Wikimedia Commons

LESLIE MCBRIDE WILE

Now we must think the unthinkable.
The good people of America
have elected one bad hombre as their president.
But surely
bad men before held the office
without crushing it entirely in greedy hands;
Rutherford B Hayes comes to mind.

Surely
Life will go on, but how, exactly?
How far, exactly, will the aftershocks travel?
How many, exactly, must lose to satisfy the winner?
How exactly will we measure the cost of this fearful victory?