"It's The End Of The World As We Know It" (and I feel fine)

This song keeps comming to mind. Maybe just coincidence, but I find it interesting that some of the lyrics might be pointing to current events. I've read somewhere that this was influence by dreams and stream of consciousness writting. Feel free to debate and add if anyone else recognizes any coincidences from this song. And keep in mind this song isn't 'It's the end of the world,' but only the end as we know it and 'I feel fine.' So this isn't necessarily a gloom and doom thing.

(from official lyric sheet)

That's great, it starts with an earthquake,
(we have had many)
birds
(birds dying)

and snakes, an aeroplane - (9/11?)

Lenny Bruce is not afraid. Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn -
world serves its own needs, regardless of your own needs. Feed it up a knock,
speed, grunt no, strength no. Ladder structure clatter with fear of height,
down height. (again, 9/11?)

Wire in a fire, represent the seven games in a government for
hire and a combat site. (current military endeavors)

Left her, wasn't coming in a hurry with the furies
breathing down your neck. Team by team reporters baffled, trump, (Donald Trump?)

tethered crop. Look at that low plane! Fine then. (drones/ or maybe chemtrails)

Uh oh, overflow, population,
common group, but it'll do. Save yourself, serve yourself. World serves its
own needs, listen to your heart bleed. Tell me with the rapture and the
reverent in the right - right. You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright
light, feeling pretty psyched.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

Six o'clock - TV hour. Don't get caught in foreign tower. Slash and burn,
return, listen to yourself churn. Lock him in uniform and book burning, (Koran burning)

blood letting. Every motive escalate. Automotive incinerate. Light a candle,
light a motive. Step down, step down. (the call for N. African and Middle East leaders to step down.)

Watch a heel crush, crush. Uh oh,
this means no fear - cavalier. Renegade and steer clear! A tournament,
a tournament, a tournament of lies. Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives
and I decline.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

The other night I tripped a nice continental drift divide. Mount St. Edelite.
Leonard Bernstein. Leonid Breshnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs.
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly bean, boom! You symbiotic, patriotic,
slam, but neck, right? Right.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine...fine...


Well, I am actually out of time but I might be able to find some other things if I could stay. Anyway, I don't really want to dig too deeply because I don't want to be grasping at nothing. (And maybe I already am.) So not saying anything definate, just opening this up for discussion really. Maybe there are things here yet to come yet? anyone want to make a prediction based on the lyrics purely for fun?

reply to post by angel119

Just to clarify, are you saying that you think Michael Stipe predicted 9/11??
and other more current events.

reply to post by BrokenCircles


A good clarification I should make. No, not implying that really. Only that stream of consciousness writing and dreams can be predictors. This was an example. Because I don't think it's all about him, but maybe he was on to something here. But because the song has some fame we know of it. Other people's subconsciousness isn't so well known or documented as a song.

Originally posted by angel119

and snakes, an aeroplane

I thought you were going to say this was 'Snakes on a Plane'. But seriously, a lot of the lyrics seem to reflect a lot of the predictions mentioned in the Bible and by Nostradamus. Maybe he was subconsciously reaccounting these works. Who's to say? I know accurate predictions using phychic auto-writing have been done in the past, but I don't know. Seems that if you throw enough words at a subject something is bound to stick, and there are a lot of words in that song.

S&F for posting something interesting and for it being based on a great song

The 9/11 reference is creepy, but I don't think the song is prophetic. If I list a hundred things I think may happen, call it a prediction and get a couple right then I must be a prophet, right?

This isn't the only song that welcomes the dissolution of our selfish, parasitic societies.
I won't post it here because of a plethora of expletives, but look up "Aenima" by Tool.
If you haven't already, Tool being incredibly epic and all.

Sample Lyric:

Cuz I'm praying for rain
And I'm praying for tidal waves
I wanna see the ground give way.
I wanna watch it all go down.
Mum please flush it all away.
I wanna see it go right in and down.
I wanna watch it go right in.
Watch you flush it all away.

Time to bring it down again.
Don't just call me pessimist.
Try and read between the lines.

I can't imagine why you wouldn't
Welcome any change, my friend.

www.elyrics.net... (Source)

Learn to Swim.

If you seen Independence Day, the SETI person is listening to the song as he's putting in the station, when I saw the movie in the theater and that happened, I died laughing
Here's the REM video



Here's my namesake singing it:

Well, I am actually out of time

LOL thats a good one ;-)


You might even co even further tho, one of their latter albums is called ATS (around the sun), Hmmm
reference to this site and Nibiru????. lol

But seriously i dont think stipey really meant ITEOTWAWKI as a prophetic song.

It was more a song of rebellion which was typicall for REM in that period of their career.
Its more or less a bunch of fragments together whithout a real storyline which is so with most
of their songs. Great song tho, they used it as a closer on concerts for years. and most of the time
they went really loose.

Great sont great band allthough i think they shouldve quit after 2005.

edit on 27-4-2011 by totalmoron because: (no reason given)