Forget The Small Change

 

Forget the Small Change 

What will it take for mankind to change? 

To stop the destruction, pollution and rage, 

to see the potential of sharing resource, 

to savor prompt action not lengthy discourse. 

What would it take to quell mankind's greed? 

to drop the ‘want’ and focus on ‘need’, 

to relish in beauty and strive to protect, 

not keep on consuming 'til everything’s wrecked. 

Is it to late to save mankind? 

Is our destiny already defined? 

We're in the midst of an extinction event, 

yet we charge forward with relentless intent. 

Perhaps we need to show more respect, 

focus on what humanity forgets. 

In a world without nature, we cannot thrive.

We must change focus if mankind’s to survive. 

John Carré Buchanan 

25 September 2020

Cataract Removal

As The Covid-19 lockdown continues in Guernsey I find myself writing again. I can’t help but notice how intrusive nature is now the man-made hubbub has been removed.

This poem reflects on a more positive aspect of the lockdown. I hope you are able to discover your own version of nature’s beauty as we all try to stay safe.

Cataract Removal

The sky is clear today.
The sky is crystal clear.
Just blue,
light at the horizon,
deeper as eyes lift heavenward,
the lattice of contrails gone.

The bird song is loud today.
Tiny voices sound so clear.
Just birdsong,
shrill trills carried on a breeze,
sweet arias lifted heavenward,
the incessant roar of traffic gone.

Years seem stripped away.
A memory of times gone by.
Bright sun in clear sky,
the birds sing, bees buzz,
nature's beauty revealed,
the cataract of progress gone.

John Carré Buchanan
5th April 2020

Flattening The Curve

I’ve written a few poems likening mankind to a virus destroying the planet.
As I work from home and follow the guidance on Social Distancing I hear reports of less silt in rivers, less traffic on roads and less aircraft in the sky. Dependant on which study you believe, it takes between 21 and 66 days to change a habit, perhaps once things start to settle down we will remember some of our new habits and the world will be just that little bit better.

Flattening The Curve

So the virus has a virus,
Mankind is not the boss.
The body we inhabit
is striking back at us.
Oh we’ll overcome it
but it'll never be the same,
a bit of social distance
may really change the game.
Perhaps we'll change behaviours
and flatten our own curve,
to help reduce the damage
we do to planet Earth.

John Carré Buchanan
29 March 2020

Deleted

I wrote this poem for an Open Mic evening with the subject "Deleted".
​
According to the UN Environment Programme, the Earth is in the midst of a mass extinction. Scientists estimate that 150-200 species of plant, insect, bird and mammal become extinct every 24 hours. This is nearly 1,000 times the "natural" or "background" rate and, say many biologists, is greater than anything the world has experienced since the vanishing of the dinosaurs nearly 65m years ago. Around 15% of mammal species and 11% of bird species are classified as threatened with extinction.

Deleted

The list, if there were a list,
would shorten every day.
highlight, delete,
every eight minutes, the list we deplete.

Today one hundred and fifty lines will go,
tomorrow two hundred? Who knows?
That range; one fifty to two hundred,
deleted every twenty four hours.

The list is long but finite
Each line a species
and every day - No, every eight minutes
another line's deleted.

Not individuals, species, all of a kind.
Imagine, seven billion people,
Condensed to just one line that says; 'Human'.
In your mind, highlight it, now delete it.

The greatest sadness is that so many lines
never even get highlighted
they're deleted
before they even make the list.

John Carré Buchanan
23 April 2018

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.

Love Thy Neighbour

I wrote this for an Open Mic following the prompt 'Neighbours'. I wish it weren't so true.

​Love Thy Neighbour

We share the air
We share the land
We share...
No.
We share nothing.
We take,
We dominate,
We are not good Neighbours.
We are the neighbours from hell
the sort that vomits in borders
throws loud parties
burns rubbish on wash days.
The Bible says; "Love thy neighbour"
but we humans love only humans,
in fact
we don't even do that.

John Carré Buchanan
25 March 201

Space Junk

​This poem was written following the prompt; 'Dark Moon, New Moon' set by Poets United.

Space Junk

Dark moon, the stars twinkle,
specks of cosmic dust
on an ink black backdrop.
A satellite traverses the sky,
reflects light to an upturned eye.
Yes we even pollute the heavens.

Up there in the moonless void;
a glove, spanners, paint flecks, a toothbrush,
frozen drops of toxic chemicals
and shards of shattered metal,
circle the planet in a swirling mass
of supersonic debris.

