" In America a child can no longer
visit the place where she was born
a shopping mall
stands there instead.
In America a grownup can no longer see the school
where she learned the art of growing sad
a freeway goes through there now an overpass
her memories of brick turn to glass
the suburb goes from white to black
and time speeds up so much she has
to stay young forever and reset the clock
every five minutes just to know where is there
and there is everywhere
because she lives in time and not in any space!
In our country here
the future is in ruins before it is built
a fact recognized by postmodern architecture
that grins at us shyly or demonically as it quoted
ruins from other times and places!
There are no buildings in America only passageways
that connect migratory floods
the most permanent architecture being
precisely that which moves these floods
from one future ruin to another
that is to say freeways and skyways
and the car is our only shelter
the architecture of desire reduced to the womb
a womb in transit from one nowhere to another!”

Saddened by his own vision and sensing smugness in the audience, Wakefield is revolted by his desire to please the foreigners. He coughs. He is portraying his own country now for the sake of… what? Applause? There isn't any. He veers down another path.

“The miracle of America is of motion not regret
in New Mexico the has face of Jesus jumped on a tortilla
in Plaquermine a Virgin appeared in a tree
In Santuari de Chimayo the dirt turned healer
a guy in Texas crasahed into a wall when God said
Let me take the wheel!
And others hear voice all the time
telling them to sit under a tree or jump from a cliff
or take large baskets of eggs into Blockbuster
to throw at the videos
the voices of God are everywhere heard loud
and clear under the hum of the tickertape
and all these miracle and speaking gods
are the mysteries left homeless by the Architecture
of speed and moving forward onward and ahead!”

Wakefield throws his hands into the air as if to sprinkle fairy dust on the room; he is evoking the richness of a place always ready for miracles. "

― Andrei Codrescu , Wakefield