Hey Rube (book) explained

Hey Rube: Blood Sport, the Bush Doctrine, and the Downward Spiral of Dumbness is a book written by Hunter S. Thompson, consisting of 83 articles split into three parts. The articles were first published on ESPN.com's Page 2 under Thompson's column Hey Rube. First published in mid-2004, the book contains articles from November 20, 2000, to October 13, 2003. It is sub-titled, Modern History from the Sports Desk.

This was the final book Thompson published before his death in February 2005.

Synopsis

Most of the columns were written primarily as sports commentary, but tend to branch into other subjects—commonly politics and social commentary—either due to a perceived relevance to the sports news, or as a result of Thompson's natural discursive tendencies. Some articles are focused on subjects entirely outside sports, such as "Fear and Loathing in America" and "Love Blooms in the Rockies", which deal with the 9/11 attacks and Thompson's marriage, respectively.

Thompson also chimes in on world events at the time of writing the articles. He voices his distaste for the 2000 presidential election, promotes warning as he writes through September 11, and tells of his crusade to free Lisl Auman, who had been sentenced to 20 years in prison in connection to the murder of a police officer.

Included in Hey Rube is a copy of a personal report written about Thompson during his time in the United States Air Force at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. It requests that he be reassigned duties and advises that Thompson should not do any unauthorized writing or accept outside employment with local media. Thompson also includes a personal political statement and an “Honor Roll” which includes the names of such figures as Johnny Depp, Fidel Castro, Al Gore, and Anita Thompson.

The title is taken from the 19th century slogan "Hey, Rube!", a slang term of circus folk used to rally other carnies to their aid during a fight with a patron from the local town. Thompson elaborates in the introduction on the meaning of the term and the zeitgeist of old-fashioned circuses from the golden era that spawned the term.

Included articles

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Honor Role

External links

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