Bill Bumgarner

Hunter S. Thompson took himself out rather violently over the weekend.

If you haven't read Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, you should. Even if you don't like the book-- and many people don't-- consider it for the thought provoking, wild, rebellious ride that it is.

Hunter always challenged the norms and expectations of those he encountered. Clearly, boredom was his worst enemy and he quite successfully fended off any signs of boredom throughout the prime of his life.

Maybe boredom is what pushed him over the edge in the end.

Or maybe it was the current political climate. Hunter was quite outspoken about his opinions of modern politics.

Or maybe he was just sick and tired of the current state of journalism. What with 37 news channels to choose from and every channel vying for eyeballs by sensationalizing dumbass stories that do not actually have any impact on our lives.

We had the summer of shark attacks (the actual number of attacks were down over the previous years). The summer of child kidnappings (again, number of incidences were down over previous year). The Peterson trial? Yeah, like that actually changes any of our lives. All stories shoved down our throats by profit driven news reporting. End result? Millions of your tax dollars at work to protect you from risks that don't exist all the while the real stories are largely ignored.

For example, how about the Paris Hilton Phoneplosion? Yes, that again. How many of the people with their empty little brains glued to MTV/ETV/People remember that just a few months before a cracker broke into the same network and ripped off a bunch of national security related documents? ... or that the agents were stupid enough to put classified materials into an un-approved, insecure, unprotected network? Once again, your tax dollars at "work".

Yeah, I could see how a man who changed the face of journalism could be sick of the shit they are currently passing as "in depth" reporting on "important" news stories.

Suicide? Seems a bit extreme. But Gonzo Thompson was a very extreme person.

In any case, I raise this glass of Chivas Regal in your honor, Mr. Thompson. You will be missed. I sincerely hope that this generation can find the strength to challenge the status quo as effectively as you did.