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of TheColumnists.com
They cried, “A trip to Paris? You’re in Seine!”
Ever
since the Iraq-UN furors,
Our travelers are staying home in droves
To boycott France and keep from spending euros.
McDonald’s on the Seine must cater to the Frenchmen, while
American Express is edgy, squeezing every dollar in its bureaus.
Ever
since our “freedom fries” and “freedom toast”
(And students giving girlfriends “freedom kisses” too),
Our standing with the French is politically prickly.
US tourists underneath the “Tricolore” are rare as
gum
In Notre Dame,
And visitors are speaking every language but American.
Our relations: sickly.
I came,
and yet found not a conflict there,
Not when I wore a D-Day GI helmet (’44!) ’most everywhere.
With entourage of sandbags, bedded down in timeless Paris,
I found resolution sleeping, in a timely dream:
That Bush-Chirac would duke it out in 15 rounds in boxing gloves,
And leave the rest of us to choose our dream and team and theme.
Paris, France
©2007 by Paul Hertelendy. The illustration
is from IMSI's Master Clips Collection, 1895 Francisco Blvd.
E., San Rafael, CA, 94901-5506, USA. This column first posted
March 12, 2007.
Paul Hertelendy
is editor and critic of the arts-review website www.artssf.com. To
visit his website, click here: PAUL
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