So what does /lit/ think about the good doctor?

Just the same as yesterday or last week or any other day we have this thread. Las Vegas is fun, Campaign Trail 72 is his best work, Hells Angels underrated and Rum Diaries shit. He did a lot of drugs but that's ok. One anon will call him a hack, one will say that Leary was better. But everyone here kinda likes him. There's your thread about the good docror.

>>8372537
This anon gets it.

I usually just talk about Kierkegaard and the connection between Fear and Loathing/Fear and Trembling, or post dreaming, lisergic paragraphs full of run on sentences praising him.

>>8372537
Cool. This is my first time posting on here and just wondered

>>8372545
I'm just unconvinced that he is supposed to be a knight of faith...

>>8372567
Well, putting it simply - you can see, throughout all of his writing, that he considers himself an american, first and foremost. Everything he does, it's for his land, its inhabitants and their way of life; he fervently believes in the fact that we can be all we want to be, that the completeness of possibilities is somehow accessible. Now, he's faced not only with the corpse of the sixties in its death-throes, but also with Vegas: an eclave of American Dream-fucking retards SET IN THEIR WAYS. This is important: they got sold a second hand, remixed version of that same credo Thompson upholds that simply reads, "the american dream is this (insert money, the status quo, whichever value you felt was represented by them)". Now, what can HST do to be an American? He needs to do whatever he can, literally. But that'd put him against the Law of the United States, the Infinite expression of the Absolute (the credo above mentioned), which theoretically exists to enable everyone to pursue their own life goals as they wish. We see how that has failed, right? So he, a man, an American, doomed to Finiteness, pierces the veil of Infinity and blasts it into the Absolute, becoming the largest possible being he can - drugs, pyrotechnics, a loathsome display of violence and debauchery; it may look like a nightmare but really, that's just what you say to a dream when you see its face the morning after. He becomes a sort of hypertrophic effigy of Americandom, to be burned in its own flames, finally true to the spirit of the land that bore him. Why do you think he closes the book by saying "I felt like a monster reincarnation of Horatio Alger"? He IS the American Dream, pushed to the (non existing) limits of what the dream can be.

At least, that's my take. I could translate the short essay I wrote about it in my native language, but that'd be like six or seven hours of work for no reason apart maybe bragging on here.

Does anyone else find his death depressing?

>>8372520
Like his work to be honest. I don't make him a Saint like some people to Kurt Cobain and view him as a man. It would be interesting to see what he would say about Obama, Trump, and Hillary Clinton. If we could have brought him back to life during these times, he would probably blow out his brains again with that .44 Magnum Revolver.

>>8372662
not at all. i hope i can convey myself into the darkness with as much dignity as he did.. oh, who am i kidding, i'll probably be found in the driver's seat of my car at the kfc drivethrough having had a heart attack, with my pants full of my last bowel movement.

>>8372614
Damn. What language is your essay in? I'd like to read it.

>>8372545

Can you talk mote about that connection anon?

>>8372537
His early work is great, but his fame ruined him. His fans are awful.

I liked Kingdom of Fear

>>8372662
He wouldn't have had it any other way, anon

It's pretty much the way he thought he'd always go

>>8372880
It's in Italian, I just went ahead and pasted it here http://pastebin.com/uhyVggdz

There's also a little bonus in the form of the link for the Gonzo Papers pdf at the end of the text

>>8372894
Here, already did it >>8372614

>>8372671
I like to think he'd embark on some deranged crusade, sending us raving vlogs while speeding across deserts and the likes.

>>8372520

Outstanding author, materially and stylistically of the highest order. He's more than a meme and he's more than the character/caricature of himself he presents. The Sheriff of Aspen Series, The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved, his covering of the chicano chicanery I forget the name of, Campaign Trail '72, all brilliant, instructive and entertaining. I actually didn't like Fear and Loathing in LV that much but I read it a decade ago in high school so maybe I should revisit it.

He wasn't just some crazy drugs guy, he ran a literary club called the Athenaeum in high school, took writing very seriously and practiced and all that.

I wish he was still alive. Even though his writing did decline quite a bit in his later years, there's a lot of good material right now he could never have predicted was coming. I bet if he'd known Donald Trump would be the GOP nominee, he would've held off on killing himself.

