Christopher Hitchens with Anderson Cooper on Religion (2007)

[cfall234]

good interview. hitchens almost seems out of character because cooper is such a neutral interviewer.

[crazydj59]

With respect despite hitchens sympathy for people effected by militant

religeous fanatics which sadly there are many, his dislike of religeon in general

and though he states he doesnt want to eradicate it entirely there are many so`called

new atheists like dwkings and co who do wish to rid the planet of believers,and as the

saying goes dont judge a book by its cover ..! google r dawkings and youl c`4yerself

also militant attitudes ye dont need2go 2far to c`what these views r stirring up

[Mathiaslengel]

We really needed his arguments and strength in the aftermath of the Mohammed-Cartoons here in Denmark.

[karangmail15]

@Mathiaslengel There is a video of Hitchens (watch?v=cer25uaAcrg) defending freedom of speech in front of the Danish embassy in Washington DC. It might cheer you up.

[ckheldon]

@BlongBlarble youtube.com/watch?v=t35GTsTBFn­E

[ckheldon]

@BlongBlarble You also seem to have put a great deal of thought into the details of a session of "man-love".

[ckheldon]

@BlongBlarble Effective sarcasm, let alone subtle irony, is beyond you.

[Em183]

@BlongBlarble what does his college days have to do with these debates that we see on youtube???? NOTHING...I wouldn't be surprised if you had those experiences in college yourself. He just got finished talking about how basically homosexuals, bisexuals, human beings in general deserve respect which religion doesn't give them and here you are bashing him.

[Em183]

I miss him- his brilliance, eloquence, that accent. Now that's attractive :D All gone :(

..is AC religious? he seems very dismissive.

[TheFlam3head]

I LOVE AC. he usually always catches my attention with something interesting.

[sebc2s]

I am going to miss Hitchen's solid, eloquent, well-rehearsed(if he even did rehearse) and foolproof interviews. He was always the best at interviews regarding religious evils.

[KeusFrench]

So religion is a menace to society and will destroy humanity eventually...

Well then, what about all the positives that it brings to the table? The Christians that donate to the church and support homeless people, unfortunate families, etc? What about those who have dedicated their lives to good, like Mother Theresa?

Hitchens is assuming religion is evil. Why? If it were evil then so would it's followers be evil. It amazes me that he shows no care in the world for his offensive comments.

[ckheldon]

@KeusFrench Hamas can count many of the positives you cite. Does that make them worth their negatives? It is one of the greatest evils of religion that it compels good people to do bad things. Those Christians that do good deeds would likely have done them even without their faith because they are good people. However those good people may disown their children for being gay or kill an abortion doctor or commit other acts of terror.

[ckheldon]

@KeusFrench Why is it offensive to hold religious beliefs to the same standards to which we hold political, philosophical or a vast array of other beliefs?

[KeusFrench]

@ckheldon Firstly, Religion has its faults, sure. But you cannot group Christians and all of their bad deeds into one category. You have to look at humanity as a whole. There are many people who sin - everyone.

When I say that there are genuinely good people I can definitely say that their good deeds stemmed from religion - from Christ himself and Christianity.

And it's not like religious people are the only ones to cast out their children... that's ignorant to make that claim.

[ckheldon]

@KeusFrench I am not claiming they are the only ones to cast out their children. I'm claiming that they are the only good people to do so. Think of someone who throws their children out. Can you imagine them being a good person? Can you imagine them loving them? The example I gave is the only one I can think of where the parents are good people, love their children and genuinely care for their welfare and are able to provide for it but still kick them out.

[KeusFrench]

@ckheldon No I cannot and I definitely agree with you on that point. I can't see any of my fellow Christians doing that, (the ones I know), but the fact is that some Christians do. But I would argue that those who do fail to come to terms with how Jesus was accepting of everyone.

And no, I simply meant that humanity has issues - religion isn't the only thing that has 'good' people who do 'bad' things. As for your good deeds, they must have come from somewhere. Parents? Faith? Idk.

[ckheldon]

@KeusFrench Religion has it's faults and by it's very design it's unable to fix them. The word of god is the word of god and there's no arguing with that. I don't group all Christians into one category, I'm looking at the faith itself. I simply do not believe that those people are motivated by their faith to do good deeds. I do good deeds without god. The best thing to be said about the example you gave is that it's an organizing force which is unnecessary.

[KeusFrench]

@ckheldon (Part 2) The thing is, the entire idea of the 'good' is a philosophical debate, which is slightly off topic though.

But anyways, I am personally motivated by two things: my desire to be a better human being and my desire to be more like Christ - both originating from my very birth to my development of faith.

Faith has strengthened me. Not physically, but spiritually and mentally. It has provided a means to DO the good and a moral guideline in which my life is based.

[ckheldon]

@KeusFrench When you say that you have to look at humanity as a whole and that everybody "sins" you're saying that because religion isn't responsible for all the worlds problems it should be given a pass. That's not true.

