Hunter S. Thompson is dead, and the net is already oozing tributes, op-eds and "what Hunter meant to me" stories. Unfortunately, this is going to have to fall into the latter category. Because I think something is being missed in this outpouring of fan-lamentation, paeans and "why I have LONO vanity plates" stories.
Yes, he glorified drug use, firearms, sex, violence, gambling, drunkenness, debauchery and general high-risk behavior. He inspired legions of hacks, wannabes and groupies. He created one of the most clearly understandable, and therefore easily misused phrases in modern American writing with "Fear and Loathing." His persona has inspired two films, neither of which has inspired many kind reviews. By all accounts he was a singularly difficult person to be around for any length of time, and few would say he was pleasant. Kind, loyal and honest, yes, but not pleasant at all.
But that's not why we needed him. There are too many pleasant, boring, useless people already. As long as we had Hunter Thompson, we knew there was one person who couldn't breathe without challenging the rule that says "obey." From the most important defenses of constitutional rights all the way down to blaring obnoxious music across the hills around his home, he would not stop disobeying. And his reasoning was simple: "I am a free human being, and no one has the right to tell me what to do."
Without him, there's one fewer standard bearer for that cause. There's one fewer voice screaming at the top of his lungs for individuality. There's one fewer person who will fight, tooth and claw, for his own personal autonomy, and by extension for all of us, too.
Underneath what passes for grief in the strange world of gonzo fandom is another, heavier feeling. It's the knowledge that Hunter S. Thompson is no longer out there, howling in the mountains, trying to hold on to the frontiers of our autonomy. It's the knowledge that if we want to keep our own freedoms, we'll each have to carry a little bit more of the weight he held every day.
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I've been reading lots of these Hunter S Thompson tributes, trying to get used to the idea that he's gone. This is by far my favorite one, and the only one that hits on why his death is important to me, I just hadn't put it together quite yet. Thank you. You rock.
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