the Rape of the Holy Mother
Charles Bukowski



to expose your ass on paper
terrifies some
and
it should:

the more you put down
the more you leave yourself
open
to those who label themselves
"critics."
they are offended by the out-
right antics of the
maddened.
they prefer their poesy to be
secretive
soft and nearly
indecipherable.
their game has remained un-
molested for
centuries.
it has been the temple of
the snobs and the
fakers.
to disrupt this sanctuary
is to them like
the Rape of the Holy Mother.

besides that, it would also
cost them
their wives
their automobiles
their girlfriends
their University
jobs.

the Academics have much to
fear
and they will not die
without
a dirty fight

but we
have long been ready

we have come from the alleys
and the bars and the
jails

we don't care how they
write the poem

but we insist that there are
other voices
other ways of creating
other ways of living the
life

and we intend to be
heard and heard and
heard

in this battle against the
Centuries of the Inbred
Dead

let it be known that
we have arrived and
intend to
stay.