Paul Tanner

the good pleb’s war on (more) drugs 

we, damn us, we
don’t ask for much.
we literally 
break our backs at work 
and like good plebs
we haul our broken backs 
to the pharmacies 
and we neck the cough syrup 
we pop the pill
we snort the mint 
and then we get back to work. 
and we break our backs some more 
until we dare to pester the doctor:
a middle man 
who won’t operate on the cause 
but graciously scribbles on a notepad 
thereby giving us his permission 
to buy more drugs
for the symptoms: 
more drugs,
better drugs,
hell – the SAME drugs 
but in nicer, branded boxes. 
and we thank him
we THANK him
and drink and pop and snort 
then get back 
to our back-breaking work, 
relieved that the NHS hasn’t been privatised yet.
no, seriously, we do! 
we’re the good plebs, 
us, damn us, us.