Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

Is ‘Duel’ the better 4-letter Dream word for ‘Debate?’
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
26 Jun 2024
🖨️ Print Article
Joe Biden and Donald Trump debate in 2020
Donald Trump and President Joe Biden debate in 2020 Photo: ABC News

Sun drenched morning. Silver bullet-loaded, matched gold-plated
Glocks gleam above gilded dress swords. Above bump-stocked
AR-15s, strapped across slumped shoulders of two 1% men of
Limited vision. Mediocre men brandishing usurped Peoples’ Power …

The NRA, RNC and DNC searched far and wide for a S***hole
Country—boots on the ground—who’d host the gentlemen’s
Gun-powdered dustup. The People are excited! Ticket scalpers’ pockets
Got the mumps! Pay-per view revenues explode like 2,000 lb. bombs!

Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium would’ve hosted it. But fans were
Civil War split on who they’d ‘Tomahawk Chop’/ faux Native chant for.
Miraculously, Bechtel built Weehawken Stadium seating well over
100,000—provided Boeing bombs it/Bechtel rebuilds it …4 yrs later …

A Peach State nut job/aka ‘Driving Miss Crazy;’ a Rocky Mountain
State gun moll; an Empire State inquisitor; an ex-Palmetto State
Governor who scribbled, “Finish them off!” on bombs destined for
Gaza were chosen as cheerleaders for the combatants

A dock built for bringing in more supplies and equipment split apart.
Kegs of beer, pallets of peanuts and pretzels were airdropped into the
Stadium …       Standing back; standing by; looking skyward for
Snacks, Proud boys momentarily walked in Palestinian sandals …

WE The People face fierce trillion dollar dilemmas—
Bought and bossed ones offer
Dollar store ‘solutions.’ Performative politicians promise to
“Fight like hell!” and, hopefully, spare us trauma of bipartisan
Buffoonery …  Policy-lite/Solution-absent/Mad monologues …
Dumbed-down discourse … Disguised as debate …

They opt for “Trial by combat” instead! For Jumbotron spectacle!
Standing back-to-back—French-style—and stepping off 20 paces
To cherry ‘red lines’…    As breathless billions worldwide watch!
And proceeds go to
House the Unhoused; Healthcare For All; Free Education; go
To clean up rivers and oceans; to Green Jobs and empty jails …
“Thoughts and prayers” to the loser’s family …
Winner’s allowed— like U.S. troops in Afghanistan—to
Urinate on loser’s body; to cut off fingers for souvenirs.
Body will lie in state—wrapped in stars and stripes—
Capitalist Hill rotunda … 21 gun-salute! Burial, Arlington
National Cemetery.

Winner gets next biggest imperialist strongman. Next biggest authoritarian
Supreme Leader/Embassy Butcher/Nationalist Pogrom Master—lending new
Meaning to “sudden death over … time.” And buying the
International Working Class time … to reorganize … Before the alarm goes off?

© 2024. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Raymond Nat Turner is a NYC poet; BAR's Poet-in-Residence; and founder/co-leader of the jazz-poetry ensemble UpSurge!NYC. You can Vote for his work at GoFundMe and PayPal.

2024 election
Palestine
Working Class
Democrats
Republicans

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


Related Stories

Glen Ford, BAR Executive Editor
Trump and America’s Fascist Forefathers
01 July 2026
Donald Trump is not an anomaly, but the heir of fascism which began in 1776 and continued throughout U.S. history.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Could Wemby Become the Conscience of the NBA?
24 June 2026
NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama grapples with the times we’re living in, even as his career takes off.
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Short word problems: do the math
03 June 2026
Work these word problems. Work them as if your lives depend onYOUR correct answers.YOUR solutions … Because they do:
Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright
Big D Dysfunction: Why The Democrat Party’s Latest Comedy of Errors is a Tragedy of Strategy 
27 May 2026
The party that installed its presidential candidate without a primary vote now blames its 2024 loss on everything except its own cont
x
Yarden Azoulay Katz
“Their Chaos is Our Peace”: Fighting Zionist Repression in Texas and Beyond
29 April 2026
Zionists continue their attacks on universities, exerting pressure to silence and terminate professors who express views in support of Palestin
John Parker
Socialist candidate John Parker: Abolish ICE and police, fund people’s needs
22 April 2026
Following is a recent campaign meeting talk by socialist congressional candidate John Parker.
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Zophia Edwards’ Book, “Fueling Development”
01 April 2026
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
Boycott the world cup
Black Alliance For Peace
100 Days From the World Cup, an International Coalition is Calling on FIFA to Move the Games From the U.S.
11 March 2026
The US has disqualified itself from hosting the World Cup through wars, genocide, and domestic repression.
Gary Wilson
Dow 50,000 — and workers selling blood
18 February 2026
The Dow Jones hit 50,000, yet 200,000 people a day are selling their blood plasma to survive.
Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright
Trump’s De Jure Racism Provides Convenient Cover for Liberals and Democrats to Mask Their De Facto Racism
11 February 2026
The political theater of condemning Trump's racism serves the function of diverting attention from the more dangerous, policy-based r

More Stories


  • Election 2024
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley , Charisse Burden-Stelly, PhD
    Project 2025, the 2024 Election, and Political Discernment
    19 Jul 2024
    We talk to Dr. Charisse Burden-Stelly about the 2024 presidential election, the controversy surrounding Project 2025, and Joe Biden’s physical health - topics worthy of discussion that must be…
  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    The Assassination Attempt on Donald Trump and Political Violence Waged by the U.S.
    17 Jul 2024
    The words “political violence” are the latest hackneyed and dishonest phrase emanating from the political class. The assassination attempt on Donald Trump was a minor affair compared to the treatment…
  • Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    TRANSCRIPT: Analyzing the Correct Method in Combating American Fascism, George Jackson, 1971
    17 Jul 2024
    Martyred Black Panther, George Jackson told us long ago that fascism has been the de facto political state of the US for some time. Today we can clearly see that both Trump and Biden are, quite…
  • Displaced people in DRC
    Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    Israel in Palestine, Rwanda in DRC
    17 Jul 2024
    Palestinians and Congolese both find themselves victims of a genocide that they did not commit and that did not take place on their territory.
  • Abayomi Azikiwe, Black Agenda Report Contributor
    Democratic Party Turmoil, African Americans and the Attempted Assassination of Trump
    17 Jul 2024
    Biden orders an “independent review” of the incident as the colossal security failure takes center stage.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us