Slavoj Zizek: anti-Americanism, Christopher Hitchens, occupation of Iraq (eng subs)

Slavoj Zizek on anti-Americanism, the occupation of Iraq, and Christopher Hitchens's argument for war. An excerpt from a lecture he gave at the Slovenian Ministry of Culture on 28th of January, 2009, as part of a series of lectures organized by the ministry, called Wild Thoughts (Divje misli). The topic (title) was America Against Europe: A Cultural Battle? (Amerika proti Evropi: Kulturni Boj?)

He began his lecture with: "I don't know what I'm doing here. I am against the very word "culture"."

Original video in Slovene:

http://www.mk.gov.si/si/video_posnetki/amerika_proti_evropi_kulturni_boj/

I will try to translate the entire lecture in the near future.
Sound is a bit off even in the original video.

***Permission to upload was obtained from the Ministry of Culture***

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Slavoj
• Zizek
• Žižek
• Christopher
• Hitchens
• anti-Americanism
• capitalism
• Iraq
• occupation
• communist
• opposition
• Saddam
• Left
• Slovenia

[MaxKrane]

The subtitles don't come up when I press it! ARRRGGHHH what am I to do? (and so on and so on)

[nobodyreally11]

@MaxKrane

I know that some people have problems with this. I still don't know what it is. Perhaps you can try clearing your recent history: cookies, cache and so on and so forth. And make sure you have the latest flash player. Subtitles are definitely there.

[PersianSocialist777]

I am glad to see that Zizek is friends with Hitchens, they are two of the most brilliant radical thinkers left and they are two of the last intellectuals with the balls to calls themselves Marxists and to critique liberals. Zizek also makes a good point when he says that anti-Americanism often leads to people supporting even more despostic totalitarian forms of capitalism.

[nobodyreally11]

@meshzzizk

Push the CC button.

[ahmed337799]

Who is this dickhead? And why isn't he collecting garbage like he should be?

His only talent seems to be talking garbage anyway..

[ididete]

kad ce ovaj smrdljivi slinavac da odapne, zgadio se i bogu i narodu. da ne govorimo o tome koliko je precenjen. lako je biti prorok u eri budala.

[ctownsfools1]

He's clearly coked up. Nose itching, high energy, bad ideas...tell-tale signs.

[1Verlch]

I love Slavoj Zizek...

Sometimes i think he's high on cocaine, though!

[DrMerkwuerdichliebe]

A communist in the US/Iraqi puppet parliament? (Yes, I knew, btw)

Well, Saddam Hussein had friendly connections with the SU and the GDR, many coöperations. (Saddam had those also with the USA and GFR...just like NOURI MALIKI now...)

[loccoptic]

if u generalise the point what he is saying that pointing out one fing is ad doesnt make what you believe or do good. we are against the occupation of iraq but we are also against islamism.. just like right wing facists like the bnp are against the occupation of iraq they should not gain support from the other looking bad

[unitedcoloursofAfg]

so in a nutshell, he's saying that this anti-American sentiment in the East is leading to authoritatian capitalism--> so basing themselves on the capitalism that origniated from the West, but governed in an authoritarian way. The implications of this in international relations: East/West confrontation and underlying this confrontation is ideologies of communism vs. American capitalism.

[Tfrne]

My God, he is brilliant.