Chamblee54

Peering in at dangerousminds, PG runs across the publicity onslaught of a Christopher Hitchens memoir. In the words of a media pioneer, what hath G-d wrought?
PG first came across Mr. Hitchens after the synchronized departure of Princess Diana and Mother Theresa. Mr. Hitchens did not like either one, and became notable for trashing the beloved recently departed. Mr. Hitchens said things you were not supposed to say, but suspected were true…i.e. Mother Theresa was really a horrible person. He did so in a style that was fun to read, and would escape the blue pencil of the most ruthless english teacher.
Not only was he erudite and entertaining, he was everywhere. How the man can maintain this output, while continuously drunk, is a mystery. Not only does he crank out words by the jillion, he appears on tv and radio to promote his work/self. For a marxist, the man is a terrific capitalist.
Did you know he is an atheist? If you don’t BELIEVE it, just ask.
This was all very good and amusing until 911. Then something happened, and he became a warmonger. There is the possibility that Mr. Hitchens was paid to support the carnage in Iraq. This view was proposed by chamblee54 in the early days of this blog.
In a British hatchet job (there is no bad publicity when you have a book coming out), the author discusses the WWII vet father of Hitchens, and suggests that Christopher may be having masculinity issues about not going to war as a youth. It is an old story…the men of a certain age who think war is a dandy thing, but who are too old to take up arms ( and too fat to fit into a uniform).
The Guardian piece also details the drinking habits of Mr. Hitchens. It seems he intakes as much booze as he outputs rhetoric. Some people, no matter how amusing their public persona is, you probably don’t want to meet in person.
PG got the following item from Andrew Sullivan. It is too short for a stand alone post, and too horrible not to repeat.
There was an American citizen killed in the Israeli raid on a supply boat. “Reports in the Turkish press identified the American as Furkan Dogan, 19, who was born in the United States before returning to Turkey with his family as a young child. The Cihan news agency reported that Mr. Dogan had one bullet in the chest and four bullets fired into his head from close range.”
Here is more information about the murder of Furkan Dogan. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress.