FEB 29b, singable satire: homage to Ed Burtynsky "VIEW OF EARTH"

   a) Reprise of material posted on February 29b/28c in previous years ...

2020: pandemic verse, Kermit's prediction (illustrated poem)
2021: reptiles, fived-lined skinks (illustrated) 
2022: singable satire, Palace of Malice (parody lyrics)
2023: singable satire, Let's Do It (guest parody lyrics)

To access the details of any item in slide format, type its title, as displayed above in red font (e.g. ... five-lined skinks), into one of the two search bars at the the top of your blog-page. Underneath the slides for each entertaining delight that you discover, you will find a clickable link that lets you easily explore a more widespread collection of wonderments (verse, photos, wordplay, song-lyrics etc.) on the topic of your choice. 

five-lined skink

b) Today's Offering (Feb 29b, 2024): 

PARODY-LYRICS

ORIGINAL SONG: "The Book of Love", 1999 by Monotones; best known cover by Peter Gabriel 

PARODY COMPOSED: Giorgio Coniglio, October 2013.
PHOTOS: Edward Burtynsky website

With the recent book “Water” and film “Watermark”, Edward Burtynsky (“Manufactured Landscapes”) has used aerial photography to further document extensive degradation of our planet’s water-resource. As Burtynsky brings a Canadian sensitivity to the issue, I have used a few French words in these lyrics. eaux, water (pl) and haut, high, are pronounced as ‘oh’. autrui, others, and  ouïe, ouch!  rhyme with ‘see’.

VIEW OF EARTH  

(to the tune of "The Book of Love")

To view our Earth is disconcerting;

Dammed place may land up dry as bones;

With overuse and exponential

Expansion of industrial zones.

But,  eyes high I spy ......
Icefloes’ demise from polar seas;

And eaux-----oh those emotive

Haut-photos of Burty-ynsky’s!

Ice-caps dislodging, likely toasted;

Will flood the coastlines, raise the seas;

Less rain on heights, our food-stores threatened; 

Our stewardship’s a travesty.

Water-woes….. we owe to no one

Only ourselves, not autrui;
Ouïe! unwilling eyes we open

Edward’s lament-landscapes we see.

Parched Colorado River delta

Flow diverted – raise some herds –

Fish and amphibians find no shelter; 

Plundered profits, pain deferred.

Manufactured western suburbs,

Life floats on dwindling aquifers;

Next door the ancient ghostly remnants

Of cultures faltered, disappeared.

And drought------ no doubt about it

We’re drifting to that turn of things.

What clout .....   to save our offspring ?

 - Cherish each drop that wetting wrings.

Our leaders opt for obfuscation
A short-term outlook is obscene-

A final geologic  e - ra;

Warm welcome to Anthropocene !

And whoa! ….... those emotive

Views captured by Burty-ynsky!
Decry .…..... and why not try

Avoid our man-made destiny ?

(Rit.)
 The news from Earth is disconcerting………….