Our failure

[RickZarber]

ON THE FAILURE OF ONE SMALL COMMUNITY IN ACHIEV-
-ING ITS OWN ILL DEFINED DREAMS AND/OR GOALS...

AND WE WERE AN ARMY OF DEAD WOMEN AND MEN, SHUFFLING
POINTLESSLY ACROSS AND THRU THIS GLORIOUS NEW CENTURY
W/ALL ITS INTERACTIVE TOYS, INTERNET PRATTLE, ELECTRIFIED
RESTRAINING HARNESSES, BILLION-DOLLAR DEATH RAYS AND
SUPERMAX PENITENTIARIES, AND ITS GODDAMNED EVERMORE
REFINED, IRRATIONAL, AND TERMINAL ECONOMIES OF BLOOD,
MISERY AND SLOW FUCKING DOOM? AND PLEASE KNOW, OR
ALREADY UNDERSTAND, THAT THIS RECORD IS SO FUCKING
USELESS AS A ONE WAY TRANSMISSION, LIKE ALL ONE-WAY
TRANSMISSIONS NEED TO CEASE FOREVER FOR SURE, IN THIS
ALREADY-EXISTING MESS OF RADIATION, ELECTRICITY AND NOISE
AND CLAMOR AND LIES... AND&SO AND BUT SOME TIME
SOMEWHERE SOME TINY ACTION TOOK ROOT MAYBE, AND NONE
OF US NEVER HEARD ABOUT IT YET, AND THE EARTH DID ITS SLOW
TWIRL IN SPITE OF? AND SO WE ALL WOKE UP HUNGOVER,
&ALWAYS STILL MORE TIRED OF, OR MORE SPOOKED OR SCARED,
AND BARELY SHUFFLED THRU A LITTLE BIT MORE? AND WHILE WE
WERE SLEEPING THEY EVEN TOOK OUR NEIGHBOURHOODS AWAY,
AND EVERYTHING TURNED INTO DISNEYLAND AND MARIONETTES
AND CHIPBOARD AND SPIT? NO MORE LOVELY AIMLESS STROLLS
ALLOWED, NO MORE LONG WANDERING NIGHTS ALL BURNING
W/POSSIBILITY, WONDER OR JOY, NOT HERE NO, NOT W/THE
FLASHING COPCAR LIGHT SHOW AND PARK CURFEWS AND THE
WHOLE "YEAH YOU CAN LIVE HERE, BUT YOU CAN'T LIVE HERE, I
MEAN YOU CAN PAY YR. RENT AND TO&FRO A LITTLE BUT THAT'S
ABOUT ALL BUB, AND DON'T YOU FORGET IT HAWHAWHWAW"?
AND WE LEARNED THE RULES WAY TOO WELL, AND THEY ALTERED
THE WAY WE FELT AND LIVED AND BREATHED EVEN? AN WHAT
ABOUT THE STORY OF US ALL ABANDONING EACH OTHER, BECAUSE
WE WERE TOO SELF-INVOLVED TO FIGURE OUT HOW ALONE WE ALL
REALLY FELT MOSTLY NEARLY ALL THE TIME? (MEAINING THAT WE
ALL TREATED EACH OTHER REALLYREALLYREALLY BADLY, MAN)?
(AND CRAFTED OUR OWN NEUROTIC SOAP OPERAS W/OUR BORING
SAD COUPLINGS AND IRONY, TELEVISION AND COCKTAILS?) AND
IN OUR INFINITE WEAKNESS WE FIGURED EVERYTHING WAS SHIT
ANYWAYS SO MIGHT AS WELL GET USED TO THE SMELL? AND WE
GATHERED IN COMPROMISED HALLS THAT REEKED OF FAILURE,
DISTANCE AND SELF-ALIENATION? AND SO WE NEVER REALLY MET?
AND SINCE WE NEVER MET, WE NEVER SCHEMED OR PLANNED OR
MANIFESTED THE RUINED DREAMS THAT DIDN'T HAVE TO BE
RUINED AT ALL? AND NEVER FIGURED OUT HOW TO COUNTER ALL
THE BLAND AGENTS OF RECUPERATION, WHO STOLE OUR
BRIGHTEST HOPES ALWAYS, AND SHOT 'EM OUT OF STAELLITES AT A
BUCK-FIFTY-NINE AN HOUR? (AND WOULD YOU BELIEVE US IF WE
