...and his perspective on trying to deliver a spiritual message that gets mistaken or ignored...

Maynard likes analogy (and who doesn't miss anal sex play as analogy for self discovery??? heh heh....). Wouldn't you think that, if you'd had a profound spiritual experience (whether or not it's through use of chemicals) and you tried to share your discovery, and no one was interested, or called you crazy, or discounted your words because you must be crazy or stoned.... wouldn't it perhaps feel a little like these turkeys that claim to have been abducted and the way they're treated???

Anyone remember Bill Hicks talking about his abduction while on 5 dried grams of 'shrooms???? He wasn't at Area 51, of course, just plain 'ol Fredricksburg, TX, but....

Just my random thought on the matter - was trying to figure what a deeper meaning to this tune might be....

The next coming of "the messiah" would be interesting. We'd lock that mo-fo up and chuck the key, claiming to be the son of God and all that. We'd choose not to listen, and we'd call all the f**kers who did loonies, and wonder when they're going to put on their Nikes, drink their Kool-Aid and chase comets. You know we would ;)

We cannot forget that Lost Keys is the intro to this song, and he is already catatonic when he arrives at the hospital. He isnt locked up in a looney bin.

It's analogy, man, analogy... Lost Keys / Rosetta Stoned together makeup a story that's an analogy for other things.... the things represented in that analogy don't have to line up one for one with the story's details... that's how analogies work, doncha know ;)

The bit at the end there is a separate thing.... about the looney bin... although that certainly seems to be where our character in RS is headed at the end, there....

I love the way that we can interpret this song in so many different ways. I really do believe this is the best song on the album. I do like the more literal story that you can piece together throughout the song. The character really reminds of Frohike from the Lone Gunmen in the x-files.

It's funny that the name of the intro is Lost Keys (Blame Hoffman), because the Rosetta Stone is a key of sorts.

I've been meaning to post on this subject for awhile. Did anyone else notice the interesting choice of the word "hero"...

1) used in Rosetta Stoned by the speaker in referring to himself... or rather, how the alien(s) made him out to be a hero.

and 2) in 10,000 Days... "Llisten to the tales and romanticize, how we follow the path of the hero" ... this time in reference to Jesus Christ... or at least that's how I read it.

I don't think this is a coincidence at all. I'd post more thoughts, but I have work in 4 hours and I'm on this site too much as it is, methinks....

Discuss....

If you think that Viginti Tres sounds like a spaceshit taking off (which I've seen on here) then it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to think that Maynard is the proverbial "alien"

Believe that is exactly what's intended there.

If he is any type of hero, he is a failed hero, perhaps ruined by modern society.

Well certainly, but what I was really going for was the comparison between (a.) a person who was given a message of doom, or salvation, by an alien race and sent out to basically spread this message to the world, or "preach" if you will, and (b.) Jesus Christ, who also tried to spread a message of salvation, or doom, to humanity.

i've only listened to the song a few times, but i see it as one big bill hicks reference.