Hope Hubris becomes El Presidentae5 May 2012tOne of the reviews of this book suggested that Hope Hubris is like a Bill Clinton with a cabinet full of Monica Lewinsky's, however while when I read this book it wouldn't have occurred to me (and the Bill Clinton reference wouldn't have either) and when I think back to it from this point in time I would have to disagree and suggest that the character seems to be based more on Charlie Wilson, US Senator and the subject of the film 'Charlie Wilson's War'. The reason that I say this, other than the suggestion from the film that Wilson's staff was composed entirely of females, is that he would have been active around the time that this book was written, and while Hubris in this book was president, and Wilson wasn't, the idea that Hubris' entire cabinet was made up of women causes me to make this connection.tNow, while I really don't know anything about Wilson's sexual escapades, and I really do not want to speculate on what I do not know, I cannot say the same thing about Hubris in this novel. In fact the entire series seems to be a story about Hubris' sexual escapades with some science fiction and political commentary thrown in for good measure. In any case, in this book Hubris manages to become president, however from what I remember there was nothing hugely urgent in the set up of this world that would have triggered a shift to a dictatorship. One of the things that I have noticed in my historical studies is that when a country shifts from a democracy to a dictatorship there is usually a significant cause for this to happen. Germany, for instance, was in economic collapse; France was in chaos after the revolution, the Roman government had ceased to function; and Athens had found itself on the losing side of a thirty year war. In this story, written in the 80s during the Regan administration, does not have anything near as disastrous to cause such a political shift.tWith Hubris' elevation to perpetual president we see him come in with all of these reforms to make Jupiter a much better place for people to live. For instance he socialises all of the main industries (which, in my position, I do not have a problem with, though it is very suggestive of communism where the means of production is controlled by the state) and he also legalises the use of drugs, though if people wish to use them they have to register with the government. It is interesting that Anthony talks about controlling the means of production, because this is a book that was written in the 80s during a time when the cold war was intensifying. I was under the impression that anything that reeked of communism would not have been appreciated, so I am surprised that in this book Anthony is taking a socialistic stance with his proposed reforms. Maybe it is because he set this series in the future that enabled him to get away with it, but since his allegory is so poor I am surprised that nobody would have picked it up back then.tDrug registration is an interesting thing, and I raised the idea with a number of my friends back when I read this book. In a way I liked the idea, not because you register yourself, but because it gives drug users access to drugs. However, a lot of drug users did not seem to like the idea of registration with the government. I suspect because of the idea that not only is drug use a personal matter, because it is also illegal (in most places) there is an reluctance to tell the government that you are a user and seeking permission from the government to use them is somewhat anathema. However, the concern comes down to whether it is possible to regulate drug use in that manner. The reason I say that is because the more drugs that you use, the more resistant you become to the drug. It is the law of diminishing returns in action. So, the question would be, how would the government effectively regulate the use of drugs, especially since if there is a specific quota for people to use, it still does not stop a black market economy in drug use. The reason is this: if Tom is an addict and needs more than others, then the quota is not going to effectively meet his appetite. However, Jack is not a user, but registers as one and buys up his quota, and with this quota he then sells it to Tom so that Tom can meet his habit. Then there is the concern that the government could arrest everybody on the registration list and put them through treatment.tI have said a lot regard sex in Anthony's book, and to be honest with you, it does not stop here. Some even suggest that it starts to get even more kinkier and dodgier. However, once again, we see the law of diminishing returns in play again. With sex it is pretty much the same as with drugs, and some even suggest that sex is in itself a drug. Now I do not have anything against sex, I like sex, as do a lot of people, but once again I believe that there must be a context in which it is used, otherwise it simply becomes like another drug: boring and dull and in need of being spiced up a bit. I guess this is why people, as they grow older, want to get kinkier and kinkier, and more brazen and experimental in their exploits. As for me, I'm just a one woman man, and to be honest with you, I am more than satisfied with that. It is not the idea of sex with a beautiful woman that drives me, but rather a relationship that peaks my interest. In the end, meaningless sex is little more than that, meaningless.
Another fine chapter in the life of Hope Hubris. An education in what good could be achieved if the self serving lobbyists, corrupt political figures and greedy executives were taken out of the equation and the government really was for the people and able to do what was necessary for them. Unfortunately for Hubris, it is also the tale of how power can corrupt and how the people didn't always want to pay the price for what they wanted.A lot of politics but done in a way that immediately relates to the modern US administration so is easy to follow. Again, there are some taboos discussed but they all fit in perfectly to project the personality and psychology of the Space Tyrant and his rise and fall from grace.
What do You think about Executive (1985)?
Hope, with the backing of the military, has become dictator/tyrant of Jupiter. With the unlimited power available to a dictator, he begins to set right all of America's, errm, I mean Jupiter's problems. He has sex with his entire cabinet (all women), except for his daughter, but not excluding his paraplegic secretary. After she is killed in an assassination attempt he descends into insanity.I think this one is fascinating just to see what Piers Anthony thinks the solutions are to some of our nation's problems.I give this one an XXX rating for the excessive and weird sex.
—Bryan457
Book four in the series falls flat. (This review is of the 1985 Avon mass market paperback edition)After 3 good books (I've only read #2, but other reviewers seem to think the others are just as good), the final book in the Bio of A Space Tyrant series goes completely off the deep end.Hope, now in his 50's, develops an even stranger appetite for kinky sex which degenerates into an unhealthy affair with a minor. And he becomes a dictator to boot (all in the best interest of Jupiter, of course). Just like every other tin-horn dictator that starts out to clean things up, he becomes a tyrant. And he has the same attitude: the peeepuuul just don't have enough sense to make their own decisions, while "those of us" in power are blessed with all the insight necessary.Unlike every other dictatorship of its kind in "real life", the fictional version, although plagued by many problems that can't be dispelled with a wave of Hope's magic wand, eventually improves the lives of his subjects.I'll give Anthony this, he realized that in the end, the people won't stand for it.
—Al
