyta and flutterbychild.

I couldn't resist figuring the numbers ... 2nd place out of a field of 400+ poems puts "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" in the top 0.5% of the field. Good magazines typically publish from the top 3-5% of submissions; the most competitive ones publish from fractions of the top 1%. So I keep an eye on those percentages any time I have the numbers available.

The one drawback is that you'll have to wait a bit to read "Artifacts of Intelligent Design." I checked the Science Fiction Poetry Association page, and it's not updated yet. The winning poems should go up soon, though. When they do, I'll let you know; or if you spot the update first, let me know so I can post the link. This week has some challenges here -- I'll be out of the house for parts of today and tomorrow -- but I'll keep on top of this as best I can.

SQUEEEEE! Poetry Win!

Winners for the 2008 SFPA Poetry Contest have been posted:

• First Place: She Seemed So Quiet by Marion E. Boyer, Mattawan, MI


• Second Place: Artifacts of Intelligent Design by Elizabeth Barrette Charleston, IL


• Third Place: And I Fly by Frances Shi, Woodhaven, NY

Special thanks to stillnotbored for posting the results and asakiyume for alerting me to the post. Congratulations to all the other poets whose poems placed or earned judicial recognition.

Also, thank you, my audience, for your support and inspiration. "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" came out of the August 12 Poetry Fishbowl, inspired by prompts from chlorophyta and flutterbychild.

I couldn't resist figuring the numbers ... 2nd place out of a field of 400+ poems puts "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" in the top 0.5% of the field. Good magazines typically publish from the top 3-5% of submissions; the most competitive ones publish from fractions of the top 1%. So I keep an eye on those percentages any time I have the numbers available.

The one drawback is that you'll have to wait a bit to read "Artifacts of Intelligent Design." I checked the Science Fiction Poetry Association page, and it's not updated yet. The winning poems should go up soon, though. When they do, I'll let you know; or if you spot the update first, let me know so I can post the link. This week has some challenges here -- I'll be out of the house for parts of today and tomorrow -- but I'll keep on top of this as best I can.

SQUEEEEE! Poetry Win!

Winners for the 2008 SFPA Poetry Contest have been posted:

• First Place: She Seemed So Quiet by Marion E. Boyer, Mattawan, MI


• Second Place: Artifacts of Intelligent Design by Elizabeth Barrette Charleston, IL


• Third Place: And I Fly by Frances Shi, Woodhaven, NY

Special thanks to stillnotbored for posting the results and asakiyume for alerting me to the post. Congratulations to all the other poets whose poems placed or earned judicial recognition.

Also, thank you, my audience, for your support and inspiration. "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" came out of the August 12 Poetry Fishbowl, inspired by prompts from chlorophyta and flutterbychild.

I couldn't resist figuring the numbers ... 2nd place out of a field of 400+ poems puts "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" in the top 0.5% of the field. Good magazines typically publish from the top 3-5% of submissions; the most competitive ones publish from fractions of the top 1%. So I keep an eye on those percentages any time I have the numbers available.

The one drawback is that you'll have to wait a bit to read "Artifacts of Intelligent Design." I checked the Science Fiction Poetry Association page, and it's not updated yet. The winning poems should go up soon, though. When they do, I'll let you know; or if you spot the update first, let me know so I can post the link. This week has some challenges here -- I'll be out of the house for parts of today and tomorrow -- but I'll keep on top of this as best I can.

SQUEEEEE! Poetry Win!

Winners for the 2008 SFPA Poetry Contest have been posted:

• First Place: She Seemed So Quiet by Marion E. Boyer, Mattawan, MI


• Second Place: Artifacts of Intelligent Design by Elizabeth Barrette Charleston, IL


• Third Place: And I Fly by Frances Shi, Woodhaven, NY

Special thanks to stillnotbored for posting the results and asakiyume for alerting me to the post. Congratulations to all the other poets whose poems placed or earned judicial recognition.

Also, thank you, my audience, for your support and inspiration. "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" came out of the August 12 Poetry Fishbowl, inspired by prompts from chlorophyta and flutterbychild.

I couldn't resist figuring the numbers ... 2nd place out of a field of 400+ poems puts "Artifacts of Intelligent Design" in the top 0.5% of the field. Good magazines typically publish from the top 3-5% of submissions; the most competitive ones publish from fractions of the top 1%. So I keep an eye on those percentages any time I have the numbers available.

The one drawback is that you'll have to wait a bit to read "Artifacts of Intelligent Design." I checked the Science Fiction Poetry Association page, and it's not updated yet. The winning poems should go up soon, though. When they do, I'll let you know; or if you spot the update first, let me know so I can post the link. This week has some challenges here -- I'll be out of the house for parts of today and tomorrow -- but I'll keep on top of this as best I can.

Poem: "The Snake Goddess"

This poem is kind of an "extra" from the September Poetry Fishbowl. It wasn't written during the fishbowl proper; I got it while I was out browsing historical websites because browngirl got me thinking about Minoans again. I went looking for images of the Snake Goddess, and found more than just the one I remembered. When I mentioned writing the poem, browngirl decided to sponsor it, so here it is for your enjoyment.

