h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16212418

Often overly aggressive and hyperbolic. But I always found him entertaining and he had a knack of making you think about why you thought what you did. Even if you still didn't agree with him.

A fine polemicist.



RIP

FB

They had an interesting piece about him on Radio 4 this morning. In his final days, he requested a desk to be installed into his room, and had to be carefully helped into it with all the life-saving tubes still attached. There, he continued to turn out thousands of words of copy, to deadlines, only pausing when the morphine kicked in and sent him to sleep. He'd then wake with a jerk and continue where he left off.

I can't say I knew much about him, but I will have read his journalism over the years. We've clearly lost a very talented writer and thinker.

I just read a comment he made when asked what he thought of David Cameron:

"He doesn't make me think"

Favourite quotes:

"That which can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence."

"Organised religion is violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism, tribalism, and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward children"

"The struggle for a free intelligence has always been a struggle between the ironic and the literal mind"

Edward the B. often called Hitchens a useful provocateur. He was certainly (as slacktivist put it) not dull. And watching him speak was an education. He had an amazing mind.

TRiG.

Patton Oswalt tweeted a limerick he learned from Christopher Hitchens earlier this year when he met him.

There once was a driver named Hunt,
Who was given an engine to shunt,
Saw a runaway truck,
And by yelling out, "Duck!"
Saved the life of the fellow in front.

Tarig Ali was wonderfully catty about him or R4 at lunchtime, in his usual condescending, patrician way.

'He hated hypocrisy so he'd have wanted me to tell the truth.'

In recent years I generally disagreed with his politics. Like Ali, I think he became simply a neo-con apologist. His horizons shrank. But I agree that he was interesting

Coo. Thanks for the quote, TRiG.

Tarig? Tariq.

BTW, Saying "RIP" about Christopher Hitchens is rather... misplaced.


Random Quote: "If Falwell had been given an enema, he could have been buried in a matchbox." ~ Christopher Hitchens.

He is a rare example of a journalist who made a difference.

His 'The Trials of Henry Kissinger' was written as a legal indictment - ie it presents evidence that would stand up in court. It is said that Kissinger is extremely careful about which countries he sets foot in - including Britain. A tiny result, perhaps, but a result none the less.

I like some of these: http://twentytwowords.com/2011/12/16/34-christopher-hitchens-quotes-that-wont-offend-you-probably/

> We do not rely solely upon science and reason, because these are necessary rather than sufficient factors, but we distrust anything that contradicts science or outrages reason. We may differ on many things, but what we respect is free inquiry, openmindedness, and the pursuit of ideas for their own sake.

Thanks, Trig. I quite enjoyed reading those.

>>[O]wners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods.<<

That one puts a grin on everyone's face.

As I read those quotes I am drinking a double single malt scotch.

>>Cheap booze is a false eonomy.<<

Baron Grim

Nah, RIP stands for 'Really Irritating Polemicist'.




I never found Hitch to be aggressive just forthright and analytical in his views and debating - he is what religious people would call an 'aggressive atheist'. I put this down to religious people when faced with facts and points of view which they can not weasel word their way round and hence feel like they are on the defensive because there is no way they can defend themselves they get a subconscious feeling that they are being attacked and the only time one is attacked and one has to defend oneself is when someone is being aggressive towards you.

Hence, a feeling that the person who is talking to you and challenging your world view is being aggressive when they are simply being forthright.

His book 'God IS Not Great' is an excellent book and a superb primer to Dawkins 'The God Deluson'. Hitch's book very much explains how religions evolved and why they aren't 'real' - The explanation of Cargo Cults was very enlightening.

Dawkins' book then goes onto explaining more about why people need to believe in religions and gods.

At least that's how I perceived the books when I read them. I learnt more from Hitch than Dawkins but Dawkins book was 'preaching to the converted' for me - no criticism there tho.

Some of his early work was *really* good. Before he became a household name.

(BTW, I don't see what's misplaced about saying "rest in peace" for such a vocal atheist. It actually seems more appropriate than it would be for someone who believes in an eternal afterlife of torment and hell-fire.)

KB

The point is it's a pointless saying for someone who believed that once you're dead you no longer exist apart from in people's memories and,luckily for us in Hitch's case, on our bookshelves.

To say rest in peace intimates he still exists someone other than the two places mentioned above.

I'd say he certainly *was* aggressive. Some of his targets he really wanted to suffer. Whether or not that's a good think is another issue.

I have to say I rather tired of him on religion. It became old hat - plus I don't think that *all* religion is the root of all evil.

As I've said, I disagreed with him politically - but he was more interesting on that. Even then - much of his stuff took a predictable neo-con angle that entirely missed the point and made broad-brush dismissals of anyone who dared disagree. You were for him or against him, it seemed.

"...for someone who believed that once you're dead you no longer exist..."

Well, he *does* still exist, in a true materialist sense. His body might not move and the neurons might not fire, but he certainly does still exist - and in quite a peaceful state of rest, into the bargain.

Exactly, the idea of Chris Hitchens still exists. And I doubt that some people will let him rest in peace!

(I'm much more annoyed by people addressing him, as in "we won't forget you". Which is still, not very much annoyed at all -- it's just another way to show respect after all.)



Thanks for the Quotes page, TRiG