Poetry is rubbish, mate

Photo by Sofiia Smirnova on Unsplash [a homage to Russian & American poet Joseph Brodsky]

What good is poetry, pretty words splashed upon a page or screen?
Many people don't like it, can't be bothered.
No one reads it any more.
It doesn't add to GDP.
It has no tangible benefits.
It can't be made into a major motion picture.
It never runs on Netflix.
It isn't partisan, or shouldn't be.
It tortures kids, who stumble over unknown words 
& tricky rhymes and rhythms. 
It can't be bought at the grocery store.
It doesn't have any packaging.
It doesn't include toys for the tots.
It has a tiny PR budget.
It awakens passions, but not predictably.
It alters awareness, but not reliably.
It doesn't have an ideology.
It can be dissected, but not distilled.
It has just two things going for it: 
One is beauty, the other truth.