Free Speech Wars

Ozzy Osbourne is notorious 'round these parts for once watering down our shrine of liberty, the Alamo. On April 2, 2004, the Texas Board of Criminal Justice did worse… More

Heaven

(From the first scene: Court Room Day) Gerry Dibble stands before God with one of Jesus’ representatives who is defending him. Satan’s officer is prosecuting him and one ofhis representatives… More

Brother Oak

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he… More

Buddhism in Prison

The Martha Stewart verdict is screaming from the headlines as I begin to write these lines. Martha used to be something of an idol to me. Before landing in… More

Letter to a Daughter

Dear Lori,Thank you for your latest. Do you remember about ten years ago when I was in the hospital with a kidney stone? I think I have them again. As… More

Labyrinth

Missouri State Prison looks like it was pulled up by the roots and transplanted block by block, wall by wall, tower by tower, massive iron gate by gate from… More

Horse the Caterpillar

In the world that I lived, I felt attached to its walls. These walls had no corners for there was no place to hide.In the beginning of this life… More

Cadaver

Honorable Mention, PoetryOptics only 9 yrs in usesaw the needlefilled with very little bloodhanging in the vein of the tied armThe arm hanging from a manlying in a refrigeratorin… More

Chris Early: Sheryl

Legs parted like a pie with one slice eaten inside a la mode thighs angle over sour sheets. They are silk. A guitar sleeps beside her, always, and I am stoned again, nude, seated on carpet, waiting… More

Panopticon

So again this vista is eroding. The buildings dim. The women doze in their Steel and stone barns, their toil Having been state approved, the sheets Bleached harmless and stacked on the tables By… More