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        .d""b.                impulse reality press no. 140
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     $$ $$                        "Originality is Dead!"                
     $$ $$                           written by linear
     $$ $$                            released 9/7/01
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     $$ $$

    "Originality has simply become an art of concealing your resources."
                                  --- Mogel

	Nothing said or done or concieved is original, it's simply the 
intertwining of Concept A, supplied by an outside source, and Concept B, most
likely also provided by an outside source, though usually one aside from that
which provided Concept A.

	The mixture of Concept A and Concept B leads us to believe that we 
have created new Concept C, and we congratulate ourselves. We are then led to
believe, and preach to others, that Concept C was a creative, original stroke
of genius spawned by deep thought and understanding. And as long as no one 
else is clever enough to discover and link together Concept A and Concept B
for themselves, they congratulate us as well.

	So now, Concept C is spread through the particular medium you find
yourself involved with.


                         LOOK HOW INNOVATIVE YOU ARE!


	Having your ideas spread around is an amazing thing. You are praised.
You praise yourself. Nothing negative can come from all this. No way. You're
a creative genius, goddamit!

	But something negative does come from all this; suddenly, your
Concept C has become another's Concept A! And since we've recognized the
pattern, we are aware that this new Concept A will only be jumbled in with
some Concept B.

	Well now, you say, that's great! That means you have INSPIRED some-
one, right? How is this possibly a negative thing?

	But that Concept C of yours is forgotten. No one remembers your deep
thought or understanding. You're rewarded no gratitude for the inspriration
gained through your Concept C. The only thing left of your ideas is what 
resulted when some other guy mixed them with yet more "creative" and 
"original" ideas, just like yours. Now it's someone else's Concept C that
gets all the glory. What happened to YOUR praise? What happen to YOUR
sentiments of congratulations? Are YOU not the genius?

	Don't worry, though. The novelty of this new amazing concept will 
wear off just as quickly as it did for you.

                             ORIGINALITY IS DEAD!

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