By Laurie Baron
(Melody: Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head)
In Memoriam to Burt Bacharach (1928-2023)
SAN DIEGO — Catcalls are shouted when he speaks,
And like the woman whose mouth emits those shrieks,
Dressed in her white fur.
Spouting all her slurs, he is not deterred.
He tells them to check what colleagues had proposed.
That Social Security be foreclosed.
To lower the debt.
A scheme they now claim they regret; he made them reset.
But there’s one thing he learned.
The rudeness they exhibit.
It discredits, look like fanatics.
Which their leader tried to prohibit.
Catcalls are shouted when he speaks
He’s wise enough not to react by being weak.
Anger’s not for him.
Cause he’s not gonna win by behaving just like them.
Because he’s right.
Rebuke but be polite.
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Baron is professor emeritus of history at San Diego State University. He may be contacted via lawrence.baron@sdjewishworld.com.