Kessler theorised a chain reaction
where colliding debris shatters
into ever smaller pieces
each collision making more
of the speeding shrapnel.

The satellites we rely on
for weather, communication,
agriculture, defence,
location and even time
run a gauntlet through this heavenly garbage patch.

Our modern way of life is threatened
for without satellites; communication's lost;
markets crash, supply chains fail,
there's no internet, phone, there's no email.
and yet; out there, far beyond our own sphere...

we fly-tip on a cosmic scale
crashing space craft into other worlds
and our Voyagers speed onward
across intergalactic space
as we seek enlightenment
and new moons.

John Carré Buchanan
15 October 2017

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.



This poem is linked to Poets United.

Plastic

Each year we produce nearly 300 million tons of plastic, half of which is for single use. It is estimated that more than 8 million tons of this is dumped into our oceans. The damage to marine ecosystems is devastating.

I find it incredible that despite knowing about the damage we are doing to both to the planet and our own food chains and ultimately our health we continue to pollute.

I have embedded Chris Jordan’s powerful video below; it shows the effects of our actions on Midway, an Island 2000 miles from the nearest continent. I urge you to take the time to watch it and I hope that this post makes you think about the products you use, you might not even know that your shower gel, toothpaste and makeup contain plastic microbeads.

Plastic

Polly bag, plastic tag,
Bic lighter, Huggies diaper,
flip flop, bottle top,
Lego block, zip lock,
fishing line, bailing twine,
piece of rope, Stethoscope,
six pack, plastic cap,
coffee sack, bubble wrap,
tape cassette, gill net,
Kinder egg, clothes peg,
plastic spork, builder's caulk,
cigarette butt, cat gut,
Styrofoam, garden gnome,
orange buoy, sex toy,
soda bottle, hose nozzle,
used syringe, broken hinge,
pregnancy test, high viz vest,
plastic duck, hockey puck,
doorbell , shower gel,
facial scrub, washtub,
zip tie, dolls eye,
makeup, plastic cup,
nurdles, girdles,
tooth paste.
All of this is plastic waste.

The oceans churn to break it down
but plastic’s made to last.
Chemicals leach and particles reach;
the turtle, starved or made infertile,
the albatross chick slowly fed to death,
fish poisoned and mutated,
Cetacea and seals, who drown slowly in nets.
And mankind? well we do the human thing;
dump eight million tonnes of plastic into their oceans each year.

John Carré Buchanan
13 October 2017

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.

MIDWAY a Message from the Gyre : a short film by Chris Jordan from Midway on Vimeo.

This poem is linked to Poets United.

Autumn

​This poem was written following a prompt of "Autumn" from Poets United.

Autumn

The leaves are falling,
elephant, tiger, rhino, pangolin.
Look; the leaves are falling,
coral reef, shark, narwhal, dolphin.
Out there leaves are falling everywhere,
arctic fox, walrus and polar bear.
Yes it's a tragedy
but no one seems to care.
We reel in horror when it's a few of our own
but complacent we sit and watch
as the last leaves fall.
Golden frog, striped newt,
redwood, teak, mahogany,
dragon fly, carpet moth, honeybee…
Winter's coming
and this time; there’ll be no spring.

John Carré Buchanan
07 October 2017

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.



This poem is linked to Poets United.

Parás On Parade

The rubber on the end of your sustainable wooden pencil may look harmless but it is the result of an industry which is having a significant negative impact on the environment.

The felling of primary forests to plant plantations has a significant impact on biodiversity and the chemicals and water used to process the latex also damage the surrounding land and watercourses.

Rubber, having been treated with harsh chemicals is toxic and the disposal of it in land fill or as rubber tire marbles on our roads is also cause for concern.

This poem, written for our next open mic which is themed 'rubber', aims to highlight the plight of the trees. As an retired member of the Parachute Regiment I couldn't resist the name which is explained in the footnote.

Parás On Parade*

Like captured soldiers they stand in ranks
Resolute.
Their lifeblood drips from open wounds
carved into their skin,
tapped to small vessels,
collected, processed and turned into
tires, boots, balls and rubber bands.
For thirty years they'll stand;
and then - exhausted
they'll be torn down, replaced.
and their offspring will endure
The same fate; so that we
can erase our mistakes.

John Carré Buchanan
17 June 2017

* The Pará rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) is the preferred source of commercially grown natural rubber latex.

