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Comment by standardUser | Hacker News Reader

Never has there been a more vast and diverse set of weirdos in America and they have never been easier to find. Talk to me about "cautious" and "accountable" after you've been to a Furry convention, a gathering of the Juggalos, a Burner event, a Phish show and a couple sex parties.

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Totally agree. Hunter S. Thompson would just be a substack writer with a small following.

Conversely, I am sure there are many substack writers with a small following who would be just as big as Thompson if they were born at a different time.

Not only has media changed but the entire relationship of society with media has changed.

I would compare it to Adele being the only artist in the last 15 years to be on the best-selling album chart and probably wouldn't be there at all if she was 10 years older.

Easier to find, but probably harder to talk to. I think it's not a coincidence that several of the subcultures you list above involve dressing in costumes. I'm sure part of that is immersing oneself in the culture, but there's also an element of anonymity that people value. At least some of this is a result of Thompson's influence on the culture.

These people will talk your ear off. One of the hallmarks of modern counterculture is inclusion, which is in stark contrast to the HST era where there was a much greater risk to being part of many countercultures, and so much more fear of outsiders.

As far an anonymity, I think people pick a particular blend that works for them and their career and family. But most people I know are pretty forward about their stranger/kinkier/less legal interests, at least on an interpersonal level.

Ironically, a friend of mine once attended a furry convention while dressed as Hunter S. Thompson.

I'm not sure what point this is meant to make; you'll have to come up with your own.

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