Chain stores.
Drugstores, malls, supermarkets, movie theatres.
Every glossy magazine ad
every shrink-wrapped plastic box
every carefully placed jewelry counter
even the scientifically chosen background Muzak
are all links
in the chains of consumerism
that bind us to cramped cubicles
and grime-stained warehouses
and those exercise treadmills on TV
that we can buy with two easy payments
of $29.95.
The sign over the gates
of our white picket fences reads
“Work is Freedom”