Christopher Hitchens?

Does anyone think this guy gets away with alot of things because of his accent?

 

You could ask the same about Dawkins. There's something about a British accent (non-Cockney of course) that makes even a dumbass sound intelligent (not that Dawkins or Hitchens are dumbasses, by any means). On the other hand, there's something about a southern drawl that would make Einstein sound stupid. That's where us Okies are majorly handicapped. We're all geniuses, but the accent makes us all sound so dumb.

 

Exactly when you listen to Hitchens or Dawkins linguistic skills they sound brilliant, but if a person from the South says the exact same thing it doesn't have near the affect.

 

All the more reason to read there books as opposed to just listening to debates on you tube or brief appearances in the televised media.

As for being from the south limits your linguistic skill I would suggest you read a few essays from Mark Twain, preferably one on religion, or even Hunter S Thompson.

 

Hitchens gets away with more because he could talk circles around the population of *insert pithy destination here*. Dawkins, on the other hand, sounds smart but he is clearly uncomfortable in the presence of media. I think it is his confidence, perhaps aided by his accent, which makes others want to listen to him a length.

 

Listen to what it is that people say, not how they say it in my opinion, Hitchen's is able to speak with such confidence because of how worldly he is, as a writer and journalist he is more than just the anti theistic guy who debates people over the existence of god's , he has traveled to places of the world most westerners have not and interacted with many different cultures, he is over 60 years old and has used a great portion of his life studying history as well as politics.

As far as writers of nonfiction go I cannot think of a contemporary of Hitchen's I enjoy reading more than he.

Just my opinion of course.

 

lol, yeah I think so, that English accent, combined with his constant pauses, an air of arrogance and intellectual snobbery makes anything he says sound like it comes from the mind of a genius.

 

Of the various atheist "rockstars" currently making the speaking circuit, Hitchens strikes me (purely personal impression) as being somewhat more personable but less intellectually rigorous and sloppier with facts than Dawkins, Dennet or Harris. Of the "four horsemen" he'd probably be most fun to hang out with, possibly because of his past as a drinker and party animal.

 

I don't think Hitchens looks personable at all, comes across as an asshole to me.

 

He will be in Sydney this October. Its better than der Pope.

 

Cool, what's he coming down for?

 

Just the usual lecture circuit stuff. 65 bucks for 90 minutes. I will give it a miss. I pretty much know what he will say anyway.

Check the Sydney opera house web site for more details.

Nice Pic

 

Thanks Dude.

 

No problem Dude

 

Cool mang.