Big Dave Diff was a local bloke;

He liked a laugh, a risky joke;

When no one watched, he cadged a smoke.

One day he told us he was broke.

 

Though usually a blow to pride,

He seemed to take it in his stride,

But soon great chasms, acres wide,

Would open up on every side.

 

His savings short, surviving thanks

To social credits and food banks,

Dave’s loan shark rating took a dive;

What was it worth to stay alive?

 

This is the lot of decent folk –

To lose contentment at a stroke.

The algorithms dominate;

We hang suspended, pending fate.