Christopher Hitchens on Anti-Communism and Freedom of the Press (1983 - Part 5)

November 7, 1983 http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww....

Watch the full program: http://thefilmarchived.blogspot.com/2010/07/christopher-hitchens-on-ronald-re...

The term fellow traveler or fellow traveller refers to a person who sympathizes with the beliefs of an organization or cooperates in its activities without maintaining formal membership in that particular group. In the early Soviet Union the approximate term was used without negative connotation to describe writers and artists sympathetic to the goals of the Russian Revolution who declined to join the Communist Party. The English-language phrase came into vogue in the United States during the 1940s and 1950s as a pejorative term for a sympathizer of Communism or particular Communist states, who was nonetheless not a "card-carrying member" of a Communist party.

McCarthyism is the political action of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term specifically describes activities associated with the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by heightened fears of communist influence on American institutions and espionage by Soviet agents. Originally coined to criticize the anti-communist pursuits of U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, "McCarthyism" soon took on a broader meaning, describing the excesses of similar efforts. The term is also now used more generally to describe reckless, unsubstantiated accusations, as well as demagogic attacks on the character or patriotism of political adversaries.

Maurice Bishop was the son of Rupert and Alimenta Bishop. He was educated at the London School of Economics and had an extensive background in studies of the black power movement. Returning to Grenada, he became active in politics. In 1973 he became head of the Marxist New Jewel Movement (NJM) political party. He was elected to parliament, and for several years he held the position of leader of the opposition in the Grenadian House of Representatives, opposing the government of Prime Minister Eric Gairy and his Grenada United Labour Party (G.U.L.P.).

Bishop began to build a close relationship with Cuba after he took power. He initiated a number of projects, most significantly, the building of a new international airport on the island's southern tip which was later renamed in his honour and memory in May 2009. Financing and labor for the construction of the airport came from Cuba, although most of the airport's infrastructure was designed by European and North American consultants. American President Ronald Reagan accused Grenada of intending to use the new airport's long "airstrip" as a waypoint for Soviet military aircraft.

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[braydenbeautiful]

Hitchens was quite good looking

I was heartbroken to hear that he had cancer. Really tragic.

[axl170]

lol, there were a lot of idiots watching C-span back in the 80s. The young Hitchens had such impressively developed sardonic powers even back then, yet he is also so graceful and gentle at exposing the callers' idiocy.

[jimmbo13]

@axl170 The lady caller at end of part 4 was a concise and pretty informed caller, though he lambasted her after it

[benehan]

I miss the days when people could smoke on tv and not get bullied out of legal acts by the politically correct

[MinotawrTV]

Badass.

[wizardaim]

@wizardaim not back then though, but later :P

[wizardaim]

"not everyone is as smart as you" funny since Hitchens been ranked in the top 5 public intellectuals :P <3

[gofeedtina]

6:46-8:17 = one of the earliest recorded Hitchslaps!

[rmj15mu]

Communist Hitch is as bad ass as Anti-Theist Hitch...brilliant.

[umbrellaman75]

What a stud.

[weefeatures]

@mikem2780 Johnny Walker Black: breakfast of champions ;)

[thisguy803]

@JeffMaylor99 uneducated (butt hurt) troll. thats you