Dentistry

​The subject for this month's Open Mic is 'teeth'. This poem is directed at the ivory trade but could equally apply to the destruction of many other animal and plant species around the world.

Dentistry

The grass here is lush this year
where last t'was trodden down.
The soil this year is richer here
since poachers bought them down.
Amidst the grass great boulders lie
that were not here before;
before the crack and thump,
the panga's* ring and chainsaw's roar
that soaked the soil in pools of gore.
All that's left of them this year;
white boulders strewn in rich grass
and the sound of distant pianos.

John Carré Buchanan
19 May 2017

* A panga is another name for a machete.

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.



This poem is linked to Poets United.

Fear

A poem on the way fear is used to oppress the masses;

Fear

There's nothing like a little fear
to keep the proles in check.
Just keep them feeling frightened
so that you can skew the deck.

Dictators and governments,
ancient kings and queens
all have used the ‘bogeyman’
to help achieve their dreams.

To catch or kill a terrorist,
or keep the fuel tank full,
they'll let you steal their liberties
and not think rational.

They’ll let you tap their telephone
and track their every move,
they'll even pay the media
to keep them in the groove.

A constant stream of atrocities
fills their every screen.
Yet they're much more likely
to die without a scream.

The world is more peaceful
then it's ever been before,
a violent death’s unlikely,
as is pestilence, disease and war.

Yes: there's nothing like a little fear
to keep the proles in check.
Just keep them feeling frightened;
… My turn to skew the deck

If you're a tiger, a snow leopard,
butterfly or polar bear,
You've every right to be frightened
for man's greed outstrips all fear.

John Carré Buchanan
23 April 2017

Too Much Chocolate

Our next open mic happens just after Easter and the theme will be ‘Too Much Chocolate’.

Chocolate contains cocoa, sugar, palm oil and milk (cattle), four ingredients that are responsible for huge tracts of primary rain-forest being destroyed across the globe. I thought this poem should represent the voices of forests and their inhabitants. I make no apologies for the last line.

Too Much Chocolate

Last week we heard a distant roar
that drifted on the air,
it crept ever closer
and bought with it despair.

The pillars are still falling
and all around us now
the constant whine of chainsaw
lays our forest bare.

You'll turn it into pasture
or cover it in palm.
Drag away the timber
to turn into a barn.

In places you'll plant cocoa,
where it shouldn't really grow
and it will leach the soil
and the insects they will go.

Then the birds that feed upon them
and the plants they pollinate
will vanish in a moment
from the hell that you'll create.

This Easter as you celebrate
the life that was reborn,
remember us, I beg,
for you decimate our forest
for a f***ing chocolate egg.

John Carré Buchanan
08 April 2017

Earth

I wrote this poem for our next Open Mic on the subject of 'The Earth'.

Earth

A blue marble turns in a bejewelled sky
a reflection in an alien eye
it's surface rich, a treasure trove
the gaze is held from apojove.*

and deep within that alien's mind
a burning hatred of mankind
for watching Eden from the stars
our alien spaceman sees the scars.

It's not his place to intervene
nor the first extinction he’s seen.
He turns his gaze from the Petri dish
and wishes man had stayed a fish.

In the scheme of things we do not matter
despite our busy clitter-clatter.
As obligate parasites without a host
our future’s nothing more than toast.

The marble will take another turn,
it will recover from the burn
and life forms of a different kind
may flourish, if they’re not so blind.

John Carré Buchanan
08 October 2016

* The point in an orbit around the planet Jupiter where the orbiting body is farthest from the planet.

Have A Care

Humankind is obsessed with its own worth, we acknowledge that we are damaging the environment, we pretend that we care, yet we are naïve enough to believe that replacing ancient rain forests with palm oil trees is an acceptable trade.

This poem aims to highlight the biggest threat to our species, a threat which receives far less media attention than it deserves, for when the true impact of humankind on the environment is realised; the media’s bias towards; religion, politics, nationality and human rights pails into insignificance.

Have A Care

I don't care if you’re a Muslim
I don't care if you’re a Jew
I don't care if you’re Christian
Syrian, or from Crew.
If your L-B-G-T
they're all fine by me,
because I believe
we're all humanity.

From the tycoon in her ivory tower
to the orphan on the street.
A rebel fighting government
the girl I've yet to meet.
The Inuit in the high north,
the Bajau on the sea,
we all share the basic right
to live a life that's free.

