Christopher Hitchens has passed

[woodsmoke]

He was one of the few writers at the New Yawk Times that I enjoyed reading.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/16/ar...-obituary.html

woodsmoke

[GreyGeek]

Re: Christopher Hitchens has passed

Brilliant man, phenomenal memory, very well read. One you had to respect, even if you disagreed with him at times.

There are a series of eulogies over at Slate, some written by people he debated. Equally brilliant writing.

If Hitchens couldn't defeat you with his arguments he'd bury you with citations from your own background. Sometimes he played a little loose with the interpretation of those facts but few of his opponents were smart enough to catch him.

[de_koraco]

Re: Christopher Hitchens has passed

Hitchens was pretty fun, especially in the early years of his conversion from Marx, when he presented an interesting point of insider opposition to the whitewashing campaign of Islamism in the prominent leftist media. It did turn out to be a pretty moot point once the whitewashing reached the likes of Foreign Affairs, but his contributions in the early stages were significant. I never really looked into his religious writings, but I can broadly say I agree with him based on the little that I do know.

He was no H. L. Mencken, but it's sad to see him go.

[SteveRiley]

Re: Christopher Hitchens has passed

Many of his public appearances -- snippets or full recordings -- are preserved at FORA.tv.

Truly a sad day.

[GreyGeek]

Re: Christopher Hitchens has passed

His denouncement of Marxism, but not Socialism, made him a target of his former "comrades", but that episode demonstrated his basic honesty. If nothing else, Hitchens was consistent. Wikipedia reports:

His departure from the established political left began in 1989 after what he called the "tepid reaction" of the Western left following Ayatollah Khomeini's issue of a fatwā calling for the murder of Salman Rushdie. The 11 September attacks strengthened his internationalist embrace of an interventionist foreign policy, and his vociferous criticism of what he called "fascism with an Islamic face". His numerous editorials in support of the Iraq War caused some to label him a neoconservative, although Hitchens insisted he was not "a conservative of any kind"
...
He graduated from Oxford with a Third Class degree, the lowest degree of honor, just above and Ordinary Degree with no honors. (On an American GPA scale, with First = 3.68 to 4.0, Second= 3.0 to 3.67, Third = 2.3 to 3.0, and Ordinary = 2.00 to 2.29. Like many brilliant people he wasn't in tune with Oxford's educational structure and did just enough to graduate "with class". -GG)
...
Though Hitchens retained his British citizenship, he became a United States citizen on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial on 13 April 2007, his 58th birthday.

Here is an opinion Hutch expressed on his own views, and one which I wish I had made, minus the vulgarity:

My own opinion is enough for me, and I claim the right to have it defended against any consensus, any majority, anywhere, anyplace, anytime. And anyone who disagrees with this can pick a number, get in line and kiss my ***.
Christopher Hitchens

IOW, he supported the 1st Amendment 100%.

P.S. -- He wasn't H. L. Mencken, he was better, and more honest.