Inspired by travels through the eastern empire

the modern death

peking mountains surround
humble existence destitute
red book mantra meaning lost
eating mobile phones as if bamboo

she sings songs of freedom
over brand new sweatshop shoes
prayer flag whispers for another time
i wonder how much more must these people lose?

from atop the hill he stands
facing west, one last solitary frown
skyscrapers soon to obstruct his view
i look again, vanished without a sound

eastern eye blinded by the commodified light
hard face black heart mentality
peasantry slaughtered like pigs and dreams
and we can't even speak of democracy

forgotten in imperial leaps and bounds
the whip cracks, market demands
trickle down the streets, see beggar's open palms
in chains held tight by totalitarian hands

however the beauty still remains
in the simplicity of life's many faces
eyes of an elderly man looking forward
beyond our kind's many disgraces

power structure dissolved and not replaced
to a day where we are all so meek
so in distant lands i still do dream
that we shall rise like smoke from chimneys to mountain peaks