Monday, July 20, 2020

Timericks from headlines in today's Wall Street Journal.



I’m a Parent. And a Bad Teacher. All I Do Is Panic About School.

Will children back to school be going/This I need now to be knowing/If they stay home with their pop/sanity is sure to stop/Sure I love 'em; there's no doubt/but soon I'll start to scream and shout/if underfoot they have to stay/past this coming Labor Day/If I must face more throbbing percuss/I'll run away and join the circus!


How Europe Kept Coronavirus Cases Low Even After Reopening.

They do it wearing masks, is all/in churches, schools, and loud beer hall/They have more sense than all us Yanks/who think that masks are liberal pranks/If Uncle Sam don't smarten up/we'll wither like the buttercup.

A WSJ reader named A Torr responded to the above poem thusly:
Europeans don't go to church and beer halls.   And the pubs in the UK, Ireland, Sweden,etc are filled with people standing side by side.

The reality is that Europeans have realized that with a mortality rate of .02 - .04 percent ( that's .0002 - .0004) and declining death rates ( as in the US), this is no longer an issue to get overly excited about.  The elderly ( 80+) represent over 85 percent of the deaths ( as in the US) and can be isolated with precautions taken in nursing homes ( unlike that which was done in New York which together with NJ, Connecticut and Michigan represent over 50 percent of the 'deaths' related to Covid).

Simply put - this is and always has been a politically driven 'crisis' ( as were/are the 'protests' ). Time to move on.



Winning Streak of Big Cities Fades With 2020 Crises.

The bigger the city the more I abhor/its smells and its people and unending roar/I'm not some old sardine, packed next to some creep/who doesn't know how social distance to keep/Give me a small town where neighbors are nice/and gossip's a sport, not a terrible vice/Where boredom's an artform and I can relax/and wear at the neck my polyestery slacks.




Disney executives are scrambling to address what is looking to be a prolonged crisis on many fronts, forcing a realignment of priorities that could have lasting impacts.


Disney needs a bag of tricks/if they can't make brand new flicks/With their theme parks now ghost towns/they are making sobbing sounds/What will save their bacon is/merchandizing at a fizz/Push those dolls and hats and clocks/Mickey shirts and Goofy socks/Nike did it; you can, too/Give the country Disney flu!


Republicans Put Schools, Jobs at Top of Coronavirus Priorities.

I'll tell you my priorities, although nobody asked/I'd like to see a cartoon show that's based on Thomas Nast/I also want a toilet bowl that reads my horoscope/and how about a rindless inexpensive cantaloupe/There's some might call me foolish for my impractical desires/but they sure beat the stuff from our Congressional blowdryers . . . 


The Portland Protests, Trump Administration and Federal Authority.

The bogeyman will get you, and he comes straight from DC/He'll drag you off and lock you up with total secrecy/He never says a word but simply grabs the nearest chump/and throws 'em in an unmarked van on orders from old Trump/So never go out when it's dark or march in a procession/otherwise you'll disappear for make believe transgression.

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Today's headlines that spawned timericks.



They wanted to hear their readers’ opinions. Then the pro-slavery guy wrote a letter to the editor.
WaPo

When readers write to the front desk/their offerings are oft grotesque/Even if their grammar could work/they still crawl out from the woodwork/with conspiracies galore/and prejudices mighty sore/Let the public have the news/but please delete their wacky news. 


Some Companies Got Both Government Contracts and PPP Loans.
WSJ

Double dipping is the way/companies make others pay/for their profits and their perks/What a bunch of lousy jerks/Guess it's true what wise men say/The rich know just on whom to prey.


As the Virus Deepens Financial Trouble, Colleges Turn to Layoffs.
NYT


Even tenure will not save/teachers from an early grave/as our colleges go broke/and the pink slip now convoke/Professor, do not sit and blubber/Get out there and invent Flubber!




Twitter Hack Revives Concerns Over Its Data Security.
WSJ

Like a sieve with giant rips/your account on Twitter drips/info that a hacker digs/to annoy some wealthy prigs/Technology just seems to bear/claimants for the electric chair.

Saturday, July 18, 2020

Timericks Ripped from Today's Headlines.





Firms With Troubled Pasts Got Millions of Dollars in PPP Small-Business Aid.
WSJ

If you run a Ponzi scheme/PPP is just your dream/They have given millions to/biznesses that are a screw/If you're honest, going broke/Uncle Sam thinks you're a joke.



Hackers Tell the Story of the Twitter Attack From the Inside.

NYT


America has bred a troop/composed of youthful nincompoop/who finding time hang heavy did/cause Twitter folk to flip their lid/by hacking their accounts for fun/"Fun" as in a Gatling gun/Using brains for mischief will/turn them into mental krill.


The pandemic has hit restaurants hard, but experts say the ‘ghost food hall’ concept might save them.
WaPo


The ghost hall is a place to sit/and eat your takeout bit by bit/Indoor dining is a trend/that is at a final end/America will now be switchin'/to meals from a private kitchen/Now the question on my lips/is 'will the waiters still get tips?'








Thursday, July 16, 2020

Timericks from headlines in today's New York Times.



It's a tough time to be a street musician with a nine hundred pound piano.

If you have to go and busk/from the dawn until the dusk/pick your props with proper care/lest you wind up in wheelchair/You'll never have a good stagehand/to lug around your baby grand.


Shootings have soared; is the NYPD pulling back?

IN New York the cops are slow/to enforce the lawful flow/So if you are mugged, too bad/ The cops will tell you it's a fad/then go on their merry way/sleeping while the crooks make hay.



Colin Powell Still Wants Answers.

