AT LARGE: A Conversation With Christopher Hitchens

December 3, 2010

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty writer James Kirchick recently interviewed Hitchens at his home in Washington about his left-wing revolutionary past, his views on America, Iran's nuclear program, Turkey's Islamist turn, Putin's Russia, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and sampled his views on a variety of international figures.


Play All 4 Videos.

40 comments:

HJ said...

Thanks very much for the video it looks like being a very interesting one becauyse that interviewer is asking more interesting questions, so far, then "Are you thinking about praying/turning to God now that you're sick?" and that boring tripe.

I haven't watched it all yet. Bit worried about the spots on his hands though. Is that a side-effect of cancer or has he always had them?

:(

adey said...

I wish somone would ask him if any of his old friends who broke with him over Iraq have got back in contact with him.

I really hope one day I will see him discuss the idea of the memoir as literature with Amis at Manchester Uni. I was convinced the old horse would make an appearance sooner or later.

Damn those querlous cells.

Anonymous said...

What a great interview! More like this, please.

Anonymous said...

This was a fantastic interview, one of the best I've seen with him. Ask him good questions, then don't interrupt him: sounds simple, but seems more than most people can master. Especially loved the end regarding his thoughts on Vaclev Havel. Bravo to this interviewer!

Anonymous said...

What!!!!

Hitchens was at a debate regarding Iraq the other day in London??????

What was this?

Anyone have any details?

FGFM said...

Decent limey.

FGFM said...

Decent Decent!

Anonymous said...

@anonymous, yeah, I don't think he means a televised, formal debate, and I don't think he means the other day. I think he means he was sitting around with a group of people talking about Iraq in London...and I know he was most recently there in May/June of this year, so really several months ago.

Mark G said...

"Ask him good questions, then don't interrupt him"

Yeah, just be a totally deferential schmuck and not say anything to question or irritate The Master. Kirchick is one of the ugliest human beings I've ever seen. And I mean that in every sense. He makes Mike Weiss seem almost charming by comparison.

HJ said...

Yeah, just be a totally deferential schmuck and not say anything to question or irritate The Master.

Your so negative!

Kirchick is one of the ugliest human beings I've ever seen.

I bet that really stings.

He makes Mike Weiss seem almost charming by comparison.



Here's a quote from that writer you like:

"Whenever a friend succeeds, a little something in me dies"

I think all of those people you constatnly go on about were your friends who became way more successful than you so you decided to become a rebel. Am I right? Am I right? Huh? Huh?

Bwahahahahahahaha!

HJ said...

adey: "I wish somone would ask him if any of his old friends who broke with him over Iraq have got back in contact with him."

I think the answer is that some of them have fallen out with him forever. For example, Norman Finkelstein, Noam Chomsky and Alexander Cockburn won't ever be friends with him again. But some of them such as Alexander's bothers, Patrcik and Andrew Cockburn are still friends even though they seriously disagree on the war. I think also that Eric Alterman and a few other mainstream liberals still remain friends.

Mark G said...

Decent retardation speculation....doesn't know how to spell "you're"

HJ said...

Decent retardation speculation....doesn't know how to spell "you're"



Dim Pedantry.

It should be "retarded speculation" if you thought that using retardation as an insult was acceptable behavoir for a jounalist. Also, if your journalist you may have heard of "typoes"? No?

Anwyay if you think I am wrong about my specualtion tell us what really makes you so angry about "Kirchik" and Hitchens and "Mike WEiss" that you means you have to follow them round almost compulsively (though not stalkingly - you only criticize big celebrities like Kirchik and under your own name and have a website dedicated to compulsively following Hitchens and stuff) to spoout off a bunch of abuse in the comments boxes? Hmmm? Hmmm?

Maybe because they supported the Iraq War? Nah! Can't be cos you did too! Maybe because they're Hitchens sycophants? Nah! Can't be cos you used to be too. Maybe because they're atheists? Do you not atheists Mark G?

If you're going to comment I think people would like constructive criticism of HItchens but all you do is moan on and on about how unfair life is and Hitchens is rich or fat or something and Kirchik is ugly and the other one has no charisma or something. So everything is ad hominem and then when we make ad hominems back you start getting all, "Stop stalking me!" "Waaah!" "Don't be mean!"

It's very weedy.

Bwahahaahahahahahaha!

Anonymous said...

