---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To…"
description: "\"“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding for three b..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/hunter-s-thompson-278_end-of-the-tunnel_no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to_37453.jpg"
---

#  No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those…

![“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding for three bucks a hit. But their loss and failure is ours too. What Leary took down with him was the central illusion of a whole life-style that he helped…” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/hunter-s-thompson-278_end-of-the-tunnel_no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to_37453.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/hunter-s-thompson-278_end-of-the-tunnel_no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to_37453.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/hunter-s-thompson-278_end-of-the-tunnel_no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to_37453.jpg)

> ““No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding for three bucks a hit. But their loss and failure is ours too. What Leary took down with him was the central illusion of a whole life-style that he helped create...a generation of permanent cripples failed seekers who never understood the essential old-mystic fallacy of the Acid Culture: the desperate assumption that somebodyor at least some force is tending that Light at the end of the tunnel. This is the same cruel and paradoxically benevolent bullshit that has kept the Catholic Church going for so many centuries.””

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote critiques the naive belief that external forces—whether drugs, religion, or ideology—can deliver enlightenment or peace, exposing the self‑delusion of a countercultural mindset that trades genuine insight for superficial shortcuts.

**In simple terms:** Blind faith in shortcuts leads to collective disillusionment.

Key Takeaway

Illusions of easy enlightenment are harmful.

Themes

counterculture illusion spirituality critique of religion self‑delusion social commentary

Mood

cynical skeptical defiant

Type

political philosophical cultural

When to use this quote

- seeking quick spiritual fixes
- drug‑driven subcultures
- religious institutionalism
- generational disillusionment

Key Concepts

acid culture mysticism Catholic Church personal responsibility

Practical Applications

- critical analysis of countercultural narratives
- educational material on media and belief systems

Questions to Reflect On

- What mechanisms sustain collective delusions?
- How can individuals discern authentic growth from superficial shortcuts?

A Different Perspective

Some argue that drug‑induced experiences can foster genuine insight, but the quote suggests such experiences often reinforce existing delusions rather than dismantle them.

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[Benevolent Bullshit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benevolent-bullshit-445545/) [End of the tunnel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/end-of-the-tunnel/) [Failure Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-leary-445544/) [Fallacy Acid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fallacy-acid-445546/) [Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leary-252413/) [Leary Took](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leary-took-445543/)

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[Kevin O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-o-leary/)

> [Nick O'Leary is a tough kid. He doesn't use gloves. It's freezing outside and he's obviously wearing short sleeves like all the other guys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicklaus/nick-o-leary-is-a-tough-kid-he-doesn-t-use-gloves-it-s-freezing/)

[Jack Nicklaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicklaus/)

> [Fly his astral plane, take you trips around the bay, bring you back the same day, Timothy Leary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-moody-blues/fly-his-astral-plane-take-you-trips-around-the-bay-bring-you-back-the/)

[The Moody Blues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-moody-blues/)

> [Leary can get a part of my mind that's kind of rusted shut grinding again, just by being around him and talking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kesey/leary-can-get-a-part-of-my-mind-that-s-kind-of-rusted-shut-grinding/)

[Ken Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kesey/)

> [You get the Timothy Leary you deserve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-lattin/you-get-the-timothy-leary-you-deserve/)

[Don Lattin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-lattin/)

> [“I love New York. You can pop out of the Underworld in Central Park, hail a taxi, head down Fifth Avenue with a giant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/i-love-new-york-you-can-pop-out-of-the-underworld-in-central-park-2/)

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> [Many of us would never have tried psychedelics if it weren't for Leary's popularizing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-strassman/many-of-us-would-never-have-tried-psychedelics-if-it-weren-t-for/)

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> [“BELIEF - It’s the shining, lighthouse beacon that relentlessly lights the path to your personal utopia, your promised land your infinite wishes and fantasies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-khatkar/belief-it-s-the-shining-lighthouse-beacon-that-relentlessly-lights/)

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> [And we have come so far like that. I mean, the advances on the medication side have been enormous, and the advances on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elton-john/and-we-have-come-so-far-like-that-i-mean-the-advances-on-the/)

[Elton John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elton-john/)

> [It’s easier to have courage and trust the process when you feel you’re making headway. Mastery is not persistence when you see a light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-arthur-ray/it-s-easier-to-have-courage-and-trust-the-process-when-you-feel-you/)

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## More by Hunter S. Thompson

> [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/)

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> [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/)

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> [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/)

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[Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

## More End of the tunnel quotes

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[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [There actually is light at the end of the tunnel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jesus-torres/there-actually-is-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel/)

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