Come One, Come All... Join the spectator sport: The camcorders are poised, The media lens are focused, The show of suffering has begun. Come One, Come All... Gather round the television As the talk and tabloid shows Exploit the anguish of those who Seek fleeting fame in confessions Of their deepest, darkest emotions For the voyeuristic appetite of the masses. Come One, Come All... Look into others' private turmoil, See how they are publicly humiliated; Listen to the howls for more And remember this is nothing new, Only a modern version of an old theme Revised and updated for another time. Come One, Come All... Was echoed in ancient corridors Of a grandly designed coliseum Where the blood lust for cruelty Reached a shocking crescendo When the enlightened Romans Allowed citizens to watch gladiators Clash with competitors, fight to the death, Tossing convicted murderers to wild beasts, And chose to call it benign entertainment. Come One, Come All... May be a terrifying call To join a seething madness Known as herd mentality, And participate in the public Spectacle of sadistic blood-sport. --Whether the shouts come from seats of a coliseum-- --Or hushed voices in front of a home television-- The view is the same, only in different mediums.
