Fear and Loathing in 2005

Hemingway, Brautigan
And now Hunter S. Thompson
Shared in common
Guns, alcohol, and let's call it
A death wish

I confess to being
A chronicler of writer suicides
Research their writings
Locate their graves on the Internet
Track the value of their autographs

Here is a prediction
Thompson's signature will go up hugely
A signed first edition with dust jacket
Until recently brought five hundred
Now will bring five thousand and up

I have a recent copy of Rolling Stone
Where he displayed his maniacal political biases
Labeled George Bush a "treacherous little freak"
A "weak-minded frat boy"
John Kerry would win the presidency by five points
He claimed no pretense to accuracy
Only to inject himself a character in the story

Eventually his health declined
He was on his way to the end
Back surgery, an artificial hip, a broken leg
Totaled a lot of pain in one body

He lived as a recluse
At his "compound" in a small Colorado town
He could still fire his guns
Thompson's kudo
Weird chemicals, alcohol, violence, insanity
May not have worked for the average guy
But they always worked for him


© Tom Bourne