What do you do when your god kills himself?

[WilliamPitt]

Hunter Thompson is the reason I write, and the reason I write politics.

He was my mojo, and now he ate a gun.

What does that say about me?

Fuck, Hunter. Why?

[MrModerate]

1. Ate or was fed . . . ?

[Shopaholic]

2. I don't know Will.

I came across this Hunter quote a few minutes ago and it made me smile. Clasic Hunter-from a 2003 interview on Salon.Com:

"Who does vote for these dishonest shitheads?" he writes, referring to the people currently occupying the White House. "They are the racists and hate mongers among us -- they are the Ku Klux Klan. I piss down the throats of these Nazis."

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/02/03/thompson/

[Spider Jerusalem]

3. Hunter was one of my inspirations, too.

And as to why, I can only think about a piece he wrote about Hemingway (collected in the "Great Shark Hunt")..."he was old, tired, and sick, and the words did not come as they once had. So, one night, and for what must have seemed the best of reasons, he decided to end it with a gun." (From memory, so not exact, but you get the idea.)

[Elidor]

4. You have a goddamn drink in his honor

And tomorrow you get back to it, sticking it to the ratfuckers every chance you get.

To a good man! :toast: There won't be another like him. I was just looking for his obituary of Oscar Acosta, but I gave up. It would have fit.

Fuck. He was so goddamn good.

[tigereye]

7. yes this really sucks

You just have to carry on. It's always upsetting when people do themselves in. :(

[Fenris]

5. It says nothing about you specifically, Will.

It only says something about human nature. There exists a long line of great artists who chose to end their own lives prematurely. It does not diminish their work or the impact it had on others. It is merely the manner in which they chose to get off of this planet. Tragic, yes, but nonetheless common.

[Not_Giving_Up]

6. Oh Will!

you can still read what he wrote and draw from that. He may well have been served that gun, or pushed into eating it. Don't let how he went out of the world influence what he did while he was here.

[Floogeldy]

Sorry

Perhaps something was going on that you didn't know about? Could he have had terminal cancer? Was it an accident?

I think the lesson we should take from this is that even our greatest heros may have dark sides that aren't appropriate for ourselves.

May you rest in peace, Hunter.

[MrSlayer]

8. Do your best to emulate his work?

Mourn him well and dedicate it to his memory. I don't know what to do other than that.


Do you think he really killed himself or do you think he was "suicided"?

[GoddessOfGuinness]

18. and beyond...

Go where he didn't, Will...
:hug:

[dorktv]

9. You think of what he would want and then do that.

:cry: I know how it is when you lose the person you most value.

[MnFats]

10. You make him proud of you, or try your damndest.

We carry on, after all. There's really nothing else to do.

[iconoclastic cat]

11. Somehow, I doubt this was a political act.

But it awful. And you must keep going.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

12. I'm not sure why he would have done this.

I keep running all the possible reasons through my head and I still am no closer to understanding. How could I? I wasn't living in his head. He may have been ill and we don't know about it. There could have been some horrible event in his personal life that we don't know about. I just don't feel he was the kind of person to give up without what he felt was a damn good reason.

I don't know why. I don't understand either. I do know he's going to be immensely missed by many. :cry:

[SarahB]

13. Pain can sometimes be a greater fuel.

I wish you well, Will.

[Downtown Hound]

14. Didn't I read on another thread that today was Kurt Cobain's birthday?

Gonzo, Cobain, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, the list is endless. The best way to truly honor them is to take what they have shared with you and use it for good in the world, however hard that may be sometimes. Remember that writers are often channelers, in that they channel what they write and it often doesn't reflect who they really are as people. Hunter's words will always live, no matter what happened to the man. I think Hunter finally gave up his inner battle that he'd waged for so long. The best way to honor his words are to pick up the torch and carry it on. It's up to us now. If we give up, everything Hunter ever did will be in vain.

[leftofthedial]

15. shoulder the burden

and carry on

my heart goes out to you.

my creative role model died when I was very young, so I've drawn inpiration more from the work than the person. You still have every word HST wrote.

You are not him. You are special and powerful in your own right--and in ways he couldn't have been.

It's about your clear vision, your ready grasp of the difficult truth, and your ability to articulate it in a way that touches us. It's not about that poor tortured man in Colorado.

You are the mojo for thousands too. Keep on telling the truth.

[Floogeldy]

I don't think Hunter's death should "burden" Will

That's life. To carry such a burden is unproductive. It is not his fault.

Hunter did not, and does not, want to burden anybody.

[leftofthedial]

38. the burden is Will's role as herald of progressivism

the burden of telling the truth

the burden of being the main man for his thousands of readers.

[forgethell]

16. More important:

what does it say about him??

