I like walking at night
and staring at the houses I pass.
Some have lavish exteriors
accentuated with delicate lighting.
Others are modest
and prefer a single porch light
or none at all.

But nearly every one emits the glow of a television
from at least one of the windows.
Some of the TVs tell their viewers who is to blame
and who to protect their kids from.
Some of the TVs focus on the solution
and promote solidarity.
But nearly all of them report the same statistics
the same hard truths
that make us all want the experts to be wrong
no matter what house we live in
or what TV we watch.
So I walk instead.