Everytime Mark G calls someone a retard or some such thing, I feel compelled to point out this:

Mark G was largely in favour of paedophilia until two years ago. He thought it was consenual sex among minors, and a good thing. It was pointed out to him that it was in fact adults raping children. He said this has never happened, and will never happen, because "they can derive no pleasure from it".

Mark G is in his mid to late thirties.

His nickname is Dim.

Anonymous said...

He also thinks 9/11 Truthers have a solid case.

Anonymous said...

Mark G was largely in favour of paedophilia until two years ago. He thought it was consenual sex among minors, and a good thing. It was pointed out to him that it was in fact adults raping children. He said this has never happened, and will never happen, because "they can derive no pleasure from it".


Bwahahahahaha!

This is funny! It can't be true though. Is it? I must admit I do actually think Mark G is the gift that keeps giving. Maybe he really is still friends with Hitchens and his mission is to make anti-Hitchens people look like such unbelievable morons that even those with more thoughrful criticisms are put off.

FGFM said...

Also, if your [sic] journalist you may have heard of "typoes"? [sic]

Illiterate Decent.

Anonymous said...

That's not a steak!

HJ said...

"Illiterate Decent."

Typos! Are you and Mark Dim and Dimmer?

Ha Ha! My Capcha word is "spack"! I think your presence generated that FGFM.

FGFM said...

It obviously wasn't a typo if you consistently confuse "your" with "you're."

Anonymous said...

Of course it is. They're called homophonous typos, idiot.

John said...

This Mark G is an odd character. He has lustily encouraged the cretinous FGFM's cyberstalking of Hitchens' daughter. He was until recently in favor of paedophilia because he thought it constituted consensual sex between minors. He suspects 9-11 Truthers might be on to something. He once claimed to have read "A Clockwork Orange" in the original Russian (hence, I think, the nickname "Dim"). As a university lecturer in Kurdistan, he included John O'Hara's "Appointment in Samarra" and Edward Gibbon's "Decline and Fall Of The Roman Empire". No harm in either of those, necessarily. But it seems he described the O'Hara novel as the best twentieth century English language novel about Iraq, and Gibbon's eigtheenth century history as an example of 20th century British satire. Very odd. The university fired him, of course.

FGFM said...

He has lustily encouraged the cretinous FGFM's cyberstalking of Hitchens' daughter.

That's because we're Vikings.

FGFM said...

They're called homophonous typos, idiot.

You do the same thing with "there" and "their" even though you continue to light up my spellchecker with those ten-dollar words of yours! Why don't you go out and enjoy a nice stake?

Anonymous said...

Nobody cares, dirtbag.

FGFM said...

I care. I care a lot!

HJ said...

You do the same thing with "there" and "their" even though you continue to light up my spellchecker with those ten-dollar words of yours!

This is a really sad admission. You must scrutinize people's spelling with the aid of a spell-checker and most words used round here are too big for you.

Bwahahahhahhahaha!

Anonymous said...

"I care. I care a lot!"

Such a charmer. I bet you say that to all the meats.

FGFM said...

You must scrutinize people's spelling with the aid of a spell-checker and most words used round [sic] here are too big for you.

No, the spellchecker is built into FireFox. Have any other theories?

FGFM said...

Such a charmer. I bet you say that to all the meats.

Yes, I said that the last time I fucked your mother in the ass.

HJ said...

Yes, I said that the last time I fucked your mother in the ass.



FGFM, everybody!

Anyone wonder whay he's always eating alone or having to content himself with the joyous pursuit of cyberstalking?

Anonymous said...

"No, the spellchecker is built into FireFox. Have any other theories?"

The running hypothesis that you're an embittered lunatic has now been upgraded to official dogma.

FGFM said...

Decent dogma.

Hey Jablome! said...

Decent dogma.



Is that the best you can do? Why not make yourself look even more foolish than you do already!

Now do you eat alone and film your feet in the bath because you are a charmless sociopath?

FGFM said...

Is that the best you can do?

Nein!

Why not make yourself look even more foolish than you do already!

Indeed.

Now do you eat alone and film your feet in the bath because you are a charmless sociopath?

Nein!

FGFM said...

Pirsch Macht Frei

FGFM said...

Decent linguist.

FGFM said...

Freilich!

FGFM said...

Decent meglomaniac.

Guestmaya said...

Where can i found a complete transcript of this interview?.
Thanks

 
 
 

Christopher reads from Hitch-22: A Memoir