# Hunter S. Thompson is dead, says son. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 21, 2005, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118 "2005-02-21T04:16:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/121 "2005-02-23T03:30:33Z")
> [@todd33rpm](#): > > [Updated _Aspen Times_ link](http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20050222/NEWS/102220004), with the confirmation of the suicide by the coroner, Steven Ayers. > > I respect this quote from this story: “‘I’m not ordering a toxicology report in this case because it was incidental to the cause of death. It doesn’t matter if there were drugs in his system; it had nothing to do with the manner of his death,’ Ayers said.” You know, I find this a bit odd. Quite often, they will do toxicology to see if there were drugs in a person’s system which contributed to their mental state that led them to commit suicide. HST supposedly said that he’d take himself out if he had a terminal illness. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/122 "2005-02-23T13:18:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Hot damn, it is Halloween again, and I am ready to get Weird in public. Never mind Anthrax for today. The Yankees won, but so what? That’s what I said to the fruitbag who claimed to be Sean Penn when he called earlier…He was drunk, so I knew right away that it wasn’t Sean Penn. “Get out of my face!” I screamed at him. “You are the same squalid freak who called here a few days ago and said he was Muhammad Ali.” ~~HST You were born with a Lust for Truth, and a sense that the World was Mad. Bye, Doc. We’ll miss you. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/123 "2005-02-23T17:23:38Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > You know, I find this a bit odd. Quite often, they will do toxicology to see if there were drugs in a person’s system which contributed to their mental state that led them to commit suicide. HST supposedly said that he’d take himself out if he had a terminal illness. Agreed. Aren’t toxicology tests pretty much standard for suicides? I suspect that the coroner was probably afraid of what he’d find. ---
**Author:** ![Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e36b37/32.png) [@Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_A_Tame_Lion)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/124 "2005-02-23T20:16:48Z")
I spent this entire past weekend–holiday included–feeling utterly miserable. Now I know that I had a good reason. I just heard today about Hunter’s death. The news has brought me close to tears. Another of my heroes is gone. I always wanted to write like Thompson; certainly to write as well as him. That’s a fool’s dream, of course. Talent like that doesn’t get doled out to just anyone. I’m shocked, but I can’t say I’m surprised that Hunter took himself out. He could see the writing on the wall, and read it with far more comprehension than anyone else. These days are Ugly, and they’re getting uglier, and I don’t blame him in the least for saying, “Enough is enough.” Of course, I’ll have to re-read F&LiLV as soon as possible. Now would be a good time to savor Thompson’s genius once more. I can’t think of a better way to send him on his way. And I would like to thank everyone for posting their feelings about losing HST. It’s comforting to know how many others are touched by his passing. There are few “celebrities” whose death would make a mark on me–HST is one. And I’ll always carry with me the lesson I learned from Thompson, the one I learned from reading his scathing indictments of all the evil greedheads who seek to ruin the world for the sake of their petty desires, the words I repeat to myself whenever the disgust and hatred–and yes, the fear and the loathing–threaten to overwhelm me: “Today’s pig is tomorrow’s bacon.” May all the bastard fry. Soon. And may Hunter finally find what he was always looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e36b37/32.png) [@Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_A_Tame_Lion)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/125 "2005-02-23T20:22:40Z")
Sorry. That last line should have been: May all the **bastards** fry. Soon. And may Hunter finally find what he was always looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/126 "2005-02-23T23:44:57Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Agreed. Aren’t toxicology tests pretty much standard for suicides? I suspect that the coroner was probably afraid of what he’d find. I think that it depends upon local laws, but given that there’s a wide number of meds out there which put people at risk for suicide, one would think that they’d want to check. Unless, of course, this wasn’t a spur of the moment thing on Hunter’s part. ---
**Author:** ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/127 "2005-02-24T00:07:17Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > I think that it depends upon local laws, but given that there’s a wide number of meds out there which put people at risk for suicide, one would think that they’d want to check. Unless, of course, this wasn’t a spur of the moment thing on Hunter’s part. Or, in HST’s case, the lack of meds could have put him at risk. Imagine if his toxicology test turned up nothing? ---
**Author:** ![Tenar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@Tenar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenar)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/128 "2005-02-24T02:03:22Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > I think that it depends upon local laws, but given that there’s a wide number of meds out there which put people at risk for suicide, one would think that they’d want to check. Unless, of course, this wasn’t a spur of the moment thing on Hunter’s part. I’m surprised that they’re forgoing toxicology, since I assume it is S.O.P., however, I think it is safe to assume that if Hunter Thompson were the type of person who could be driven to suicide by a drug, he would have been gone a looooong time ago. The coroner’s decision is both brave and just. ---
**Author:** ![goofyfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b77776/32.png) [@goofyfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goofyfish)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/129 "2005-02-24T04:01:24Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Aren’t toxicology tests pretty much standard for suicides? I suspect that the coroner was probably afraid of what he’d find. A new Superfund site, perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/130 "2005-02-24T04:07:21Z")
Since no one’s linked to it. [here’s](http://www.ralphsteadman.com/04frmrlph2.asp?entry_id=79) Ralph Steadman’s thoughts on Hunter’s passing. ---