It’s a right we share with nature
with beasts, the birds and bees,
the creatures of the ocean
and yes; the plants and trees.
From tiny little microbes
to the might of the great blue whale,
the spider hanging in its web
and the humble garden snail

Yes, we share that basic right,
to live a life that's free
but we humans also have;
a responsibility;
to mind the world we live in,
to mind the air we share,
to keep the oceans pure and clear,
and above all show we care.

so; I don't care if you’re a Muslim
I don't care if you’re a Jew
I don't care if you’re Christian
Syrian or from Crew.
If your L-B-G-T
that's ok with me
but if you insist on damaging
this world that all life shares
we're going to have a problem
because I'm someone who cares.

John Carré Buchanan
12 March 2016

If you click on the link below you can listen to me read this poem.



This poem is linked to Poets United.

Smiles

Image Source:

I was in town this morning looking at all the ‘tat’ that people are buying in preparation for Christmas. It was sad to think that so much of it would fall out of favour, be broken, or simply thrown away before the New Year starts. It was this train of thought that led to the following poem;

Smiles

Trucks spill their contents to the floor
little fingers pick through piles of fetid waste
to grasp at scraps others discard.
Not for these, shiny paper.
Not for them, a three course meal.
Here on a city dump
a doll with no arms,
a wheel with no spokes
or blocks with letters they can't read
bring wider smiles than many
on 'developed' streets.

John Carré Buchanan
05 December 2014

Beaches

Image Source:

I wrote this for an open mic with the theme; 'The Beach'. I believe it is self explanatory.

Beaches

Suddenly the trees parted
the road just stopped.
Lying there in front of me
a pristine curve of golden sand,
turquoise water fringed with lace,
lapping gently under graceful arches
topped with palm fronds.
Paradise.
But look closer.
Look amidst the tide line.
Amidst the Raffia, drift wood, coconuts, shells,
fishing net, buoys, lighters, syringes,
a lone, tar covered, flip flop.
Look closer.
Small clusters of bone and feathers
grouped around piles of plastic.
The rotting carcass of a hawksbill turtle
head and fins entangled in faded blue nylon.
Look closer still.
Tiny coloured grains pollute the sand
kill tiny creatures
PCB's, dioxins, benzine,
leach into the sand, the water
poison micro organisms
which underpin the food chain.
Poison plankton, poison fry, poison tuna,
poison man;
and the TV ad asks us to fund cancer research.
How perverse.

John Carré Buchanan
19 July 2014

The Day Jimmy Cheered on Celtic

Image Source: John Buchanan

Jimmy the West Highland Terrier was my SSgt's dog in the early 90’s, his diminutive frame was packed full of character. The poem below records a true story which is also captured in the image above. For the protection of the guilty I will not mention the culprits name, suffice to say it was not me and the perpetrator meant it to be a friendly prank.

Having spent the morning supporting Celtic FC, Jimmy returned from a bath with an eerie green tinge which so annoyed Joe that the next time we saw the poor little thing his hair had been clipped back significantly.

For those that do not know Rangers FC and Celtic FC are Scottish soccer teams both based in Glasgow. The two teams, collectively known as the Old Firm, are arch rivals. Rangers are traditionally a protestant and dress in Blue whilst Celtic are predominantly Roman Catholic and dress in Green Stripes. The two clubs share a history rooted in sectarianism and there is considerable ill feeling between them. In fact their games have been described as having an "atmosphere of hatred, religious tension and intimidation which continues to lead to violence in communities across Scotland."

In this instance the whole affair was a friendly prank, which resulted in no real harm, except for an element of lost pride. I hope you enjoy the poem;

The Day Jimmy Cheered on Celtic

Jimmy was a Westie
and a Rangers fan was he
and Joe, his loving owner
was from a protestant family.
So imagine the offence
When Joe spent a day away
And Jimmy's fur was painted
with green! To his dismay.
When Joe returned
The air turned blue
and Jimmy had a bath
but poster paints stain white fur
so Jimmy stayed, well half
That is until a set of sheers
was bought into the fray
and Jimmy's tainted coat
was quickly cut away.

John Carré Buchanan
22nd March 2013

Percpectives of Ceticide*

Image Source:

I thought I would write this poem to demonstrate one of the key factors in all environmental issues; that of the differing perspectives of all the stakeholders, and the tendency for activists to get involved.

I greatly admire organisations such as Sea Shepherd, these people risk their lives to save the oceans. I know that they do things that many people consider a step to far, possibly even illegal, but while governments do take a passing interest in the environment, their priorities usually remains with the short term affect on voters. This all too often results in agreements being made but not enforced.

