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On the other hand
Joined: 19 Apr 2003
Location: I walk along the avenue
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 Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 5:42 am Post subject: Christopher Hitchens has cancer |
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The author and polemicist Christopher Hitchens yesterday announced he was cutting short a promotional book tour in order to undergo chemotherapy treatment.
There were reports that the the British-born writer, who was a heavy smoker until giving up several years ago, had been diagnosed with cancer.
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mises
Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 5:54 am Post subject: |
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| The smoking caught up with him. Too bad. I appreciate CH. He's an interesting, honest guy. |
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On the other hand
Joined: 19 Apr 2003
Location: I walk along the avenue
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 6:11 am Post subject: |
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There is an almost child-like sense of right and wrong permeating all of his polemics.
But also, unfortunately, an almost child-like susceptibility to propaganda that exploits those same notions for more cynical ends. I remember him defending George W. Bush as "a man who understands that America was attacked on Sept. 11th". That may be an accurate description of Bush's sense of moral clarity. Not so much of the baser motivations of the people influencing him. |
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mises
Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 6:14 am Post subject: |
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| On the other hand wrote: |
But also, unfortunately, an almost child-like susceptibility to propaganda that exploits those same notions for more cynical ends. I remember him defending George W. Bush as "a man who understands that America was attacked on Sept. 11th". That may be an accurate description of Bush's sense of moral clarity. Not so much of the baser motivations of the people influencing him. |
He was the most interesting war monger. I don't have to agree with him to like him. He is really good on free speech. |
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Sergio Stefanuto
Joined: 14 May 2009
Location: UK
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 6:26 am Post subject: |
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Hitch is one of my heroes - an atheist who hates the left.
Cancer of the oesophagus has low 5 year survival rates, if I recall, unfortunately. |
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recessiontime
Joined: 21 Jun 2010
Location: Got avatar privileges nyahahaha
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 6:44 am Post subject: |
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the only thing hitchens and I had in common was that we both reject the claim that God exists. But that's so common-place now that it's almost like 2 people agreeing that 2+2 is 4.
There was a lot about this guy that was irrational. When he was talking at a round table with the other famous atheists he was the only one out of the group that wished that people would never give up theism. His reason ? So he could always have someone to argue with. Not joking. Dawkins pointed out that there would be other things to argue about once God was out of the picture, but Hitchens just likes to fight with theists
you'd think that a guy that champions himself as a logical non-believer would avoid something deadly like smoking but...nevertheless. I cringe when I think that Christians will undoubtedly attribute this esophageal cancer to God's condemnation for blasphemy. |
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djsmnc
Joined: 20 Jan 2003
Location: Dave's ESL Cafe
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 2:55 pm Post subject: |
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| recessiontime wrote: |
| I cringe when I think that Christians will undoubtedly attribute this esophageal cancer to God's condemnation for blasphemy. |
No way! The Devil made cancer to kill God's creation! |
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The Happy Warrior
Joined: 10 Feb 2010
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 5:09 pm Post subject: |
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| On the other hand wrote: |
There is an almost child-like sense of right and wrong permeating all of his polemics.
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Therefore, it is unsurprising he has so many supporters on this board.
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| the only thing hitchens and I had in common was that we both reject the claim that God exists. But that's so common-place now that it's almost like 2 people agreeing that 2+2 is 4. |
Yes. Its like for many people that were enough. |
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ED209
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 8:00 pm Post subject: |
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| The Happy Warrior wrote: |
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| the only thing hitchens and I had in common was that we both reject the claim that God exists. But that's so common-place now that it's almost like 2 people agreeing that 2+2 is 4. |
Yes. Its like for many people that were enough. |
Yeah, I want it to be 2+2=10 |
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The Happy Warrior
Joined: 10 Feb 2010
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 9:32 pm Post subject: |
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| ED209 wrote: |
| The Happy Warrior wrote: |
| Quote: |
| the only thing hitchens and I had in common was that we both reject the claim that God exists. But that's so common-place now that it's almost like 2 people agreeing that 2+2 is 4. |
Yes. Its like for many people that were enough. |
Yeah, I want it to be 2+2=10 |
What?
Recessiontime's point was that its asinine to support a writer whose perhaps defining thesis is 'There is no God.' Although Hitchens took it much farther than this, arguing that a belief in God is slavish and atheist belief is free. In any case, the whole exercise seems rather puerile to both Recessiontime and I.
Of course I don't think the correct analogy for the existence of God can be contained in the question 2+2=4 (although I think it reveals the core arrogance and self-complacency of most modern anti-theists), but nevertheless Recessiontime's central point is correct: liking Hitchens for his scribblings on God places too high a virtue on something so mundane while ignoring so much about his writings that are just bad. |
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chellovek
Joined: 29 Feb 2008
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 9:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Do any of you ever read the writings of his brother, Peter Hitchens? |
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TECO
Joined: 20 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 11:24 pm Post subject: |
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| A few days ago I just finished reading God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. I learned a few things I didn't know and enjoyed the book. |
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Sergio Stefanuto
Joined: 14 May 2009
Location: UK
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| Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 1:53 am Post subject: |
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| TECO wrote: |
| A few days ago I just finished reading God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. I learned a few things I didn't know and enjoyed the book. |
George Smith, Atheism: The Case Against God and Victor J Stenger, God: The Failed Hypothesis are far better. The latter is written by a physicist and the first few chapters are a little slow, but once it gets going it's superb.
| Chellovek wrote: |
| Do any of you ever read the writings of his brother, Peter Hitchens? |
Yes. I admire Peter above all because he's funny, but obviously take exception to his blind faith in every fault in the world being due to the decline of Christianity. Peter is a superb anti-liberal, but his arguments for theism are always poor as such arguments must necessarily be. |
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On the other hand
Joined: 19 Apr 2003
Location: I walk along the avenue
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| Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 10:42 am Post subject: |
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| chellovek wrote: |
| Do any of you ever read the writings of his brother, Peter Hitchens? |
The only thing I can recall actually reading by him was a polemic against the then-incipient Iraq War, which his brother had done so much to promote.
Peter's anti-war polemic was written from a culturally conservative perspective. He called the war "the Rock and Roll war", thus linking it to rebellious youth culture. |
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Mosley
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 1:40 pm Post subject: |
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Contradictory guy...an EX-Trotskyite who nonetheless thinks the sun rose & set on Lenin's ass....
If you want some insight into his earlier career, you can do worse than check out Martin Amis' KOBA THE DREAD. |
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