Governments Behaving Badly: A Satirical Poetry Series [pt. 2]

Author’s Note

If Raising Governments is the exhale—laughter edged with frustration—then Government Time-Out is what comes after.

The moment humor fades, and what’s left is clarity.

This piece strips the satire down to something quieter, more direct. It’s still framed through the language of discipline, but the tone shifts from playful to firm—less about calling out behavior, and more about demanding accountability.

There’s a difference between reacting and reflecting. Between explaining something away and actually sitting with it.

Government Time-Out lives in that space.

No noise.
No spin.
Just the uncomfortable weight of consequence.

Because sometimes the most powerful thing you can do…
is stop talking—and finally listen.

— Rowan Evans

Government Time-Out
Poetry by Rowan Evans

Sit down.
No—actually, sit.

We’re not doing this today.
Not the yelling,
not the threats,
not the “I know better” attitude.

You’ve had centuries
to prove that.

And yet—
here we are.

Hands in the cookie jar,
crumbs on your face,
still trying to say
it wasn’t you.

Really?

You think we don’t see it?

All the broken plates,
the slammed doors,
the mess you keep calling
“necessary.”

No.

You don’t get to break things
and call it order.

You don’t get to hurt people
and call it policy.

So here’s what’s gonna happen.

You’re going to sit there—
quietly—
and think about
what you’ve done.

No speeches.
No spin.
No rewriting the story
to make yourself the hero.

Just sit with it.

Feel it.

For once.

And when you’re ready
to act right—
we’ll talk.

If you’re interested in more poetry, you can find it here → [The Library of Ashes]

Governments Behaving Badly: A Satirical Poetry Series [pt. 1]

Author’s Note

Sometimes the only way to process the state of the world is to laugh at it.

Raising Governments takes the chaos, contradictions, and immaturity often seen in global leadership and reframes it through something familiar: parenting. Not out of cruelty – but out of exhaustion. The kind that comes from watching the same mistakes repeat, over and over again.

This piece leans into satire, using humor to highlight a deeper frustration – how systems meant to lead can sometimes feel reactive, impulsive, and disconnected from the people they affect.

At its core, this isn’t just about governments.
It’s about accountability.

And the strange reality of feeling like the adults in the room… aren’t.

— Rowan Evans

Raising Governments
Poetry by Rowan Evans

Why are governments
actin’ like bad kids,
needing their ass whipped?
Go and get the switch—
you pick. We’re going back
to the 90s and before.
No corners for you, no more.

I’m not mad, I’m just—
disappointed.
I’ll turn this car around.
Don’t think I won’t,
I can see you in the rear view.
This is gonna hurt me,
more than it does you.

As soon as we get home,
everyone to your rooms.
I need a minute to breathe—
collect myself.
And your attitudes…
they don’t help.

If you’re interested in more poetry, you can find it here → [The Library of Ashes]