Where governments fail in their duty to enforce the laws that they sign up to, they leave the way open to activists to step in. Unfortunately these people tend not to be as well-resourced as governments and as such they take a less subtle approach to enforcement.

My view is that if a government signs up to something it should be prepared to provide the resources needed to enforce it and accept the consequences of that agreement. Where governments fail to enforce agreements they should not be surprised if people step in and honour the agreement made on their behalf. Most importantly they should not complain if activists don’t play the game using the conventional rule book. Perhaps a better way of putting this is; “they should put up or shut up”. I hope you like the poem.

Percpectives of Ceticide*

The Whale

Our music used to fill the oceans
but that was when I was very young.
Back when the oceans were quieter and clean.
Now the water reverberates to mechanical roars,
explosions and the screams of my kind;
and our song grows ever quieter.

The Conservationist

The oceans are too crowded, too noisy
Too polluted, and over fished.
We need to do something - now,
We need a moratorium on whaling and sanctuaries.
We must study whales and determine their needs
Or we will lose them.

The Politician

I’m down ten points in the polls,
this bloody scandal is killing me,
I wish I’d never have got involved with her.
I need something to divert the public’s attention.
The green vote is popular, something international
might broaden my appeal, Whaling – blame the foreigner!

The Whaler

My father and his were both whalers, it’s in my blood.
There are plenty of whales in the ocean,
Whales deplete our fish stocks and damage the industry.
I operate within a quota and aid important research
and I use most humane method to catch them.
Anyway it is my right to hunt, I have a family to feed.

The Public

Interesting program on the telly last night.
I didn’t know the harpoon exploded inside the whale
Or that they pump air into the body to keep it afloat.
That said, I think the kids are right, it does look barbaric
I can’t see myself eating whale.
Next time I see a collection tin I will put some money in it.

Governments

The public want everything and they want it all done green.
Every ministry needs more cash but the treasury’s been wiped clean.
This bloody whale debacle demands we do something
But we can’t upset our trade partners; we need the cash they bring,
So we won’t mention whale meat, stockpiles or poaching.
Let’s let some other nation start that fight. Now about the Euro zone…

The Activist

They’ll hunt whales to extinction, having agreed to save them.
The other governments will just bite their tongues
and refuse point blank to condemn them.
If these nations, who swore to protect whales
won’t honour their commitments - then I will
and to hell with those that don’t like how I do it.

The Courts

These activists are out of order
Just who do they think they are?
This nation may be in breach of the law
But none of the others condemn them.
We can’t let private citizens enforce international law.
They’re vigilantes and pirates of that I am quite sure.

Earth

My oceans are turning murky and silent
Mankind is at it again
They’re aware of the damage they’re doing
But their too self-centred to refrain.
They talk a good talk, but won’t do the walk
and it’s me that ends up paying.

*Ceticide: The killing of whales and other cetaceans.

John Carré Buchanan
05 March 2013

Saviours

Image Source:

I make no secret about the fact that I support Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. They describe themselves as; ‘an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization. [Whose] mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species.’ In order to achieve this they use; ‘innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas.’ The words ‘direct action’ mean that they are prepared to put their lives on the line. For More information please visit their website here; http://www.seashepherd.org/.

During the last couple of months they have been protecting the whales in the Southern Ocean from the Japanese whaling fleet who have been illegally hunting in a sanctuary. The Japanese were aiming to kill 950 whales, but thanks to the efforts of Sea Shepherd they have taken less than 70.

Sea Shepherd has achieved this by cutting the Japanese fleet off from it’s fuel tanker which has been attempting to refuel the fleet within the sanctuary, (an action which in itself is illegal given the fact that it is within the sanctuary). They have also made it extremely difficult for the harpoon ships to transfer the dead and dying whales to the factory ship by sitting directly behind the vessels ramp, and of course they have used their RHIBs and helicopter to prevent the harpoon operators from getting a clear shot.

I wrote the following poem as mark of my respect for the brave men and women of Sea Shepherd, and I thank them for what they do to protect the wildlife in the world's oceans.

Saviours

The fluke rises and falls effortlessly
as it propels her through the friged polar water.
The graceful motion conserves the energy
She has stored as fat during her time
in the krill rich Southern Ocean.

The cooling water has signalled
it is time to move North towards Australia.
Here, in the warmer tropical waters
the changes she feels within her streamlined frame
will come to fruition, and her calf will be born.

