Hunter S. Thompson "Fear & Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72" (2005)

"So this is more a jangled campaign diary than a record or reasoned analysis of the '72 presidential campaign."
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"What I would like to preserve here is a kind of  high-speed cinematic reel-record of what the campaign was like at the time, not what the whole thing boiled down to or how it fits into history. There will be no shortage of books covering that end."
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USA presidendivalimiste raames libistasin riiulist samateemalise teose. Vastupidiselt HST teistele teostele olen seda lugenud vaid ühe korra. Põhjus on lihtne - ma ei õpi ajakirjandust ega poliitikat. Tegevus hakkab seitsmekümnendate algusest, kus Rolling Stone ajakiri saadab oma esimese poliitilise korrespondendi kampaaniat katma. Seda Hunter teebki ja mitte poole persega - tüüp läheb ikka süvitsi ja detailselt. Muidugi enda omapärasel viisil ning nagu keegi kunagi ütles, siis ainus viis, kuidas ajakirjanik poliitikut saab vaadata on ülevalt alla. Tagantjärele kampaania täpseimaks kroonikaks peetud teos viib su Ameerika lähisajaloo poliitikasse, kus HST tollase kampaania ja selle tegelased perspektiivi paneb. Muidugi on tema stiil ebatraditsiooniline, kuna miskipärast arvatakse, et ajakirjandus peab objektiivne olema.

"Well... shit, what can I say? Objective Journalism isa hard thing to come by these days. We all yearn for it, but who can point the way? The only man who comes to mind, right offhand, is my good friend and colleague on the Sports Desk, Raoul Duke. Most journalists only talk about objectivity, but Dr. Duke grabs it straight by the fucking throat. You will be hard pressed to find any argument, among professionals, on the question of Dr. Duke's Objectivity.
   As for mine... well, my doctor says it swole up and busted about ten years ago. The only thing I ever saw that came close to Objective Journalism was a closed-circuit of a TV setup that watched shoplifters in the General Store at Woody Creek, Colorado. I always admired that machine, but I noticed that nobody paid much attention to it until one of those known heavy, out-front shoplifters came into the place... but when that happened, everybody got so excited that the thief had to do something quick, like buy a green popsicle or a can of Coors and get out of the place immediately.
   So much for Objective Journalism. Don't bother to look for it here - not under any byline of mine; or anyone else I can think of. With the possible exception of things like box scores, race results and stock market tabulations, there is no such thing as Objective Journalism. The phrase itself is a pompous contradiction in terms."

See tsitaat käib ta kõikide kirjutiste kohta. Objektiivne ajakirjandus oleks vast lihtlabane numbrifaktide ettelugemine ja tüüp näitab kõike enda ümber toimuvat läbi omapärase objektiiviläätse. Ma ei tea Ameerika poliitilisest skenest eriti midagi ja seetõttu on mul raske sealtoimuvast ka aru saada. Et kes mis osariikides mitu prossa sai ja milline pressinõunik südaööl eralennukiga Las Vegase kasiinomaffialt kilekottidega lisaraha toomas käis jne. Tegu on siiski väga tõsise teosega. Autoril on terav meel, mida suured kogused amfetamiini, alkoholi ja veidrad eluviisid nagu ei nürista... Tabavad metafoorid, kiire mõttelend ja kõike käigu pealt jäädvustav mõistus.
   Pluss peaaegu igalt leheküljelt silmahakkavad tsiteeritavad lõigud, mis HST puhul tavaline asi.

"Hubert Humprey is a treatcherous, gutless old ward-heeler who should be put in a goddamn bottle and sent out with the Japanese Current. The idea of Humphrey running for President again makes a mockery out of things that it would take me too long to explain or even list here. And Hubert Humphrey wouldn't understand what I was talking about anyway. He was a swine in '68 and he's worse now. If the Democratic Party nominates Humphrey again in '72 the Party will get exactly what it deserves."


Mis oluliseim:
"A sense of humor is the main measure of sanity."