**Author:** ![Rich\_Mann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ce73a5/32.png) [@Rich\_Mann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_Mann)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/131 "2005-02-24T05:40:03Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > Since no one’s linked to it. [here’s](http://www.ralphsteadman.com/04frmrlph2.asp?entry_id=79) Ralph Steadman’s thoughts on Hunter’s passing. > [@Ralph Steadman](#): > > He told me 25 years ago that he would feel real trapped if he didn’t know that he could commit suicide at any moment. Perfectly twisted and perfectly logical. It explains a lot that HST thought like that–who else would have even come up with such a concept? What a magnificent motherfucking mind! ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/132 "2005-02-24T09:21:15Z")
> [@Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor](#): > > You were born with a Lust for Truth, and a sense that the World was Mad. > > Bye, Doc. > > We’ll miss you. ☹ That wouldn’t be a pinch from Sabatini, would it, **Bosda**? “He was born with a gift of laughter, and a sense that the world was mad.” Rafael Sabatini, _Scaramouche_. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/133 "2005-02-24T14:48:12Z")
> [@Case Sensitive](#): > > That wouldn’t be a pinch from Sabatini, would it, **Bosda**? “He was born with a gift of laughter, and a sense that the world was mad.” Rafael Sabatini, _Scaramouche_. Rather, a paraphrasing. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/134 "2005-02-24T16:31:35Z")
Thanks Labdad for putting the link to the nixon obit; truly amazing writing. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/135 "2005-02-24T23:20:10Z")
> [@Rich Mann](#): > > Perfectly twisted and perfectly logical. It explains a lot that HST thought like that–who else would have even come up with such a concept? What a magnificent motherfucking mind! I had a thought today while listening to a piece on Malcom X. They were talking about how Malcom was evolving and changing as a person, and how that’s what got him killed. The last thing of Hunter’s that I read was Hunter’s statement that he’d be voting for Kerry. Of course, this isn’t surprising, I mean Satan’s got a better chance of getting his soul back from Rove and Cheney than Bush getting Hunter’s vote. I expected a wonderful tirade against Bush by Hunter, like the one he did when Clarence Thomas was being considered as a SCOTUS justice, instead there was this rambling, incomprehensible piece which made no sense at all. It was like Hunter was trying to convince himself that if Kerry somehow got elected we wouldn’t be just as fucked as we are now. He couldn’t do it, and I think he knew that. He also knew that if he spewed his usual dose of vitrol over Bush and Kerry (as he no doubt wanted to), then he’d be seen as a traitor to his ideals. I think that Hunter knew that the world had changed, and that if he changed as well (as is only natural), then some misguided nutjob was going to kill him. So Hunter, not wanting someone to end his life in a manner and time not of his own choosing, killed himself. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/136 "2005-02-24T23:39:30Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > I think that Hunter knew that the world had changed, and that if he changed as well (as is only natural), then some misguided nutjob was going to kill him. Yes, in America, if you criticize politicians, you are killed. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/137 "2005-02-24T23:43:35Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > Yes, in America, if you criticize politicians, you are killed. No, in America, if you are a political figure, and seem to change who you are, you’re killed. ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/138 "2005-02-25T02:52:37Z")
The Air Force publishes a magazine called _Airman_. When Johnny Cash died, they ran a tribute with his old AF picture: “Before he was the Man In Black, he was a man in Blue.” Something tells me that _Airman_ won’t be doing the same thing for Hunter. Pity. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2005, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/139 "2005-02-26T02:21:43Z")
I am reading _Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas_, > [@](#): > > Some gibberish by a thing called “Three Dog Night”, about a frog named Jeremiah who wanted “Joy to the World”. First Lennon, now this, I thought. Next we’ll have Glenn Campbell screaming “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” Where indeed? No flowers in this town. Only carnivorous plants. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2005, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118/140 "2005-02-26T02:56:06Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > No, in America, if you are a political figure, and seem to change who you are, you’re killed. Uh… it’s happened, but it’s not like it’s a matter of routine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hunter-s-thompson-is-dead-says-son/291118.md?page=8)