1. Lbs- Lead singer Michael Stipe had a dream in which he attended a party where all the other people's initials were “LB”. That is what inspired this sequence of names and we will take a look at the different “LB”s

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2.  Political upheaval- the 70s and 80s was a time of great unrest with the Cold War and even the years after it was over. The song makes mention to many of the large events that occurred that made Americans unsure for their future, hence “It’s the End of the World”.

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3. Doomsday- This is the main theme of the song that is represented by the juxtaposition of disasters natural and supernatural against events that actually occurred in politics.