A brass propeller roils the water
leaving a broad streak of foaming bubbles
in the churning wake of the ugly predator.
High on the elevated bow a harpoon gun gazes down,
primed to deliver its grotesque load.

The hunter does not work alone,
other vessels ply this stretch of ocean
with the same murderous intent.
They work together to harpoon and butcher
graceful cetaceans for a fast buck.

A cloud of vapour rises ten feet
from the surface, as she takes a mighty breath.
Off in the distance excited figures point
And the harpoon ship turns menacingly towards her
its crew preparing for the slaughter.

As the ship closes, the whale,
aware of its presence, picks up her pace.
Mile after mile the chase continues.
Gradually the whale tires and her dives shorten.
The hunt is drawing to a close.

A frustrated operator is ready to fire.
The harpoon, tipped with an exploding head
which will rip into the whale and embed a hawser
with which to recover the wounded beast, is ready to fire.
But he has not got a shot.

For there protecting the tiring, frightened whale,
Is a Sea Shepherd RHIB manned by four brave souls.
Hour upon hour they position themselves between the
predator and its prey. This time, with their help,
the whale manages to slip away.

John Carré Buchanan
26 February 2013

Buying Coca-Cola Can't Help Polar Bears

Image Source: www.mrwallpaper.com & Buchanan

In recent months Coca Cola have been running an advertising campaign which states that they are helping the WWF to save the Polar Ice Caps, home of the Polar Bears. The implied message being, buy Coke and help save the Polar Bears. This is an outrageous claim which I find most offensive.

Coca Cola (and its many subsidiaries) are probably the world’s biggest user of aluminium cans. Aluminium is a metal which requires massive amounts of energy to produce. In fact the aluminium beverage can industry’s annual electricity consumption is almost 300 billion kilowatt-hours, or about 3% of the world’s total electricity consumption.

The energy required to produce just three aluminium cans is roughly equivalent to that of filling one of those cans with petrol and burning it. Imagine then the waste when in the United States of America one hundred million (100,000,000) aluminium beverage cans are sent to landfill, littered or incinerated every day.

When recycled each aluminium can has the potential to save enough energy to run a television for three hours. On a worldwide scale, the number of cans which are not recycled represents about 23 billion kilowatt-hours squandered each year. That is just under quarter of one per cent of the world’s total electricity consumption wasted.

(Sources; thegoodhuman.com, allgreenthings.com and reuters.com).

In addition to the pollution caused by energy production, every tonne of newly extracted aluminium results in four tonnes of toxic / caustic waste being dumped somewhere in the world.

Nice stats I hear you say, but what does this have to do with Polar Bears?

Given that manufacturing cans uses so much power it is clear that any industry using those cans has a significant role to play in global warming and as a result melting the ice caps. Without these huge tracts of ice it is impossible for the Polar Bear to hunt and consequently the Polar Bear population is shrinking. It is a sad fact that at the current rates of decline, Arctic ice may disappear by mid-century. If it does, the polar bear will follow soon after.

So far I have only touched on the cans in this introduction to my poem. a normal can of coke contains about 39g of sugar, a substance recognised as being a leading contributor towards obesity and diabetes. It is estimated that the US taxpayer pays around $190 billion annually on health issues relating to these two diseases. This figure equates to a fifth of the USA’s total health care budget.

What is clear to me is that buying more cans of any fizzy pop, will not only contribute to global warming and kill off the Polar bears, but will also increase the incidence of obesity and diabetes in the human race and end up costing taxpayers in the same way that tobacco has. With this in mind I find it galling that any fizzy drink manufacturer can claim that buying their product will help the plight of the polar bears, or indeed do anything good for our planet.

The following poem is a ludic poem, I hope you like it.

Buying Coca-Cola Can't Help Polar Bears

Coca is an ingredient in both chocolate and cocaine
and cola drinks rot peoples teeth and cause significant weight gain.
These products help drive the cost of healthcare through the roof
as people in the developed world satisfy their sweet tooth.
Governments, as cool as ice ignore the harm these drinks cause,
support for a government would melt if pop was rationed, to save jaws.
The multi-national companies who make and sell this poison
are aware that sugar products harm and kill, but profit is their reason.
Making millions of aluminium cans helps melt the Polar ice cap.
Their advert claims that buying Coke will help save bears, What Crap.
Put these facts together and one thing simply glares,
Coca-Cola help the ice melt and kill Polar bears.

John Carré Buchanan
20 February 2013