13 hours ago, atyclb said:

i would have never imagined ab to kill himself.  he always seemed so level headed and in control. his worldly food travels were very interesting.

 

in the below video at 2:25 anthony bourdain playing tambourine . backup for mazzy star

 

 

You do not need to imagine, as he was quite open about his mental illness. A recovering heroin addict, he had multiple failed relationships, and had discussed  contemplating suicide.  Perhaps, you just were not listening.

 

My perception was that he was a smug man forever wanting to show how avant garde he was. He could have had his cooking travel show and been ethical and responsible about it, instead of trying to grab attention with some of his stupid stunts.  I draw your attention to some of his more obnoxious activities;

- The slicing out of the heart of a live cobra and then eating it.

- Eating of the  endangered ortolan songbird. (There is a reason even the French ban its consumption, but it did not stop Tony.)

- The consumption of shark fin soup. (So what if the fins are harvested unethically and cruelly, and it is illegal in his homeland of the USA, right?)

 

No doubt, some will find it amusing or will say  so what. Well, there are ethical chefs, responsible hunters and people who understand that one must not over exploit one's environment or be unnecessarily cruel. I don't think Bourdain was one of them and quite frankly, I won't miss his condescending snark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

9 minutes ago, geriatrickid said:

You do not need to imagine, as he was quite open about his mental illness. A recovering heroin addict, he had multiple failed relationships, and had discussed  contemplating suicide.  Perhaps, you just were not listening.

 

My perception was that he was a smug man forever wanting to show how avant garde he was. He could have had his cooking travel show and been ethical and responsible about it, instead of trying to grab attention with some of his stupid stunts.  I draw your attention to some of his more obnoxious activities;

- The slicing out of the heart of a live cobra and then eating it.

- Eating of the  endangered ortolan songbird. (There is a reason even the French ban its consumption, but it did not stop Tony.)

- The consumption of shark fin soup. (So what if the fins are harvested unethically and cruelly, and it is illegal in his homeland of the USA, right?)

 

No doubt, some will find it amusing or will say  so what. Well, there are ethical chefs, responsible hunters and people who understand that one must not over exploit one's environment or be unnecessarily cruel. I don't think Bourdain was one of them and quite frankly, I won't miss his condescending snark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i was not aware of his alcohol/drug history, just the places he went to try lots of strange food.  i recall the cobra heart. i remember right after he ate it he said . "emeril, lets see you top this one" . he sure seemed to be knowledgable and or learning new things constantly.  it seems he was not perfectly politically correct nor a devout sjw, i never perceived him as smug or avant gard, just worldly.

7 hours ago, geriatrickid said:

You do not need to imagine, as he was quite open about his mental illness. A recovering heroin addict, he had multiple failed relationships, and had discussed  contemplating suicide.  Perhaps, you just were not listening.

 

My perception was that he was a smug man forever wanting to show how avant garde he was. He could have had his cooking travel show and been ethical and responsible about it, instead of trying to grab attention with some of his stupid stunts.  I draw your attention to some of his more obnoxious activities;

- The slicing out of the heart of a live cobra and then eating it.

- Eating of the  endangered ortolan songbird. (There is a reason even the French ban its consumption, but it did not stop Tony.)

- The consumption of shark fin soup. (So what if the fins are harvested unethically and cruelly, and it is illegal in his homeland of the USA, right?)

 

No doubt, some will find it amusing or will say  so what. Well, there are ethical chefs, responsible hunters and people who understand that one must not over exploit one's environment or be unnecessarily cruel. I don't think Bourdain was one of them and quite frankly, I won't miss his condescending snark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the only countries Bourdain failed to visit was North Korea. During an impromptu interview with TMZ, he voiced why.

“There’s nothing they’re going to let you see in North Korea. It’s an unpleasant government. Most of the population are starving. Don’t you think that would be in kind of bad taste?” he said.

And when asked about the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un, Bourdain had this to say: “He’s a chubby little evil <deleted>. Nobody else eats.”

On 6/9/2018 at 3:10 PM, Morch said:

 

Unless mistaken, the 30% increase cited is spread across almost 20 years. No idea how this compares with global figures. If you think the US is "not an easy place to be", perhaps you ought to travel more. As far as I'm aware, the US does not top any suicide related statistics list. Other than smaller countries which may feature, Russia and India are often mentioned.

I do travel alot. Most of my friends in the US, are fairly disenchanted. And some of those friends are doing very well financially. Others are having a hard time, as consumer confidence is incredibly low right now, despite what the WH and the pundits say. About a third of all Americans, including kids, are on anti depressants or similar meds. Many are barely coping. Believe me, the quality of life in the US has slipped dramatically. Not the nation it once was, by any stretch of the imagination. Sure there are worse places. But, that is not really my point. And yes, you are right about the past 20 years. A 30% increase. A remarkable statistic, by any calculation or comparison. 

4 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

I do travel alot. Most of my friends in the US, are fairly disenchanted. And some of those friends are doing very well financially. Others are having a hard time, as consumer confidence is incredibly low right now, despite what the WH and the pundits say. About a third of all Americans, including kids, are on anti depressants or similar meds. Many are barely coping. Believe me, the quality of life in the US has slipped dramatically. Not the nation it once was, by any stretch of the imagination. Sure there are worse places. But, that is not really my point. And yes, you are right about the past 20 years. A 30% increase. A remarkable statistic, by any calculation or comparison. 

 

Most of what you posted above can be described as anecdotal. Whether it even pertains to Bourdain's suicide is questionable.

 

You tried to make the case that the US "not an easy place to be", while going on about "the bitter, disenchanted, joyless atmosphere of the place". This seems to be at odds with the the 30% increase being spread over 20 years - unless your claim regarding the US is wider.

 

And saying that a 30% increase over 20 years is "remarkable, by any calculation or comparison" is somewhat hollow, without actually applying such comparisons. I'm not saying it isn't - and I'm not bothered enough to check how it stacks vs. previous decades, or in comparison to other countries/global stats.

 

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

I do travel alot. Most of my friends in the US, are fairly disenchanted. And some of those friends are doing very well financially. Others are having a hard time, as consumer confidence is incredibly low right now, despite what the WH and the pundits say. About a third of all Americans, including kids, are on anti depressants or similar meds. Many are barely coping. Believe me, the quality of life in the US has slipped dramatically. Not the nation it once was, by any stretch of the imagination. Sure there are worse places. But, that is not really my point. And yes, you are right about the past 20 years. A 30% increase. A remarkable statistic, by any calculation or comparison. 

My ex wife married a generous multi millionaire and her and my ex family now have five luxury homes on the beach and mountains, drive mega rich cars, have perfect skin the best medical care and everything else and are 1000% happier than when with me.  I know this because I see it online as they are now in the society press frequently.  So my family is much happier than in the past 20 years.  No anti depressants necessary.  Happy well adjusted family with almost as much money as god. They were so happy to get rid of me and get him that no pills were necessary.  But having said that none of them drinks. 

Edited June 10, 20188 yr by Rarebear