[Kathy in Cambridge]

20. Have you ever read any of his books?

And does suffering from depression make him a lesser person? :eyes:

[forgethell]

62. No.

But obviously his philosphy proved insufficient to meet his needs. I know nothing about him as a person.:eyes:

[Kathy in Cambridge]

63. But you find it sufficient to judge him

:eyes:

That's very Chrisitian-and very liberal.

[forgethell]

69. I passed no judgment on him at all.

I asked a question. You are inferring from my statement, but that does not mean that I implied a negative. I did say his philosophy seems insufficient for his needs, which seems to me to be an accurate observation of the facts as we know them. I made no reference to Christianity, Christ, or God.

Besides, even if what you think were true, I am not afraid to pass judgments. Neither are you as shown by your post. So don't be hypocritical. Advice, not judgment. I don't care if you are one way rot he other.

[enigmatic]

17. My God, I can't believe this..

I'm playing him right now, and I'm in a state of shock.

I can't believe this....I can't fucking believe this...

[Wapsie B]

19. You can still use him

as inspiration for your work. His mortal being is gone. But his work, his writings will live on. Those will never die.

[Dhalgren]

21. C'mon Will,

didn't you know, down deep where the blood flows, that the Good Doctor would, one day, inhale the long, blue flame? It was a part of everything he ever wrote. Hell, most of what he did and wrote about bordered on the death-wish. I say, thanks Doc, for all the insight and guts. I'm killing a quart of Wild Turkey - and I won't forget to pour some for you...

[all.of.me]

22. well, pitt...

... there is a niche to fill. get to it!

[MnFats]

23. Mods, can you give this a couple of kicks tonight?

misery loves company and a lot of us are grieving...

[jdots]

24. William you go on living for Hunter

we all owe it to people like him,the people with guts and soul.

[barb162]

25. do we know if he had a terminal / painful disease and was

ending it?

He was a really gifted writer.

[underseasurveyor]

31. That would be my guess

The last couple times I saw him on TV he was not looking the greatest and let's face it, he lived some hard-core partying times (lucky dawg). His mind was still as sharp and right on point as ever and yet he seemed a bit frustrated that his words weren't coming out as easily.

Damn I'm gonna miss that guy :cry:
Bye for now Hunter :toast: Thanks for everything and I gotta say that your life was one HELL of a fucking awesome ride. Nice:thumbsup:
We'll miss you down here but we'll catch up to ya some day O8)

[yvr girl]

26. Life doesn't make sense

Death makes even less.

He may have inspired you; started you down a particular road, but you have your own path to follow.

Mourn your loss, remember the good and keep going - that's all you can do.

You'll never really know why. Sorry, but that's the truth.

[Lex]

27. He stays alive through you, Will.

Keep writing and writing and writing . . .

You'll pass that passion, that flame, on to others, and a part of that flame will HST's.


Peace.

Lex

[kodi]

28. Find another religion.

tut tvam asi.

[roguevalley]

29. his candle was too bright for the world this has become. I can't

believe he made it this far but I am amazed he's gone.

[regnaD kciN]

30. To answer your question, Will...

What do you do when your god kills himself?

Pick up his cross and carry it yourself, I'd say.

[Floogeldy]

32. Where is Will?

Why isn't he responding to us?

[Spider Jerusalem]

34. Getting drunk and smoking his throat raw?

That's what I'm doing tonight. Not what I planned on, but this news hit me like a punch to the gut.

[Floogeldy]

37. Why would he spill his guts about his God?

And then disappear?

[WilliamPitt]

46. or taking 500 micrograms

and listening to the Doors.

Straight through the floorboards, baby.

[WilliamPitt]

44. Writing

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3151196

What the fuck else would I be doing?

[tavalon]

50. Damn

Imagining you taking ten hits and talking to God and his right hand man, HST, is actually a lot more fun than what you're actually doing.

OTOH, it's what I said you should do in another post.

[WilliamPitt]

53. Sorry to disappoint

:P

[burrowowl]

33. Carry on

Who knows what pain he was suffering, it says nothing about you.
Carry on while you can and bravely.

[asthmaticeog]

35. It doesn't say anything about you.

But your asking that says plenty.

I'm sorry for your loss. May the road rise up to meet you and the wind be always at your back.

[Wat_Tyler]

36. Why? One answer might be that he'd written all he had to write.

That's a successful life. Everything he had to give is out there in print - I won't grieve for him, he isn't dead.

[Skittles]

39. doesn't say diddly about you, William

it's called depression and it happens to some very, very bright people

[Fenris]

40. There was a recent Harvard study...

That linked creativity to depression. While the claims of the study have not been confirmed by others in the field, the evidence presented some interesting correlations.

[Wat_Tyler]

42. Let's not speculate on the matter, though.

It may not be depression, it may just as easily be an act of control, to end a life that had run its course, or to end a life before a disease debilitated it (he said, speculating).

Let's respect his privacy and dig no farther.

