Hunter S. Thompson Quotes
Freedom is something that dies unless it's used.
Hunter S. Thompson, 1939-*, Journalist, Ancient Gonzo Wisdom
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
Also inscribed inside the pedestal of the Statuary of Liberty.
The Kandahar region of Afghanistan was occupied by the Persians under Gurgin Khan. The Persians at the time were Shiite Muslims while the Afghans were Sunnis. Gurgin Khan forced all the Sunnis to convert to become Shia under threat of death. Mirwais Hotak led a force of freedom fighters, and defeated the Persians, killing Gurgin Khan in the process. There were some Afghan people who by collaborating with the Persians had done very well for themselves. They were anxious about their liberator and some were thinking about sneaking away and joining up with the Persians. He then made this speech, remarkable for any time, and especially so at the early 18th century. Notice, that unlike most other peoples of the Middle East, the Afghan’s placed a high value on freedom, and were willing to fight for it. In that sense, Afghanistan was culturally and politically different from the rest of the Islamic world.
Although Holland was more egalitarian and fairer than most nations of Europe, it was not quite as desirable as Diderot described it. He only visited a part of Holland that was the most educated and affluent.
Hunter Stockton Thompson was an American journalist and author, and the founder of the gonzo journalism movement. He first rose to prominence with the publication of Hell's Angels (1967), a book for which he spent a year living and riding with the Hells Angels motorcycle club to write a first-hand account of the lives and experiences of its members.