TOLD YOU THAT WE BUILT A MACHINE THAT'LL BRING ALL THEIR
FUCKING SATELLITES THE FUCK DOWN?) AND THE ARGUMENTS
FOR&AGAINST WERE NEVER COMPLICATED BUT WERE CERTAINLY
FUCKING COMPLEX? AND WE CRAFTED SLACK FACT IONS, AND
MADE BELIEVE THAT WE WERE SEDITIONARIES, BUT WERE TOO
EASILY MOVED OR ELSE DID NOT EVER MOVE AT ALL? AND NEVER
STORMED THE GATES OR WALLS? BUT CRAFTED CLUMSY THINGS
W/OUR HANDS, AND THOSE THINGS WERE IMPORTANT TO US,
THOSE CLUMSY ABSTRACTED TOWERS AND MINURETS WE CRAFTED
W/OUR OWN WORRIED HANDS? AND BUILT OUR OWN CONFUSED
BELIEF SYSTEMS, WHICH WERE ENDLESSLY AND CRUCIALLY
BEAUTIFUL IN THEIR SMALL STUBBORN TANGLES OF LOSS, WORRY,
FAITH, AND NEED? AND MADE SMALL GESTURES W/OUR HANDS OR
EYES THAT WERE ENDLESSLY REDEEMING, AND MADE US ALL
SOMETIMES ALMOST BELIEVE IN SAINTS AND/OR ANGELS? AND
DAYDREAMED ENDLESSLY ABOUT LIVING A LITTLE MORE QUIETLY
OR A LITTLE BIT LOUDER FOR AWHILE? AND ALMOST ALWAYS
STRIVED FOR A LITTLE MORE ENGAGEMENT W/THIS
FALLING/FALLEN WORLD? OR HARDENED OUR RESOLVE
SOMETIMES AND BENT OUR HEADS AND BACKS INTO THE TASK AT
HAND AND DUG AND BUILT OR ERECTED? OR TRANSMITTED
OCCASIONAL EPIPHANIES OR URGENT FEARS W/PHOTOCOPIERS,
SILKSCREENS AND CDR'S? AND FOUND ANSWERS SOMETIMES IN
THE EMPTY PLACES, LIKE GANGS OF BIRDS FLYING OUT OF DEAD
BUILDINGS, BENEATH THE SUN'S BLIND WHITE HOLE? LIKE TREES
GROWING THRU FENCES OR AN ABANDONED JAR FILLED W/A
SUMMER'S WORTH OF RUSTY WATER OUT THERE BEHIND THE
PLACE WHERE THE HEAVY TRAINS ROLL? AND FOUND HOPE IN
THE IDEA OF THE FUTILE GESTURE? AND MANIFESTED SOMETIMES
W/BRICKS IN OUR HANDS? AND BUILT SOMETHING HERE IN SPITE
OF AND WILL NOT LET THEM TAKE IT FROM US SO EASILY? SO
PLEASE O PLEASE, LET'S PLEASE FIGURE OUT SOON WHAT EXACTLY
WE CAN BUILD HERE ON THIS PARCHED AND FALLOW GROUND.
(KNOWING ALL ALONG, THAT SOONER OR LATER THEIR
BULLDOZERS WILL COME AND TEAR IT ALL DOWN...) (BUT WE CAN
BUILD IT IN SPITE OF, AND LEAVE DUSTY NOTES ABOUT OUR
JOURNEYS BEHIND... AND RESISTANCE GREW FROM TENDER
PLACES, AND WE FOUGHT THE GOOD FIGHT WHENEVER IT
STAGGERED DOWN OUR LONESOME, TWISTED ROADS...


~ASMZ

[MSperoni]

TL, DR

[RickZarber]

TBToo bad, YSyou should, IGit's good.

It's the liner notes from the album linked at the bottom. I've had it for over a decade, but today it resonated with me a new way--aimed at us in particular. I dunno. I felt like sharing. I find it uplifting.


This is what it looks like properly. I retyped it here because this would be impossible to read, there isn't a better one available online, and mine is packed up right now so I can't scan it.