poem of the day 07.23.15

This poem was inspired by and informed by Ben Norton's great piece in Counter Punch. You can read it here

how’s the fish?

at whole foods

unions are like getting herpes

at whole foods

they’re always open on thanksgiving

whole foods cares for community

whole foods cares for animals

whole foods cares for the planet

but they sell over-priced fish and milk and cheese

made by prisoners in the colorado prison system

prisoners get $1.50 an hour to farm organic tilapia

they get sixty cents an hour for your milk and gourmet cheese

at whole foods you can have your tilapia

crispy and baked southwestern style

you can have tilapia tostadas on cinco de mayo

you can have tilapia with fennel and tomato

or do it cajun style with some broccoli and brown rice

over at whole foods they believe the stars predict the future

over at whole foods climate change is good

over at whole foods it’s conscious capitalism all the time

ask john mackey about his one-hundred million

ask steve easterbrook at mcdonald’s

about the prisoners making frozen beef patties and chicken nuggets

chit chat with a con over at sprint and verizon

have one book you an avis car or a flight on american airlines

have a starbuck’s holiday blend on the backs

of the prisoners in washington state

ask signature packing solutions how much they’re paying per hour

or go international and eat an apple with foxconn in china

in south carolina female inmates are sewing

your sexy victoria’s secret underwear

they’re sewing confederate flags

replacing sweatshop tags with “made in the u.s.a”

at wal-mart they’re clearing barcodes and reselling plastic junk

back at whole foods

they’re only selling the best organic money can buy

they’re satisfying, delighting and nourishing their customers

back at whole foods

they’re creating wealth through profit and growth

they believe that corporations are people

just like the supreme court

back at whole foods

they’re practicing advance environmental stewardship

whatever in the hell that is

they’ve got millions of recipes that they want you to try

some meat

some chicken

those cheeses and milk

at whole foods they’re cooking up the tilapia

with a roasted garlic crust

with parmesan and herbs

they’re food is low fat and gluten free

over at whole foods everything is natural

but in the end it all ends up tasting like the new jim crow.