To read the latest issue, click 'Issues by year' in the menu above

  Russian Trolls Disrupt Election
         − News programme 2017

The sidewalk is filling with trolls−
the millennial version of moles,
   they walk in to work,
   there’s no need to lurk,
no hiding behind grassy knolls.

They clearly all have the same mother.
Each one looks the same as the other.
   They have stylized do’s,
   in greens, pinks, and blues,
and you (cough) can’t tell sister from brother.

One troll enters and sits in his place,
starts his laptop and opens up Face-
   book. He’s  “rancher from Texas”
   and “wife with a Lexus,”
and he’s off to disrupt cyberspace.

Each morning he’s given new goals.
He works at perfecting his roles −
   going deep in the psyche
   of Susie and Mikey,
by donning their virtual souls.

As Susie he buys crystal glasses
and has signed up for lots of new classes −
   vegan cooking, Pilates
   (Mikey likes the taut bodies),
the opiate of these new masses.

His job is to skew the election −
there’s a contest within every section.
   If he gets the most friends,
   he will win a new Benz
with bumper to bumper protection.

These days there are no Bolsheviks.
This isn’t about politics
   nor the news, true or fake,
   just the dough he can make
from all those American clicks.

But as he makes each brand new friend,
Mikey/Susie can see a new trend.
   Having friends feels fantastic −
   he forgets that he’s plastic,
and he moves to New York in the end.