he used to put his dukes up,
and it didn’t matter why.
maybe he loved the fight
(though probably not)
or perhaps winning
(most certainly)
and sometimes it was just worth it,
so he would put his dukes up.

he used to stay in the fight,
even though he was losing.
maybe he could find an angle
(like a republican)
or make the other guy look bad
(like a democrat)
or maybe it was the other way around,
but he used to stay in the fight.

he used to feel good about fighting,
even when he lost.
maybe he could learn from it
(the other guy always rubbed that in)
or maybe he called it experience
(so that the other guy regretted it next time)
and sometimes he called it strategy,
so he could feel good about fighting.

he doesn’t fight anymore, not really,
even when it’s important to him.
maybe he learned how to win without it
(sun tzu says that’s the way to do it)
or maybe that’s compromise
(because he’s gotten old enough for it)
but I think he is just tired and ready to give up,
so he doesn’t fight anymore, not really.