“…who wrote as viciously as humans think…”

Yes, exactly. That is what drew me to Goad’s writing, and before that, zines in general. And after that, the first generation of blogs. Unfettered, unmediated writing. It’s rare and when you stumble upon it in its highest form, it lifts you off your seat.

He was a giant asshole who later sunk into a parody of himself and his most odious views, but as a writer, he was unmatched in the 90s. He made Palahniuk and that whole cohort seem silly and unnecessary.