>>8375626
>I bet if he'd known Donald Trump would be the GOP nominee, he would've held off on killing himself.
this
HST, thou shouldst be living at this hour

>>8375163
That sounds amazing.

I've always been depressed at Hunter not being around any more, but never more than this year and the last, with this campaign. I would sell my blood to know what he would think of Trump.

>>8375710
My hypotesis is that he'd admire his way of conducting politics and he'd hate most of his proposed policies - though I can't really see him having any sympathy for any of the other candidates or hangers on of politics at the moment. Still, having his articles to keep us company would be incredible. There's no one that's even remotely comparable nowadays, as much as it sounds like idiotic praising.

>>8372847
I think I read that he regularly wet himself and crapped his pants. That isn't too dignified when you're in your 60s. He also shot himself on the phone with his wife. I think it's terrible and though I really enjoy the books he produced under the influence (and not totally, like Hell's Angels), I think the romanticism of people who suffer, even great talents, from addiction is kind of disgusting. But I do like him quite a bit and I love Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, one of my favorite books in highschool and a very talented and distinct style and voice in his work.

Drug-addled leftie.

Dime a fuckin' dozen.

>>8375734
I honest-to-God think he'd be a Bernie Bro. He was a hardcore leftist, and yet he loved guns. Sanders would be right up his alley.

>>8375756
Well I'm not American and despite the fact that there's a daily bit on the telly about your elections, I'm not really that knowledgeable about all candidates - but I've never heard Sanders advocate for something like throw away your books, rally in the streets with guns. Didn't strike me as a revolutionary. Is he?

I was thinking about founding a joke party similar to the Freak power platform with my friends to run for mayor in my hometown, just to offend people and shake them out of their political apathy a bit. One day, one day.

>>8375756

I'm sure he would have loved Bernie selling out to HRC and transferring his campaign funds right into Hillary's pockets. No refunds! But thanks for taking out loans for the "political revolution" kids!

>>8375774

Dude in my hometown did something like that, running as a Republican (nobody normally bothers to run as Republican here because it's all uni-affiliated white people and poor african americans, one of the bluest areas of the state, so it was easy for him to get the nomination even though he was no Republican).

His main plank was to have all city expenditures viewable in real time through an app.

The local liberal rag dregged up the five drunk-in-publics he'd gotten over the last few years. He didn't try to deny anything or apologize, he did an interview with the paper where he said what happened. Then he made campaign buttons out of the mugshots they published.

He lost pretty bad, unfortunately, but it was fun while it lasted.

File: 1444771410333.jpg (170KB, 600x412px) Image search: [Google]

170KB, 600x412px

>>8375756

>I honest-to-God think he'd be a Bernie Bro

You'd be right, and we'd laugh.

>>8375780

He'd probably understand it a lot more than these diapermeisters who have never voted in a primary before 2015 and now want to rip the party in two because they didn't get exactly what they wanted.

>>8375780
Yeah, I remember he didn't like McGovern bending down for the DNC either. Guess he'd go down on him hard for that - unlike, as it appears, any news outlet with a modicum of renown.

>>8375789
That sounds kinda fun. Dude knew how to play the game. I imagine he understood from the start he had no way of making it? If so, he could have gone further along this path: promising to depenalize the murder of an elected politician, advocating for the legalization of suicide, the kind of thing that'll make people come ask what the fuck you mean and you can spin, with a bit of rhetorical ability, in a decent political commentary. But probably I'm just pipedreaming.

>>8375828

I think he did hold out a tiny hope that he could win.

Here's the (short) article, which is about as much coverage as he ever got in local media. Most of his campaign consisted of leaving these pieces of artwork and buttons around town, stuck to telephone poles and whatnot. I wish he had done more organized campaigning. Between the minority of Republicans who would be happy to be able to vote for someone with an R next to his name for once, the libertarians, and the souses and ne'er-do-wells he could've actually won.

http://www.c-ville.com/ansons-crawl-city-council-candidate-details-arrest-record/

>>8375872
Yeah, after reading the comments it looks like he could have maybe, just maybe won. His approach was enormously likeable and unpretentious. Shit, three public drunkenness charges? I call that a wednesday morning. Sorry he didn't get some better press.

