My favorite quote of all time comes from Hunter S Thompson. “You buy the ticket, you take the ride.” That motto is responsible for a lot of headaches and twice as much fun. But I love the way Thompson approached life. He bared his teeth and screamed into the gale on a daily basis.
For instance. In 1957, someone recommended he read the works of Ayn Rand. Thompson’s reaction was priceless.
“Although I don’t feel that it’s at all necessary to tell you how I feel about the principle of individuality, I know that I’m going to have to spend the rest of my life expressing it one way or another, and I think that I’ll accomplish more by expressing it on the keys of a typewriter than by letting it express itself in sudden outbursts of frustrated violence. . . .”
Thompson was effective, that is the gonzo style worked for him, because he was never not working in one way or another. He couldn’t just “turn off” that odd energy of his. People tell stories of barely surviving time spent with Thompson. He lived life to the fullest at warp speed. But he was, first and foremost, an active and incisive critic of the ridiculousness of Richard Nixon. His reports of the 1972 campaign trail, published as Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, doubtless inspired a generation of political reporters.
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Not sure where I’m going with this but damn if DK on Facebook didn’t share a Hunter S Thompson quote about Nixon and got me all up in my pretention. Thompson holds a prominent place in my pantheon of thinkers and writers. Then I got to thinking about his run for sheriff in 1970 and other crazy ass candidates like Trump was supposed to be.
It’s about time for a ridiculously crazy off the wall political candidate to emerge on the scene and play the WWF “heel” to DJT’s self adopted “face” persona.
Without going into too much detail, we need a Rowdy Roddy Piper to play off of Trump as Hulk Hogan. Think Jesse Ventura.
I’m not suggesting we elect this person. Just that we’re due someone who understands the key to Trump.
DJT is in the WWE Hall of Fame. He can’t get over his wrestling persona. I would love to see someone with the wit and insanity of Hunter Thompson come out and punch the bully in the face.
Does anyone remember being creeped out by the debate in St Louis in 2016 when DJT stomped around the stage like a colicy baby?
That was him going full on Vince MacMahon. I couldn’t help but scream at the tv for her to turn around and tell him to be quiet and sit down.
The bully just needs to get popped in the teeth every once in a while. It’s all they understand plus others will see you have the guts to stand up for yourself.
abbreviated list of previous presidential medal of freedom recipients
- Andrew Wyeth
- Norman Rockwell
- Martha Graham
- George Balanchine
- John Wayne
- Kirk Douglas
- Jimmy Stewart
- EB White
- Ralph Ellison
- Isabel Allende
- Aaron Copland
- Count Basie
- David McCullough
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver
- 9 former SCOTUS Justices
- Edward R Murrow
- Walter Cronkite
2018 Medal of Freedom Recipients
Miriam Adelson: wife of Sheldon, casino owner and top donor to Trump’s campaign
Orrin Hatch: former Utah Senator and all around paleo Republican
Alan Page: former judge and, from all I can find, deserves the medal for his charity work
Elvis Presley: posthumous award to the “King of Rock and Roll”
Babe Ruth: posthumous award for early 20th century baseball player
Antonin Scalia: posthumous award to former SCOTUS Justice
Roger Staubauch: former NFL quarterback
Why does it feel like they asked Trump who he wanted to have a conversation with living or dead?
And this is who he came up with ...
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TOP COMMENTS
from elenacarlena:
Showercap in his own post, which is also funny, came up with a great comeback to what was probably intended as a rhetorical question, and set off a bunch of funny rejoinders also too.
from thurayya:
This comment by
anon004 describes what her grandfather, a World War I veteran, experienced in the trenches in France. "The Occupant", instead of honoring those who fought, and those who died fighting, tweets more nonsense from his Paris hotel room.
from Raines:
WillowTCollie shares a nugget from Andrew Gillum’s past that has spawned its own diary.
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