As bargain-hunters

seek out the best deals.

People scarred by consumer fever

Are swamped by final demands

and charity appeals.

Young children beg

For loose coins, with

Blank expressions

Drowning in pools of sorrow

Beneath vacant eyes.

Haggard faces drench

Human spirits with the guilt

From failed solutions;

Floating like lost sharks

In shallow oceans.

Meanwhile vacant eyes

That would wrench tears from solid stone

Engage in a tug-of-war for

The hearts and minds of those

In powerful positions.