Christopher Hitchens dead

[Australis]

Christopher Hitchens dead

Christopher Hitchens has died of cancer at the age of 62, Vanity Fair reports.

The magazine said he died today after being diagnosed with oesophageal cancer last year while on a book tour for his memoir "Hitch-22".

Vanity Fair's website reported that he died at the MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston, Texas, surrounded by friends, whom he described earlier this year as "my chief consolation in this year of living dyingly" after writing last year that "cancer victimhood contains a permanent temptation to be self-centered and even solipsistic".

Hitchens was known for his heroic intake of alcohol and cigarettes. He wrote in 2003 that his daily intake of alcohol was enough to "stun the average mule".

He said he had given up smoking in 2008, but journalist and author Peter FitzSimons, who interviewed him for his appearance the 2010 Sydney Writers' Festival, said Hitchens had been still smoking as of last year.

Hitchens was a columnist for Vanity Fair and Slate, the online magazine, and the author of the New York Times bestselling book God is Not Great.

His most recent book was Arguably, a collection of his essays.

He was a famous iconoclast and wrote critically of Mother Theresa, Bill Clinton and Winston Churchill.

Hitchens took a third class degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford, where he was a contemporary of Bill Clinton.

He later wrote about his gay experiences at Oxford in his memoir Hitch-22, including a dalliance with two unnamed future members of Margaret Thatcher’s cabinet.

He left university and joined the Times Higher Education Supplement but was fired within six months, and went on to write for New Statesman magazine, working alongside Julian Barnes, Martin Amis and Ian McEwan.

In a departure from the Left, he famously argued in favour of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, having initially being opposed to the 1990 invasion. He wrote in a 2004 opinion piece for The Nation magazine that he was “slightly” for the re-election of President George W. Bush.

Earlier this year, Mick Brown wrote in the Telegraph in London: "Until the publication three years ago of his book God Is Not Great, Hitchens had been, in the words of his late friend the author Susan Sontag, ''a sovereign figure in the small world of those who tilled the field of ideas'' - but largely unknown outside it.

"He reviewed books for Atlantic magazine, wrote regular columns for Vanity Fair and Slate, and regularly appeared on cable news programs in the US. To those who follow not only politics but also the fortunes of those who commentate on politics, he was well-known for his perceived move from left to right over the war in Iraq."

His brother Peter is a conservative columnist for the the Daily Mail in London.

link :Christopher Hitchens dead

 

[moosenoose]

A liver & lungs the size of Phar Lap's apparently :lol:

 

[Renenet]

Vale.

 

[-Katana-]

There dies one of the mental giants of our era.
A man who lived on his own terms and who had the guts to stand up to the church and publicly denounce it as a fraud.

Long sleep Christopher.

 

[Renenet]

It's a shame the man was so addicted to alcohol and cigarettes. We need more people like him.

 

[Darlyn]

Dam shame, bet he doesn't go to heaven : )
A bloke with inspiring ideas and reasoning.
Vale

 

[saximus]

He was one of my biggest idols.

 

[Darlyn]

Lol and hugs Sax

 

[moosenoose]

The smokes and grog made him what he was Good time for reflection and pondering life whilst enjoying the simple things.

 

[Renenet]

The smokes and grog made him what he was Good time for reflection and pondering life whilst enjoying the simple things.

Perhaps they did give him his fire. But it's a shame he couldn't stay with us for longer.

I just noticed your post count, Moosenoose. Do you win some kind of prize when you get to 10,000?

 

[sara_sabian]

A real tragedy; he was a brilliant thinker and, like saximus, an idol of mine.

 

[Adzo]

A sad day indeed.
Link related.

 

[toximac]

In times like these, we need Jiz. I found out 20 min from online news, then complained about sky news, nine etc not covering it.. 30 min later.. Its all over the news, with hitchens greatest quotes... Whats your fav. quote he said?... mine mhmm...
“Hatred, though it provides often rather junky energy, is a terrific way of getting you out of bed in the morning and keeping you going. If you don’t let it get out of hand, it can be canalized into writing.”

 

[JasonL]

Can't say i've ever heard of him....