Jack and Jill Make a Pot of Coffee

Reflections on current events

As of early May 2026, over a dozen of AI-generated, Lego-themed propaganda videos created by the group Explosive Media have been released, often daily, during the ongoing conflict. These viral videos use satire and hip-hop to target Western audiences and mock US/Israeli leadership.

Something I continue to hear over the internet and amongst friends is the saying, “May you live in interesting times.” Despite popular belief, this saying is not an ancient Chinese curse. In 1966, Robert Kennedy used this phrase in his “Ripple of Hope” speech, which introduced it into English culture. It is speculated that the phrase stems from the Chinese proverb, properly translated as “better to be a dog in times of peace than a human in times of war”. These are interesting times, and yes, to be a pampered dog in times of peace sounds fabulous right now.

OCCAM’S CUP OF JOE
This morning, in the first hours of the day, while surrounding minds quietly rest, my mind wants to stretch its legs. It wanders around and is restless. There is an equation hovering over our heads that humans must solve. It feels like an inconsistent equation, but it is solvable.

While in a lucid dream state, snuggled up in early spring bedding, a metaphor appeared.

One cool fall morning, Jack and Jill are sitting at the dining table, reading and writing. Jill gets up and says to Jack, I’d like some coffee. I’m making coffee, would you like some? Jack is nose deep in a project and blindly says “yes”. Jill pours in enough water and coffee for two. Truns on the coffee maker and returns to her chair across the table from Jack. As the fragrance of a warm cup starts to fill the room, Jack realizes he never wanted coffee; he doesn’t like coffee. He looks at the anticipation on Jill’s face. He begins to form a long and exhausting plan of how he can reject her cup of coffee and continue to keep his hatred of coffee a secret. How can he do this…?

He could break the coffee pot, perhaps by doing cartwheels across the kitchen. He could run down to the breaker box and flip the kitchen fuse. He could set the papers resting on the table on fire, distracting her, then throw the whole machine out the window and claim the damage on their homeowners’ insurance. OR…he could simply say, “Jill, you know what, I don’t want a cup of coffee. I actually don’t like coffee. I’m going to pour myself a glass of orange juice instead, thank you anyway.”

SOLVE FOR X
Liars and thieves are ruling the governments on a scale the Earth’s current generation has never seen. Trillions of dollars are circulating from pocketbook to pocketbook of fewer entities. It seems to me an elite group of mega-billionaires is trying to turn off a coffee pot. My mind wants to know why. Why? Why start any of these wars? Why cartwheel across Ukraine, Gaza, Iran? Why threaten Taiwan? Why? The reasons you give and the results we see do not solve the equation. Things do not add up. Trump, the Iran war is NOT protecting Americans from nuclear strikes. Putin, Ukraine is not hurting you; get out of there. Netanyahul, shut the fuck up and sit down, you genocidal maniac! Jinping, calm down. You’ve got more than enough, you greedy bastard. Make friends, not war.

War is good for nothing.
The truth works better.

March 2026, AI generated. Trump rides the Anti-christ horse, Netanyahu on the Horse of War, Jinping is Horse of Famine, Putin on the green poisonous horse of Death.

Extra Bonus feature!

In modern Christian teachings, followers are encouraged to keep their eyes out for these four hooligans. The signs of their power over the earth will be obvious. Personally, I lined it all up back in March of 2026. I was asking myself, “How do these FOUR dudes have so much power to destroy and implement chaos?” I began to wonder if they were a part of this folklore. Also, I wondered, what “end” does their appearance mark? I don’t believe it marks the end of the planet, but the end of an age. IMO, the Age of Conquerors and Kings is taking its final bow, but not without a fight. Spoiled rotten, ghoulish, blood-sucking men are making their final appeal. Stab at the earth one last time. –And f@ck them for doing so. Get the hell off my planet!

Back in the 90s, I was an evangelical Christian. Here is what that church teaches about the Four Horsemen. This teaching, it turns out, was a way to militarize the congregation and promote a type of “Christian army” for Jesus.

If you are not familar with this story, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are four symbolic figures from the New Testament Book of Revelation (Chapter 6, verses 1–8). They appear when Jesus Christ (“the Lamb”) opens the first four of seven seals on a divine scroll, unleashing a sequence of troubles that signal the end times. After these events, Jesus is suppose to return, bringing heaven to earth in the shape of a giant cube like a STNG Borg ship. What do you think? Did I line them up in the correct order?

White horse: The rider goes out “conquering and to conquer”. While some traditions view this rider as Jesus Christ spreading the Gospel (because Christ also rides a white horse later in Revelation), many mainstream interpretations see him as a false leader—often the Antichrist—or a symbol of deceitful political and ideological conquest.

Red horse: This rider is given the power to “take peace from the earth” and make people slaughter one another. He represents violent conflict, civil strife, and global warfare.

Black horse: The rider represents severe economic collapse and starvation. Scales indicate strict, inflated rationing where a whole day’s wages barely buy enough basic grain (wheat or barley), though luxury items like oil and wine remain untouched—pointing to deep economic disparity during a crisis.

Pale green horse: The horse is described as a sickly, pale-green or yellowish color. This rider is given authority over one-fourth of the earth to kill people through a combination of war, hunger, plagues, and wild beasts

Published by Shannon Laws

Shannon Laws is a poet, producer, and advocate for the arts. She is the recipient of the Village Books Literary Citizenship Award, two Mayor’s Arts Awards, and the “Dr. Asha Bhargava Memorial Award — Community Champion” from the Writers International Network in British Columbia. Shannon is the author of four poetry books and one poetry album. Since 2022, she has published Corridor, a free monthly poetry zine. She lives in Bellingham, Washington, near the Salish Sea.

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