Fear and loathing on the campaign trail '72
by Hunter S. Thompson · first published 1973
67% recommend33% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Thompson's gonzo account of George McGovern's 1972 campaign against Nixon offers a vivid, irreverent look at American politics. It is a top pick from his work and a good first Thompson read.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
An unorthodox account of the US presidential electoral process in all its madness and corruption
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Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
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Yeah, nice movies. But damn, read the books! Adding to those two, I'd definitely read: * Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 (1973) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_and_Loathing_on_the_Campa... * Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (1967) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell%27s_Angels:_The_Strange_a...…
on “Hunter S. Thompson on Finding Your Purpose (1958)” ↗Last year's US election often made me think of Thompson's brilliant book "Fear and Loathing: on the Campaign Trail '72", in which he mainly followed George McGovern's campaign, running against Nixon (Nixon ended up winning in a landslide). McGovern's campaign chief Frank Mankiewicz called it "the least factual, most accurate…
on “How Hunter S. Thompson Became a Legend” ↗…center) On the other hand, “Real Clear Poltics” always had a toxic sounding name to me since there is nothing “Real” or “Clear” about poltics: I think the best book about politics is Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ‘72 which is a druggie’s personal experience following the candidates around and picking up hitchhikers on the road at 3am and getting strung out on the train and having moments of jarring sobriety like the…
on “Who Lusts for Certainty Lusts for Lies” ↗Chance is a funny thing. I was once reading Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 by Hunter S. Thompson (which I can heartily recommend) - not an especially obscure book, but certainly not his most famous. I was a student, and I was lying on my bed reading this book, whilst listening…
on “Ask HN: Can we find out why a specific ad appears in our Facebook feed?” ↗…relate that to his contemporary generation is shown by his body of work. That he's remembered as a "drug guy", so a critique of Timothy Leary is surprising is ... too bad. Check out "Hell's Angels" or "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72", if you've got the time. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzo_journalism
on “The Drug of Choice for the Age of Kale” ↗Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 will also make you swear he had a time machine. I guess the scale at which things change is longer than we think it is.
on “How Hunter S. Thompson Became a Legend” ↗…american journalist, famous for inventing gonzo journalism, focusing on the writer themselves diving into situations and writing about it. His political texts are excellent and I highly recommend the book Fear and Loathing on The Campaign Trail '72 for a good analysis on the McGovern vs. Nixon campaign.
on “Fear and Loathing in America (2001)” ↗I'll add here my favorite book of his, the Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72, him getting sucked into politics and following the Democratic party campaign against Nixon, that lead to a landslide victory for Republicans. It is absolutely a fascinating read about the addictive nature…
on “The Origins of Raoul Duke” ↗I usually see that referred to as High Frequency Trading If you’re unfamiliar with HST, I highly recommend Hell’s Angels and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ‘72
on “The whole thing was a scam” ↗…spin my appreciation for Hunter, but I'll provide you some articles. If you want some interesting reads, his most influential books are (pre-gonzo) 'Hell's Angels', 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas', 'Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72', and, much later, 'Kingdom of Fear'. 'Campaign Trail 72' is about the antics at the 72 Democratic Convention to get George McGovern the party's nomination. He was a longshot, but many young writers…
on “Lost Stories from Hunter S. Thompson's Stint as a Foreign Correspondent” ↗I first heard it from Hunter S. Thompson in "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72", so I would take it with a grain of salt... (and it was a pig not a donkey.)
on “The Copyright Lobby Absolutely Loves Child Pornography” ↗That last one you're trying to think of is Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72.
on “The Mensa Reading List for Grades 9-12” ↗From "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72", p. 247: The race was close and Johnson was getting worried. Finally he told his campaign manager to start a massive rumor campaign about his opponent's life-long habit of enjoying carnal knowledge…
on “The Copyright Lobby Absolutely Loves Child Pornography” ↗…be objective, gonzo journalism is inherently not. Making the author a character in the story is the opposite of what a good journalist is to do… Kids taking journalism classes might get to hear about Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ‘72 (through The Boys on the Bus) and I think there’s a little bit more to that than just writing for young people and doing drugs.
on “The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved [pdf]” ↗The first one is basically "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72" for anthro majors, and then he gets less focused somehow. He'd be my personal Kilgore Trout if we didn't have contemporary science fiction.
on “Is infinity an odd or even number? (2011)” ↗