Can you guys really get arrested just for stumbling about, happily drunk, in public? On a street or outside a bar? That's idiotic, but I guess it's in line with other policies that aim to just hide the visible effects of a problem instead of addressing it.

>>8375936

You can get arrested for swearing in public here.

"The town [shall have the power to]... restrain and punish drunkards, vagrants, and street beggars ... [and] to prohibit and punish gambling and betting, disturbances of the peace, disorderly conduct, and public swearing and cursing, within the said town." Chapter 344, Article IX, § 1, K.

But it's only enforced if you're stumbling/falling over, or being generally obnoxious, or if the cops don't like the looks of you for whatever reason.

>>8375995
That's awful - I mean, I see why a law like that exists but wording it so vaguely such is just giving a machete to the enforcers and tell them to use it with precision and thoughtfullness a criticism that, I know, could be made at almost any law but really, this one's pushing it

If you ever happen to be in Venice, I'll buy you a beer to drink in the middle of San Marco Square. It's cathartic.

>>8376080

Yeah I love the Italian attitude. When I was in Rome, there were three men working as parking-attendants, doing work that could be done by one, or a machine. They drank wine and smoked all day, though never allowed themselves to become drunk. The states are much more puritanical. Drinking six beers a night makes you an alcoholic around here.

The other scene that stuck in my mind about Italy (besides the lotophage with a needle in his arm by the Tiber, who laughingly offered me a shot) was this little old man who was crossing the street with three lanes of traffic barreling towards him. He stopped in the middle of the crosswalk to light his cigarette. He got to the other side just in time, and nobody slowed down for him.

You couldn't spit without hitting a piece of antiquity.

A slav smoked hash with me in the middle of a crowded square in Tarrastavere. The police were within smelling distance but they didn't seem to care at all.

It really sends shivers to my jowls just thinking of it. I'll go back some day.

>>8376094
Friend, read Journey by Moonlight by Antal Szerb.

>>8376150

It is lucky you made the suggestion when I was in my cups, as I promptly ordered it. Otherwise I would have meant to order it, then forgotten.

I wish we could still sage. But I know it's a good feeling when someone reads something you recommend, so I wanted you to know that I shall read it.

>>8376094
Yeah, we have a pretty lax attitude about drugs and alcohol here - as well as a number of other things, like the ones you noted. Come back whenever you want, you seem like a chill dude who likes to get into a country and live life as the inhabitants do, instead of settling for the plastic-ish hyperreal sold to tourists. If you ever visit Venice, post a thread on here. I'll show you around a few nice places.

>>8376336

Yeah I felt annoyed with that post somewhat because it was all about drugs/smoking/drinking. There's something much greater about the Italian way of life but those were the anecdotes I had on hand. It is wonderful.

I don't think there's anything great about American cities or American life. The greatest part of America is the wilderness we still have. But Italy is really special. I'll be sure to start that thread if I ever go to Venice (which is not entirely out of the realm of possibility, I often make more or less impulsive travel/vacation plans).

>>8372520
Probably the only English language writer to do first-person present exceptionally well.

>>8372671
I like to think that if he were still alive he'd run for president like he ran for sheriff in Colorado. Under the "freak ticket" and whatnot. I'd vote for him.

>>8375710
I'm pretty sure if Hunter knew Trump was running, he'd skin him with a knife

>>8372537
>Rum Diaries shit

>>8372537
I'm a huge HST fangay and I 100% agree with everything you just typed.

>>8373686
hell yeah dude

>>8375734
>I can't really see him having any sympathy for any of the other candidates or hangers on of politics at the moment
Look at what he thought of McGovern in '72 and there's your answer for Bernie.

>>8377291
I read about it - I just think he'd be disillusioned with him and that kind of revolutionary-but-not-really politics.

>>8377700
Fuck me why do I always forget to delete the shit in the name field

>>8372614
I love Thompson fans like you babe

If you dig his main works then taste a bit of his rawer journalism; you can download the great shark hunt on pdf free

>>8377733
Seconding this, I'm reading through it right now and every article is as memorable as anything else he's written.

>>8376303
Wait, I sage stuff routinely on this board. What do you mean?

>>8377920
Saging things doesn't actually work anymore.