Western Rome
made it 500 years 
before history 
claims its fall

and here we are 
at the apex of society 
with the world 
bragging its first 
trillionaire
while kids
in
the greatest nation
die

day after day after day 
we grind ourselves 
into the dust 
throw our short lives
into jobs 
that leave us overheated 
fatigued and wordless
because this is what we do

and here in the hills
if we find ourselves 
drowning
with bills racking up 
unable to buy a house 
we’re told we deserve it 
because we’re not doing
it right 
with our three fucking 
thank you sir and yes ma’am 
jobs that measure 
our worth 
by our availability 
I guess a poor man
doesnt have the luxury 
being with his family
because its his fault 
he wanted to love someone
more than his family
loved him
that he believed 
he could be a better father 

and those men are told 
they should have never had a kid
until they could have 
afforded it 

everyone wants the kid
filled street with laughter 
but no one wants to call them home 

no wonder 
no fucking wonder 
forty eight thousand 
of US citizens 
check out too soon

after all this time
no one is winning 

it has been rigged
since day one