A keynote speaker at the National District Attorneys’ Conference on Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs and “a well known authority on the abuse of dangerous drugs.” Despite his credentials, however, Dr. Bloomquist’s lecture is full of “dangerous gibberish,” and he portrays drug users as violent, sex-crazed maniacs. He is out of touch with the actual “Drug Culture” of 1971 and is focused mainly on psychedelics, while the nation’s drug users have largely moved on to much harsher drugs like heroin. Dr. E. R. Bloomquist represents the ignorance of the American establishment regarding drug use and users, and the tendency of that establishment to unfairly criminalize “the Drug Culture.”
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Dr. E. R. Bloomquist Character Timeline in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
The timeline below shows where the character Dr. E. R. Bloomquist appears in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part Two, Chapter 6: Getting Down to Business…Opening Day at the Drug Convention
...Gonzo are immediately uncomfortable. On the stage is a “drug expert” named Dr. E. R. Bloomquist. He is talking about “the Drug Culture” and the danger of acid “flashbacks.”
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Bloomquist is “a well known authority on the abuse of dangerous drugs,” and he is going...
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