The Battle of Aspen
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The Battle of Aspen was an article published in Rolling Stone #67, dated October 1, 1970 and written by Hunter S. Thompson. The cover of the magazine ran the teaser "Freak Power in the Rockies", and the article was later reprinted in The Great Shark Hunt with that same title.
The article's subject is the 1969 mayoral election in Aspen, Colorado, in particular the candidacy of Joe Edwards, a lawyer, 'biker' and non-conformist resident of Aspen. It also details the Freak Power platform Thompson himself adopts while running for Sheriff of Pitkin County, Colorado.
Though unsuccessful, the Edwards campaign was notable for its attempt to garner nearly all of its support from 'freaks', 'heads', and 'drop-outs' from the surrounding areas - Freak Power, as it was dubbed. Thompson, who became de-facto campaign manager for Edwards during the race, devotes much of the article to the local politics of Aspen and the entrenched politicians it supports. Simultaneously a screed against politicians who sacrifice the quality of life of their constituents for short term gain or notoriety, and an outline of optimism regarding the possibility of the marginalized to take power, the article details the campaign from its inception through the run-up to election and ends with a consideration of the results and the impact they may have.
[edit] Success of the Campaign
In both the 1969 Mayor's election and the 1970 Sheriff election, Edwards and Thompson narrowly lost to more conservative candidates. A coalition of the Democrat and Republican candidates during the Mayor's election (along with mail votes and alleged vote-fixing) managed to defeat Edwards by 6 votes, which Thompson said had confirmed his suspicion that both Aspen and America at large could be more radical than he had imagined, and thus that a "Freak Power" campaign on local or national scale could work.
The next year, therefore, Thompson put together a campaign to elect himself as Sheriff. It combined aggressive radicalism, a higher level of organization than the previous Freak Power campaign, more controversy and danger as well as some frivolous moments. These would include:
- Legalization of drugs on a recreational basis (although profiteering dealers would be prosecuted harshly.)
- Thompson did make a concession on the drugs issue - he promised that if elected, he would not eat mescaline whilst on duty.
- Tearing up parking lots and sidewalks for more grassy areas
- Demolishing any buildings that would block the view of the mountains
- Renaming Aspen "Fat City" to scare off the rich investors that Thompson felt were ruining the city.
- Firing the majority of the conservative county officials and bureaucrats
- Thompson shaved his head bald and referred to the crew-cut, ex-army, Republican incumbent as "My long-haired opponent."
- Posters and flyers were distributed across the county (http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/brands/0009/0427/brand.gif)
- Thompson received threats during the campaign, including one sent to City Hall following a dynamite theft in the County, insisting that the explosives would only be used if Thompson was elected. This lead to Thompson's house and campaign HQ at Woody Creek taking on the aspect of an armed camp on election night, with guards patrolling the grounds with guns and flashlights.
Ultimately, the 'Thompson for Sheriff' campaign was also unsuccessful, partly due to a Republican/Democrat agreement not to stand against each other in certain key elections to allow all 'Non-Thompson' votes to count towards one candiate and partly due to an article Thompson wrote for Rolling Stone shortly before the election, revealing his strategy.
