Bad Idea in a Suit

Bad Idea in a Suit

A Cowboy Poem by Alan Nafzger

You can dress a bad idea up and drive it into town,
give it a briefcase and a handshake and a PowerPoint breakdown.
Call it innovation, call it progress, call it the future’s face —
in a small Texas town they’ll nod politely then go check the case.

Because folks out here got memories longer than a fence line runs,
they remember what your daddy did and what his daddy done.
They’ll smile at your presentation and they’ll pour you the good tea,
then talk about it after and remember perfectly.

A bad idea can’t hide in a place where people know your name,
where the woman at the post office has watched your whole game,
where the man at the hardware store was there in eighty-nine
when the last suit came through town with a very similar line.

Progress is a word that means something when it’s true,
but dressed-up bad decisions are just bad decisions in new shoes.
The city might applaud the suit a week or maybe two —
small towns give it till Thursday then they quietly see through.

You can dress a bad idea up in a suit and call it progress… but it still won’t survive a week in a small town where folks remember things.

I’m Alan Nafzger. Appreciate ya!

Last Updated on April 11, 2026 by Alan Nafzger