"These snot-nose stompalongs will convince the finger-waving, faithless bangsters one thing for sure: We can only become what we really are when we no longer believe what others have convinced us to be. We won't follow religion, we are one. And the understanding of my art is only the sad product of journalism. Fuck art. I am art." -Marylin Manson

Ever since the good ol' days of Ozzy gnawing on winged creatures, shock publicity has been good publicity. A master of said shock treatment is the aforementioned quoter, Marylin Manson. However, in this quote recently made on his website, he's apparently crossed his own wires in the hopes of finding a new source of attention. It's not his desire to do away with the conventional means of art and crown himself the only true form of said art...it's not even his wanton lust to run down journalism (even though in a lot of cases, I can't blame him for it). It's the fact that he wants his fans to join him in not following religion, and be one complete, undeniable group.

hmmm...how Zen. Actually, that's kind of a quasi-Catholic principal, too. Anyone else thinking he may be Muslim?

The fact of the matter is, all religions (including the Church of Satanism) share the belief that it's followers are, in essence, one with themselves and their fellow believers. If Manson means "conventional religion" by saying "religion", he's being way too vague by just saying "religion", because in that case, the implied meaning is that all religions must be affected, and that no religion should be followed...even the Church of Satanism. Herein lies the chance for misinterpretation. Most people know what Manson means just by hearing various interviews with him, but essentially, the quote is as you see it at the beginning of this page. The implied meaning isn't always the one taken, and for someone looking for attention, that's the greatest weapon of all (and besides, we all know I'm just giving his words and persona more publicity, anyways).

Now, let's not get me wrong, here. Manson's music has been some of the most solid industrial to come our way since Trent Reznor. As a matter of fact, I'm listening to "Antichrist Superstar" as I type this. Ultimately, I'm not a Manson-hater or want the guy to be strapped into a chair and force-fed a sermon, but all I ask from a hard rock star is to watch what they're saying and how they're saying it to make sure that they don't shoot themselves in the foot. This is a minor flub in grammar, and the fact that he's probably just out for attention lessens it more-so, but this is more ammo for every non-Manson fan out there to shoot his way.