Many are the folk bereaved/since Colin Powell was first deceived/With bogus intel he began/a never ending battle plan/that still is gutting ten years out/Americans like speckled trout.


Timericks from headlines in today's Wall Street Journal



Store Reopenings Likely Boosted June Sales, but Virus Threatens Future Gains.

Why go into stores, I ask/when I have to wear a mask/I will stay home and online/shop for stuff that's mighty fine/Amazon can take the chance/when I buy a pair of pants.



Eviction Looms for Millions of Americans Who Can’t Afford Rent.

Old MacDonald had a shack/but the mortgage he did lack/when the rent came due once more/out he shot like meteor/No hiatus from the bank/for this archetypal Yank.


In Texas, a Doctor Fights the Surge and Gets Covid-19; ‘I Cry Every Day’

In Texas you had better stick/to never getting very sick/Their hospitals are overflowed/and tending patients sure has slowed/So if you come down with the chills/just take some melatonin pills.





Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Timericks from headlines in today's Washington Post.



White House tells 18 million unemployed workers to ‘Find Something New’ in ad campaign.

Our Land of Opportunity will give it to you straight/Find another function -- you must learn to pull your weight/Unemployment benefits are not from Santa Claus/Go and harvest lettuce or cut timber with chainsaws/Find your new beginning, even if you're old and sick/Anyone can mop a floor or start to carry brick!


Ivanka Trump posts photo holding Goya beans, draws criticism for using her position to promote a product.



I like Goya refried beans/they go good with collard greens/I ain't feeling any ache/that their CEO's a flake/I like food already canned/So I will use the Goya brand/If my cuisine you castigate/I hope you sit upon a krait.


Disappearances in Mexico rose during López Obrador’s first year, now top 73,000.

Come to Mexico, senor/You will drop right through the floor/You will not be seen again/though we search with many men/Finally we tell your kids/sorry, he just hit the skids.


Timericks from headlines in today's Wall Street Journal.




Walmart to Require Face Masks in All U.S. Stores Starting July 20.

Some folks think it's sabotage/that Walmart requests camouflage/You can't buy their produce stale/if you do not wear a veil/If you do not don a visor/you can't buy an appetizer/What will all the rednecks do/since they think a mask's hoodoo?


Why Arizona Wasn’t Ready for Its Coronavirus Surge.

Leaders saying 'all is fine'/show a lack of civic spine/They would rather sit at ease/than to combat dread disease/When a public servant claims/'problem solved,' they're playing games/The truth may hurt and cause some strife/but, hey, it just may save a life!


Women and Men Age Differently—in More Ways Than Just Longevity.

It makes no never mind to me/which sex has got longevity/Or who grows wiser as they age/or feels less like they're in a cage/The only thing old men require/is a marital ceasefire.  


Timericks from headlines in today's New York Times



64 Videos Show the N.Y.P.D. Meeting Protesters With Fists, Clubs and Body Slams.

The right to protest is protected/when the right thing is selected/But marching to an unapproved/cause will get you quick removed/or punched or struck with billy club/And that's how things are run here, bub.



The White House Called a News Conference. Trump Turned It Into a Meandering Monologue.

When the Prez confronts the press/his modesty will dispossess/He brags of all he's done before/He tries to even ev'ry score/He answers questions not a bit/but spouts like it is holy writ/If I were a reporter there/I'd stay dead drunk and pull my hair.


Scientists Have Finally Calculated How Many Hot Dogs a Person Can Eat at Once.

In the annals or research/things have taken quite a lurch/as the eggheads have devised/how eating franks is analyzed/Yet despite what they found out/they did not factor sauerkraut/Without that tangy dividend/my hot dog nosh I will suspend!


Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Timericks from stories in today's Wall Street Journal.



Universities Cut Oil Investments as Student Activism Builds

Fossil fuels have found that they/are deplored like tooth decay/by college boards who won't invest/in such dirty interest/No! they cry; the remedy/is oil that comes from THC/That will keep us going strong/please to pass around the bong.

Hospitals Stock Up on Covid-19 Drugs to Prepare for Second Wave in Fall

Doctors and their nurses know/that epidemics come and go/but pandemics have got a way/of coming for a long long stay/And so the clinics now prepare/for autumn surges ev'rywhere/To avoid September's funk/I think I'll just stay in my bunk . . . 

Billboard Charts to Stop Tallying Music Sold With T-Shirts, Tickets

  Artists that are selling schlock/integrity do really mock/Mozart sold no t-shirts, friend/and Brahms stayed broke to bitter end/Play your music, country star/and don't sell me a candy bar.  

Monday, July 13, 2020

Timericks from stories by Allison Prang, Joe Flint, and Rachel Pannett.

Allison Prang.  WSJ.  



California Governor Says Indoor Operations for Bars, Restaurants, Movie Theaters Must Close.
@AllisonPrang


California's Golden Gates/have swung shut as it now waits/for the virus to explode/once again in Death Star mode/The Gov thought maybe they could fudge/but that ol' virus has a grudge/Now he's closing shop again/for ev'ryone, from mice to men.




Peacock, NBCUniversal’s New Streaming Service, Joins Crowded Field at Challenging Time.
@JBFlint   @Lilliannnn  

Streaming entertainment, news/sport and talking heads that schmooze/is a concept I downplay/cuz I do not want to pay/Call me cheap and dull -- a schnook/For free I'll just enjoy a book!



Jumbled Covid-19 Border Rules Baffle Companies, Stymie Tourism.
@RachelPannett

Crossing borders nowadays/is a baffling polonaise/All the steps you have to take/to avoid a big mistake/would make Fred Astaire confused/And still your entry is refused/Me, I'll stay put right inside/and read my little TV Guide.