A year ago today, Hunter S. Thompson died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His death--and manner in which it came--shocked many of his fans, myself included.
But it came as no surprise to his long-time friend, Ralph Steadman, whose surreal art appears on the covers of Thompson's books. The day after it happened, Steadman told the British newspaper, The Independent, that Thompson had told him, "I would feel real trapped in this life if I didn't know I could commit suicide at any time."
Shortly after Thompson's death, I read Hey Rube, a collection of his columns for ESPN.com. His most chilling column was the one he wrote just hours after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Thompson's prediction of what was to come was uncannily accurate.
An excerpt:
The towers are gone now, reduced to bloody rubble, along with all hopes for Peace in Our Time, in the United States or any other country. Make no mistake about it: We are At War now--with somebody--and we will stay At War with that mysterious Enemy for the rest of our lives.
snip
It will be a Religious War, a sort of Christian Jihad, fueled by religious hatred and led by merciless fanatics on both sides. It will be guerilla warfare on a global scale, with no front lines and no identifiable enemy.
snip
We are going to punish somebody for this attack, but just who or what will be blown to smithereens for it is hard to say. Maybe Afghanistan, maybe Pakistan or Iraq, or possibly all three at once.
snip
This is going to be a very expensive war, and Victory is not guaranteed--for anyone, and certainly not for anyone as baffled as George W. Bush....He will declare a National Security Emergency and clamp down Hard on Everybody, no matter where they live or why. If the guilty won't hold up their hands and confess, he and the Generals will ferret them out by force.
I can't help but think that the re-election of George W. Bush--a president whom Thompson considered an order of magnitude worse than Richard Nixon--was the final straw. But why did he wait until the following February to end it all? One of his greatest passions was pro football, and he didn't want to leave before the NFL season finished. Just like terminally ill relatives who summon enough strength to make it through Christmas with their families, then die after New Year's, Thompson kept it together long enough see out the 2004-05 season--and perhaps settle up his many bets. The Patriots beat the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX on February 6, 2005--two weeks before Thompson's exit from this world.
Tonight, in Thompson's honor, I plan to open the last bottle of Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter that I brought home from Denver last year. Cheers...and long live Gonzo!