[matprithellodave]

@KeusFrench And I could just as easily - perhaps more easily - point to instances where an otherwise morally sound person would succumb to the most bigoted doctrines of a religion, as they so often are, and be the worse for it. Sure some people do moral things due to religion, but are they really moral if they are done for fear of divine retribution? If you need the bible to tell you what is right then you are a sorry sod indeed. Totting-up the pros and cons of religion aside...

[matprithellodave]

@KeusFrench cont. ... I think that what's more important is that Christopher criticises the religious way of thinking, and the dogmas and doctrines themselves! There is no need to tally up the good and the bad effects of religion. Christopher says moderate majority of believers are only moderate because they don't follow their religions as seriously as the ones who are terrorists. It's not that the religion is being perverted and used as a means to secular ends.....

[matprithellodave]

@KeusFrench cont. but that those ends are themselves religious, and so the acts committed by these terrorists are the direct result of the kind of backwards thinking which is laid out in the holy texts of these monotheisms, but ignored by the moderates! (and aren't we glad!)

[baihbalm]

try to shatter this myth -> The Federal Government works for the people.

I find this myth to be even more ingrained in the American populous.

[TheWhisperingPenis]

Yeah, Anderson Coopers interviews are the best. Love this guy.

[Brockhad]

Well, Einstein was a bit of a opportunisitc, selfish guy in leaving his family and shacking up with various other women, particularly considering the values of his time. I can't speak to Spinoza, but it seems like it's better to have no spoken values as to not disappoint than to be a religious hypocrite. So, treating each other as garbage as the result of Sarte style critical theory or be more than likely a hypocrite. Pick your poison.

[wasteofspace1234]

Haha looks like Cooper was quite profoundly taken by Hitchen's arguments by the end :) See? Look what happens when 2 modest, rationally minded people, even with differing opinions, sit down and have a polite, rational and productive conversation. The world would be a much better place if this were more common.

[2camjohn]

Hitchens would certainly miss religion.

He makes a good living pwning religious people.

Or maybe he would find another myth to shatter.

[lightandbeautiful]

Please visit my channel for the unpopular truth about homosexuality.

A person does not need hatred or any kind of phobia in order to acknowledge important differences between heterosexual attraction / behavior / marriage / adoption and homosexual attraction / behavior / marriage / adoption. Even non-religious people know this.

Homosexual activists, with support from the media, have succeeded at framing themselves as noble victims; it's an effective way to push a social agenda.

[dimbulb23]

@lightandbeautiful Sounds like you're fearful that homosexuals will recruit the unwitting into their lifestyle.

As a heterosexual who lived through a heterosexual hormone storm in my younger days, I find this attitude to be quite unbelievable. No amount of homosexual propaganda would have ever coaxed me onto the other team. So when I hear such tripe I always wonder about the sexuality of those who think it's a matter of pushing an agenda.

People just want to live their lives as they wish.

[danielmalpollitt]

@lightandbeautiful What is their social agenda? Are they trying to convert people to homosexuality? Do they want the ultimate collapse of society as we know it into some kind of Nero-esque decadence, where fornicating with all manner of objects, animals and people is acceptable?

Get a grip on reality!

[mio68df]

1000000 times better than fox news

[CloverCATOREE]

@chrisuk19yootube they dont even understand him....thats how good he is. if they took the time to understand, they wouldnt be religious any more . cooper was speechless. hhehehe

[writersblock26]

Thank you for posting this, JesusSavesAtCitibank.

[shnibly12]

not gonna lie, my conscience sounds like christopher hitchens

[metrx330]

I would go gay for AC. He's so cute.

[joseph941000able]

@metrx330 what the fuck go away.

[Blexine]

@metrx330 Would you be the giver or the taker?

[metrx330]

@Blexine lol. No penetration. Just one big kiss lol.

[BelfastAtheist]

Damn, I love Anderson. He just seems like such a likeable guy.

[writersblock26]

@BelfastAtheist Yes, he does

[ivanmikhailov]

At 4:35 it looks like Cooper is coming out of a trance of amazement at Hitchens' beautifully constructed argument and use of language.

[BenWannaBee]

@ivanmikhailov Haven't we all? haha

[thetravelingboy]

@ivanmikhailov Hehe, yeah it does.

[SundaysAndCybele]

@ivanmikhailov Maybe he just has a hard time understanding Hitchens' accent. I know I do.

[jerahmia]

@ivanmikhailov

AC wouldn't dare say a word back the Hitch!!!

[DevrorveD]

@jerahmia AC has what all other interviewers lack. A fair and balanced attitude towards an interview. He allows his guests to speak without interruption, and doesnt ask simple questions. even when obviously delusional people like Louie Gohmert go off and attack him personally he keeps that attitude.

[mthakore]

@DevrorveD I respectfully disagree. Anderson obviously likes Hitchens very much as you can sense in his body language, tone, and their discussions in other interviews. If Anderson doesn't like a guest, he'll make them look bad like he did on his talk show where he was interviewing a woman who was against the All American Muslim reality show.