The Snake Goddess

Forgotten in museums,
She hides behind the glass.
She stands on bald green velvet
That does not look like grass.

Yet something in her bearing
Speaks of an iron will –
Her breasts, her crown, her serpents
Are mighty symbols still.

Was this the inspiration
From which Medusa sprang?
Was this what women twisted
With tongue and scale and fang?

Was this, the pride of Knossos,
Its peril in disguise?
Was this what drained the storehouse
Before the hungry eyes?

Was this what men once dreaded,
And sought to bind and tie –
The Goddess in Her courage,
The curling snakes held high?

Was this what made them shudder
And turned their hearts to stone –
The priestess in her headdress,
Whose power was her own?

Was this the grain of truth, then,
From which the Gorgon grew?
Athena in her envy
Gave patriarchs their coup.

The daughters of the present
Search history for clues,
But gnosis keeps its secrets.
The Goddess keeps Her dues.

Poem: "The Snake Goddess"

This poem is kind of an "extra" from the September Poetry Fishbowl. It wasn't written during the fishbowl proper; I got it while I was out browsing historical websites because browngirl got me thinking about Minoans again. I went looking for images of the Snake Goddess, and found more than just the one I remembered. When I mentioned writing the poem, browngirl decided to sponsor it, so here it is for your enjoyment.

The Snake Goddess

Forgotten in museums,
She hides behind the glass.
She stands on bald green velvet
That does not look like grass.

Yet something in her bearing
Speaks of an iron will –
Her breasts, her crown, her serpents
Are mighty symbols still.

Was this the inspiration
From which Medusa sprang?
Was this what women twisted
With tongue and scale and fang?

Was this, the pride of Knossos,
Its peril in disguise?
Was this what drained the storehouse
Before the hungry eyes?

Was this what men once dreaded,
And sought to bind and tie –
The Goddess in Her courage,
The curling snakes held high?

Was this what made them shudder
And turned their hearts to stone –
The priestess in her headdress,
Whose power was her own?

Was this the grain of truth, then,
From which the Gorgon grew?
Athena in her envy
Gave patriarchs their coup.

The daughters of the present
Search history for clues,
But gnosis keeps its secrets.
The Goddess keeps Her dues.

Poem: "The Snake Goddess"

This poem is kind of an "extra" from the September Poetry Fishbowl. It wasn't written during the fishbowl proper; I got it while I was out browsing historical websites because browngirl got me thinking about Minoans again. I went looking for images of the Snake Goddess, and found more than just the one I remembered. When I mentioned writing the poem, browngirl decided to sponsor it, so here it is for your enjoyment.

The Snake Goddess

Forgotten in museums,
She hides behind the glass.
She stands on bald green velvet
That does not look like grass.

Yet something in her bearing
Speaks of an iron will –
Her breasts, her crown, her serpents
Are mighty symbols still.

Was this the inspiration
From which Medusa sprang?
Was this what women twisted
With tongue and scale and fang?

Was this, the pride of Knossos,
Its peril in disguise?
Was this what drained the storehouse
Before the hungry eyes?

Was this what men once dreaded,
And sought to bind and tie –
The Goddess in Her courage,
The curling snakes held high?

Was this what made them shudder
And turned their hearts to stone –
The priestess in her headdress,
Whose power was her own?

Was this the grain of truth, then,
From which the Gorgon grew?
Athena in her envy
Gave patriarchs their coup.

The daughters of the present
Search history for clues,
But gnosis keeps its secrets.
The Goddess keeps Her dues.

Poem: "The Snake Goddess"

This poem is kind of an "extra" from the September Poetry Fishbowl. It wasn't written during the fishbowl proper; I got it while I was out browsing historical websites because browngirl got me thinking about Minoans again. I went looking for images of the Snake Goddess, and found more than just the one I remembered. When I mentioned writing the poem, browngirl decided to sponsor it, so here it is for your enjoyment.

The Snake Goddess

Forgotten in museums,
She hides behind the glass.
She stands on bald green velvet
That does not look like grass.

Yet something in her bearing
Speaks of an iron will –
Her breasts, her crown, her serpents
Are mighty symbols still.

Was this the inspiration
From which Medusa sprang?
Was this what women twisted
With tongue and scale and fang?

Was this, the pride of Knossos,
Its peril in disguise?
Was this what drained the storehouse
Before the hungry eyes?

Was this what men once dreaded,
And sought to bind and tie –
The Goddess in Her courage,
The curling snakes held high?

Was this what made them shudder
And turned their hearts to stone –
The priestess in her headdress,
Whose power was her own?

Was this the grain of truth, then,
From which the Gorgon grew?
Athena in her envy
Gave patriarchs their coup.

The daughters of the present
Search history for clues,
But gnosis keeps its secrets.
The Goddess keeps Her dues.