--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: we should have been on top of that. we…" description: "\"“we should have been on top of that. we should have closed it down quick and clean, before anyone knew. in and out. that mess is going to be in the wes..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png" --- # we should have been on top of that. we should have closed… ![“we should have been on top of that. we should have closed it down quick and clean, before anyone knew. in and out. that mess is going to be in the western mail tomorrow, gwen. mystory riot . deaths. we can't paper over it. fast bug out. no time to wipe memories or fake deaths. just a big old mess.” quote by Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png) > ““we should have been on top of that. we should have closed it down quick and clean, before anyone knew. in and out. that mess is going to be in the western mail tomorrow, gwen. mystory riot . deaths. we can't paper over it. fast bug out. no time to wipe memories or fake deaths. just a big old mess.”” [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A crisis is escalating quickly, and the narrator urges immediate, decisive action before the situation worsens. **In simple terms:** Act fast before things get worse. Key Takeaway Address problems promptly. Themes crisis urgency communication Mood tense urgent Type dramatic warning When to use this quote - emergency response - media handling - organizational failure - public safety Key Concepts risk management information control Questions to Reflect On - What steps can be taken to act quickly yet wisely? - How to balance speed and accuracy? 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By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) ## More by Dan Abnett > [“christ alive we're abit of a mess arent we?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/christ-alive-we-re-abit-of-a-mess-arent-we/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [If he speaks again without me knowing who he is, I will throw him out of the window. And I won't open it first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/if-he-speaks-again-without-me-knowing-who-he-is-i-will-throw-him-out/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [Have you noticed we can breathe in here too? Gosh, I wouldn't have picked up on that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/have-you-noticed-we-can-breathe-in-here-too-gosh-i-wouldn-t-have/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [That's all you get," said Alpharius, and split him in half. Alpharius sheathed his gladius, and dragged the sabre out of his torso. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/that-s-all-you-get-said-alpharius-and-split-him-in-half-alpharius/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [“The distinction between Trade and Warfare is seen only by those who have no experience of either.� -Heironymo Sondar, House Sondar ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/the-distinction-between-trade-and-warfare-is-seen-only-by-those-who/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [“oh come on'P.O.E.T.S.'? 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Why, just the other day, I heard that we now had complete texts for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/caches-of-data-are-being-recovered-all-the-time-why-just-the-other/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [We pick up the pieces, Donna. Some of them are broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/we-pick-up-the-pieces-donna-some-of-them-are-broken/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [“Mechanical wrecks, sobbing out plumes of black smoke, marred the sugar-white perfection of the pass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/mechanical-wrecks-sobbing-out-plumes-of-black-smoke-marred-the-sugar/) [Dan Abnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/) > [“Enemy?’ Horus laughed. ‘When did they become the enemy? 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Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. 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You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“we should have been on top of that. we should have closed it down quick and clean, before anyone knew. in and out. that mess is going to be in the western mail tomorrow, gwen. mystory riot . deaths. we can't paper over it. fast bug out. no time to wipe memories or fake deaths. just a big old mess.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dan Abnett" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-should-have-closed-it-down/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-should-have-closed-it-down/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/dan-abnett-17208_death_we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-sh_311372.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“we should have been on top of that. we should have closed it down quick and clean, before anyone knew. in…” — Dan Abnett", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Dan Abnett", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-abnett/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“we should have been on top...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-should-have-closed-it-down/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-abnett/we-should-have-been-on-top-of-that-we-should-have-closed-it-down/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```