“The Wizard of Wall Street”
Is what he said he was
And so we donned the rose-colored glasses
And entered a ruby state of mind
Thinking ourselves rich
Or was it:
That was rich!
But he was a shy guy
That was what he said he was
So we paid no attention
To his doings behind the curtain

His “wizardry” on Wall Street
Hidden by terminology
His wealth from junk bonds
Making junk from CMOs –
How many of us know or care
What those are?
Swapping default risk for sales –
He would never tell you
What that is!

His “wizardry” in D. C.
Hidden behind closed doors
Swapping Senate seats for sweetheart deals
For his buddies on The Street
Making junk out of Congress
Then swapping his Senate seat for a Governor’s house
Making junk out of the State of New Jersey
At a safe distance
From where the house of cards
Would come tumbling down
From where the fingers
Would be pointed at

And he, the Wizard,
Self-righteously points his finger, too
As he tells us
Only at the end of the story
“I can’t bring the economy back;
I don’t know how it works!”
While we are left without the Good Witch
And, I guess, the emerald slippers
Not even greenbacks
Not even a dime
For the fare home.

Copyright © 2009 by C. P. Klapper