These are not pretty. They are distillations of my observations and study of human behavior since I began to differentiate myself from others.

Unhinged - a series of haiku


4/1/21

many synonyms
for human insanity
subtle nuances

4/2/21

careful portrayal
in medical manual
no 'nutso' or 'bats'

4/3/21

out here in real world
deranged thinking goes postal
with guns, knives, autos

penis extensions
unbridled power to kill 
inflates crazed egos

4/4/21

if not genetic
this unbalanced behavior  
when does it begin? 

with the birth of pain
invisible soul bruises
unacknowledged trauma

4/5/21

compressed hidden hurt
amplified by daily life
a festering boil

gloms proof from mundane
fuels a growing conviction
which course will it take?

4/6/21

easy to find fault
self-blame brings on depression
road to suicide

simple to accuse
hold others accountable
self-validating

4/7/21

just a normal guy
clutching his cauldron of bile
teeters on the edge

suddenly sees red
the instant his synapse snaps
madness takes over

4/8/21

bloodlust the sole fix
to quench a raging passion
scratch the crazy itch

4/9/21

alternative source:
rigid indoctrination 
unquestioned beliefs

4/10/21

engrained repression
natural impulse denied
labeled abnormal

4/11/21

pent-up frustration
lack of personal control
backfires in gunfire

to quell fiend within
or erase temptation's source
death is their answer

4/12/21

parental abuse
of children and each other
molds relationships

survival instinct
drives actions and attitude 
vengeance is aroused

4/13/21

self-harm is quick fix
striking back at unfair world 
seems just punishment

4/14/21

hard core reprobates
humorless unforgiving
life-long psychopaths

among us daily
skulking in shadows alone
or batshit bullies

4/16/21

fear triggers action
fight, flight, freeze - or buy a gun
AR seventeen

handy extension
for would-be mass murderers
hunters of humans
 
4/17/21

just thirteen years old
shot, hands up, in an alley
justifiable?

4/18/21

fear of the unknown
fear entrenched in racist tropes
fear of ‘the other’

adrenaline rush
fear plus gun - deadly combo 
fear beats reason

4/19/21

power is granted
through position or merit
power stimulates
 
counterfeit power 
assumption born of conceit
corrupts to the core

4/20/21

there is no excuse
will there be justice for all?
the jury is out

guilty beyond doubt
nation waits with bated breath
for first conviction

4/21/21

GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS
YES! Handcuffed, led to jail. YES!
maybe forty years 

it is about time
finally held to account
blue line is breaking

4/22/21

head down silence scheme
bad cop’s crucial weapon
good cop’s nemesis

4/23/21

an act of hatred
victim considered evil
wicked dangerous

perp intends to hurt
craves to destroy the object
lust for suffering

4/24/21

hold accountable
daily deaths by police - three
twenty-one per week
 
law and order kills
eleven thousand yearly
reprehensible

4/25/21

football brain scramble
chronic encephalopathy
prompts mood swings, outbursts

explanation why
past NFL defensive back 
kills a family -

shot dead in their home
doctor, wife, two grandchildren -
then turns gun on self

4/27/21

hands on steering wheel
boxed into driveway by cops
with warrant to search home

seven officers
their guns blazing - mow him down
execution style

4/30/21

racist violence 
erodes all humanity
traumatizes young

holding onto hope
in face of degradation
heroic challenge