Indifference is the essence of inhumanity.
George Bernard Shaw
Everyone Knows
Everyone knows my name, face, and products.
I appear on screens across the world.
Wealth and I speak a coded language,
encrypted inside green and silver.
Luxury touches every corner of my existence.
I touch no one. Distance keeps profits safe.
Then, for fun, I bet my associate, “If I walk
through one of my factories in a central state
and someone recognizes me, another layoff is possible.
The workers are not watching what they are doing.”
I did. One of the older men on the line
almost ran into me.
“Geesh, do you know who that is?”
another man whispered. He was loud as thunder.
“Quiet, Jake, his son was laid off last time around.
He couldn’t feed eight kids
no more. His baby died last week.”
I finished my check without adequate
detail. I will send someone from my staff
for the next inspection. Workers need to watch
where they are going.
originally published in For a Better World
public domain illustration
terrypetersen 