Posted on 12/16/2011 9:28:58 AM PST by Academiadotorg
A noted left-wing author who teaches at a bastion of so-called progressive education recently delivered a surprising defense of Western civilization—and an attack on prevailing academic attitudes towards it.
Unfortunately, Christopher Hitchens said, confidence in the superiority of the West has been eroded in recent decades. Hitchens teaches at the New School in New York City.
Hitchens criticized those Americans (on both the Left and the Right) who responded to the September 11 attacks by asking what America had done to deserve them—a question belonging to a mindset he called “moral suicide.” Such relativism, Hitchens said, is the result of intellectual neutrality taken to absurd extremes.
The concept of “The West,” Hitchens argued, is one shaped more by philosophy than by geography: Athens, widely considered to be the cradle of Western civilization, is physically closer to Cairo than it is to London, yet it is the latter which has been an heir to the Greeks’ cultural and philosophical achievements.
(Excerpt) Read more at academia.org ...
When Hitchens was right, he was damn right. Called Michelle Obama’s treatise in Princeton as being unreadable and not written in any known language; Clinton a pathological liar; used the term “Islamic fascists.”
One of my favorite Hitch moments is when he pwned Bill Maher on Iran and flipped off and insulted his audience of morons.
When news of his cancer came out, I seem to recall a few religionists here predicting a foxhole conversion for him.
Projection, I guess.
“When news of his cancer came out, I seem to recall a few religionists here predicting a foxhole conversion for him.
Projection, I guess.”
How do you, or anyone for that matter, know what was going on in Hitchens’ head before he died?
Maybe he asked Jesus to forgive him and come into his heart.
Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Not projection. Compassion.
RIP for a fighter, and I’m praying for him.
thanks Academiadotorg.
Hitchens Was Not Great
Townhall.com | December 17, 2011 | John Ransom
Posted on 12/17/2011 5:32:02 AM PST by Kaslin
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2821605/posts
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