[Fenris]

43. I was not speculating, merely pointing that fact out.

Frankly, I could care less what his reasons for committing suicide were. No reason would diminish him or his work in any way for me. Regardless of his motives, he made a decision that was his to make. I shall certainly dig no farther.

[WilliamPitt]

45. I'm not saying it does

but Jesus. Fuck. One of these days one of my soul-teaching heroes IS GOING TO DIE IN HIS FUCKING SLEEP or pass away in a car accident OR SOMETHING NORMAL.

JFK. Bobby. MLK. Malcolm. Medgar. Now fucking Hunter.

Too many bullets, self-inflicted or otherwise. Can't people die in fucking plane crashes anymore?

[tavalon]

51. Yeah,

Paul Wellstone did.

[WilliamPitt]

54. Great

Thanks.

I'll just go punch my nose off now.

:(

[DBoon]

41. Soak the floorboards of your car with ether

and drive to Los Vegas.

As your attorney, I insist!

[Heidi]

47. We go on . . .

living as a truth-seekers, lovers and warriors. Our line is getting longer, not shorter.

[Seabiscuit]

48. You question should answer itself. Hunter was no god - just a writer.

[tavalon]

52. Hunter was no less a God

than any of the rest of us are. We are all flawed, way too human, Gods. Well, all of us but the Bush Cartel, they are demons, albeit all too human demons.

[tavalon]

49. That he was your mojo

says a lot about you. How he died says nothing about you. I would much appreciate it if you skipped this part of emulation.

You are a great writer and you have the fire and the rage. Frankly, you are actually a better writer than he was (and he was a really great writer) and you seem to have a clearer vision. So......

You wanna honor that great man? Then get out there and write more books.

Well, tonight, go ahead and get blasted in his name. Tomorrow, get going on the books.

[Rhiannon12866]

55. I am so sorry, Will. I don't know what else to say but that I feel for

You. I don't understand, either, but I sure feel your pain.;(

This tragedy does not reflect on you. You were inspired by someone who you felt was a brilliant writer. Many others are, in turn, being inspired and informed by what you write. Don't give up, since you have so much to give to all of us. Please hang in there, because we need you.:shrug:

Rhiannon :hi:

[donheld]

56. Bushie is trying to get us all to do this

Don't give him the satisfaction. Fight on.

[underpants]

57. Almost a year ago exactly in Vegas I made my wife go to CircusCircus

because I wanted to see the rotating bar. Well now it is a juice bar only open on weekends and surrounded by cheap state fair type games and CircusCircus is a complete dump but hey I went.

My brother first turned me onto Hunter Thompson.

I have to say that I am not surprised that his life ended this way-not about the guns just that he took his own life and used a gun to do it.

I raise a glass of orangejuice mescaline and jack daniels with lots of ice to the Doctor these damned lizards are everywhere.

[terrya]

58. It doesn't say anything about you.

You just carry on with your life. And you draw strength from your inspiration.

[Dogmudgeon]

59. Polytheism works for me

It means more occasions to mourn, but less of a sense of complete loss.

Like a lot of other admirers of Thompson, I feel stunned, but I know I'll get over it. I have other writing gods to look to -- and you, yourself made the cut about four years ago.

So don't go doing anything irreversible.

When you can, pick up some of the slack he left and continue what he started. Hunter himself may be out of the game, but it ain't over yet.

--p!

[dbt]

60. VERY simple, Mr. Pitt: you turn PRO.

The going has certainly gotten weird, no?

:hi:
dbt

[Feathered Fish]

61. good answer

:) :cry:

[Chalco]

64. just keep breathing

[KittyWampus]

65. Look For The Common Thread That Ran Through Him & Yourself

and nourish that part of yourself... it's what transcends our mortality.

[redqueen]

66. It says you have great taste in gods, Will.

I don't know the circumstances of his death... nobody ever will.

I can't think of anyone that I'll miss more right now.

:cry:

[madison2000]

67. I think we have to find a way of honoring the person who inspires us

I spent the weekend at a Camp Wellstone in Milwaukee.

One of the leaders was a woman who had known Wellstone since she had been his student, and worked with him for 30 years. She mentioned during the last session that after the plane crash in 2002 she took some time off just to be away from everything and walk in the woods. I can only imagine the grief and loss she must have felt.

The Wellstone foundation trained 4000 progressive activists last year and will train even more this year. I never knew much about Paul Wellstone before he died, but now I'm one of his, because the people closest to him have kept his message alive.

[Briarius]

68. I dunno, ask the Right wing Religous folks

I'd say just keep going, you're not him.

[flamingyouth]

70. I'm very sorry, Will

I don't know what to say, other than you have every right to be sad, frustrated and angry. It's a terrible, terrible thing. :(

[Worst Username Ever]

71. Hmm.

People like Hunter don't die of old age. As shocked and sad as I am the HS is gone, his story had to come to an end somewhere. It seems fitting that his end is on par with the likes of Hemingway.