Free-For-All (Part 2 All For Free)

The chief linguist of the Usher tribe undoubtedly had the gift of gab
He stretched the truth so felicitously that one quite forgot that he was a cad
A smiling rogue with an unalloyed propensity to take the occasional bribe
The enforcement of decorum and propriety thus fell on the chief scribe

This last, on such matters, would often turn a blind eye
After all, who had the time to count all the stars in the sky
In the big picture, the planets were what really mattered
A little deception in the business of state hardly counted

So when Ananse came forward with his latest proposal, accompanied by the chief linguist
The scribe had an inkling that there would be some kind of devious twist
But the rulers, by definition, had a right to partake, this much was obvious
For indeed, the technical phrase was of wider application: acceptable loss

This meant that scrutiny of the transaction was, of necessity, purely perfunctory
For the only issue at hand was the kind of compensation, preferably monetary
Although, those newfangled instruments cooked up by the financiers were rather bold
These alchemists now proffered tokens and emblems instead of the customary gold

Meanwhile the scribe signaled the terms and conditions for his backend payment
After all, what use was the exercise of power without some personal enrichment
He was old fashioned and preferred dealing with something tangible
A mine, black gold, a race horse rather than this crypto business: non-fungible

Hard earned lessons had taught him to steer clear of obvious bubbles
Lest one be caught holding worthless tickets that were non-refundable
Cash was king, he stressed to his comperes the importance of liquidity
When the chips were down, leverage was the currency of iniquity

And so he paid no mind to the bluster of Ananse and the chief linguist
Realizing that after he'd been paid, he could always issue a cease and desist
Skimming the take was avowedly the basis of a grifter's conceit
But a game can be rigged in many ways in the symphony of deceit

The whole world was in upheaval, many had plainly lost their bearing
Those quaint appeals for social living were, truth be told, quite endearing
But there was no room at the high table, those at the top had to be hard nosed
To emphasize to the majority that the great leveling had now been foreclosed

All the talk of justice and equality was laudable but amounted to cheap talk
Those in the know well understood that when push came to shove, they could balk
Soul insurance was all well and good, but the rules were different for those at the top
You couldn't expect that the conqueror would share the spoils with the have nots

Ludicrous, this notion that one should temper one's insatiable appetites
A contradiction, to expect giving up privileges one had won by all rights
The elites were plainly heroes, who would dare cast them as villains?
Class solidarity was paramount, lest everyone end up in prison

And so the chief scribe made to apply his opinion with the authoritative stamp
Pricked the seal of approval on the decision, he then wiped his bloodied thumb
Everything was in good order, he proclaimed after receiving his convenience fee
The deal was settled with some schnapps and palm wine under the baobab tree

If global narrative collapse had engendered this free-for-all
Those at the reins of power would prove they had the wherewithal
The objective of the shell games they'd embarked on was no big mystery
Looting, to recapture the bulk of the world's riches and get it all for free

All for free, a playlist

A soundtrack for this note (spotify version)

• I'm going for mine by Keith Sweat
• Dealing by Eric Roberson and Lalah Hathaway
• I gotta get mine yo by Chubb Rock
• How I deal by Dwele
• Gotta get mine by Born Jamaicans
• A strange arrangement by Meyer Hawthorne
• The rules don't apply to you by Ellis Hall
• Practical Arrangement by Kurt Elling & Branford Marsallis
• Gotta get mine by MC Breed

See previously: Free-For-All

File under: humour, satire, culture, observation, folktale, Ananse, storytelling, whimsy, myth, coronavirus, pandemic, Social Living, Things Fall Apart, Observers are worried, Buyer's Remorse, hatchet job, covidious, poetry, toli

Writing log: October 1, 2023