He does not manipulate me. If you think
he does, you have missed my stories. We
are both the sparrow falling and the augury
here at the Times; in distant rooms the clink
of coupes. Someone says “objective.” Drink!
Every citizen, of course, is free
to feel: no ad has any hold on me;
my thoughts? the world beyond? in perfect sync;
self and perception? perfect harmony.
Vested in reporting’s sacristy
and chasubled by my BA degree:
I alone can see what others see
with bias clearly: it isn’t sophistry
to be, alone, what’s true. Or not to be.