1. Comment #89033 by okmichigan on November 19, 2007 at 2:49 pm

hitchens in a yarmulke made my monday feel like a friday :)

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2. Comment #89034 by deviljelly on November 19, 2007 at 2:49 pm

Errrrmmmmmmm...

What does Hitch have on his head?

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3. Comment #89050 by SilentMike on November 19, 2007 at 3:15 pm

I wouldn't put that thing on my head.

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4. Comment #89056 by Not the Messiah on November 19, 2007 at 3:49 pm

Christopher has previously stated that he also takes his shoes off when entering a mosque, and he always makes a point of thanking his hosts when a debate has been organised by a religious interest group.
This is just an example of his good manners - when you're a guest in someone's house, you respect their rules..

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5. Comment #89061 by black wolf on November 19, 2007 at 4:06 pm

... spirituality does not point to religion. Religion picks up spiritual ideas and channels them into a closed contemplative system. Our spirituality is a welcome product of the depth of our mind's capability. The cosmos and our little, beautiful planet's place in it are much more magnificent and awesome than the god religions would have us believe in could ever be. Our practical and spiritual duty is to find solutions to the widespread misery we allow a major part of our kind suffer, a misery which humanity has largely created itself. The more we can find out about the workings of our mind through contemplation and science, the closer we get to a solution without relating to supernatural claims about our existence.

This is the comment I left on their site, in response to another comment.

I don't know why the interviewer doesn't wear a yarmulke, perhaps it fell to the floor off-camera. Maybe that would be god's way of saying, 'Oh please, do you think that I would care about what people wear on their heads? I've got hundreds of planets to work on simultaneously, and the Alpha Centaurians are starting to wear false beards this minute.'

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6. Comment #89080 by Barbara on November 19, 2007 at 4:41 pm

@ black wolf

The interviewer is wearing a yarmulke. If you look closely you can just make it out. His hair and the yarmulke are nearly the same color.

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7. Comment #89092 by black wolf on November 19, 2007 at 5:27 pm

@ Barbara

Ah. Thanks. Guess he likes his hair color ;)

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8. Comment #89099 by NotableInterviews on November 19, 2007 at 5:52 pm

@ Barbara and black wolf,

I actually WAS NOT wearing a yarmulke. I myself was brought up Jewish and I had known to wear a yarmulke on the premises.... However I was rushed very quickly into this interview, and I never noticed a box of yarmulkes or anyone instructing me to put a yarmulke on. Furthermore, the shul is VERY reform, and more than half of the people in the shul weren't wearing yarmulkes. I mean, they invited Hitchens to speak to the congregation. Certainly an Orthodox or even a Conservative shul would not do that.

-Harrison

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9. Comment #89106 by Matt7895 on November 19, 2007 at 6:02 pm

Thankyou for this, I am watching it now.

I agree with the view 'when you're in someone's house, you respect their rules'. When I go into a church I take off my hat and make sure I'm not wearing shorts. After all, religious folk need a place where they can come together and practise the non-violent parts of their faith, I don't mean that in a condescending way, I think we as atheists shouldn't be trying to wipe out things like yarmulkes themselves, but try to stop people from thinking they need to wear them in the first place. When that happens, yarmulkes won't be needed. But until that happens, we need to have some degree of respect. At least, when we are in 'their house'.

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10. Comment #89116 by black wolf on November 19, 2007 at 6:22 pm

@ Harrison
thanks, so my eyes are still working correctly. :)

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11. Comment #89122 by Rtambree on November 19, 2007 at 6:35 pm

4. Comment #89056 by Not the Messiah

>This is just an example of his good manners - when you're a guest in someone's house, you respect their rules..

Then again, there's been instances where Hitchens lights up in a NON SMOKING venue. I've heard him get into verbal stoushes with audience members who don't want to breathe in his smoke.

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12. Comment #89125 by eric.malitz on November 19, 2007 at 6:46 pm

How can someone as smart at hitchens smoke cigarettes, and flaunt it too.
Reminds me of a Joni Mitchell interview where one of the all time great lyricists turned out not to be as bright as I thought.

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13. Comment #89126 by Matt7895 on November 19, 2007 at 6:56 pm

Doesn't matter if he's smart or not, the point is he's a smoker and in my experience most smokers relish the opportunity to breathe it in people's faces, and loathe anyone who asks them not to. I don't know if Hitchens does this, though, as unfortunately I've never seen the man in person.

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14. Comment #89175 by MuNky82 on November 19, 2007 at 11:27 pm

Hitchens quite enjoys his smoking. He even smokes in the shower as stated (and photographed) in his hilarious two part article:

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/10/hitchens200710
http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/12/hitchens200712

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15. Comment #89270 by Barbara on November 20, 2007 at 6:15 am

@ Harrison and black wolf:

I'm off to visit my optometrist.

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16. Comment #89282 by nattyadams on November 20, 2007 at 7:13 am

My question is why they have a banner ad for the Ben Stein anti-evolution movie next to the interview.

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17. Comment #89287 by bluebird on November 20, 2007 at 7:33 am

Interesting..... Notable Interviews is a new site, launched this year:http://www.notableinterviews.com/about

Mr. Jordan looked way more comfortable interviewing the hip-hop artist than C.Hitchens!

EDIT Mr. Jordan, thanks for answering comments #17 & 18 (your post didn't 'take' here, rather I found it in 'other comments by').

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18. Comment #89328 by Eventhorizon on November 20, 2007 at 10:06 am

I found this really quite annoying to watch.
I dont know if anyone noticed but the kid wasnt listening to a single word Hitchens was saying. And who kept walking in and out of that squeaky door?

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19. Comment #89334 by Awesmund on November 20, 2007 at 10:13 am

Actually, Hitchens has stopped smoking. He mentioned it in a interview just a week or so ago.

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20. Comment #89373 by Friend Giskard on November 20, 2007 at 1:13 pm

Video download link:

http://www.notableinterviews.com/ChristopherHitchens.divx.flv

(You'll need a .flv player such as VLC media player.)

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21. Comment #89417 by Tack on November 20, 2007 at 4:17 pm

@Eventhorizon

Seconded on both accounts. Hitchens kept his composure well enough in spite of the interruptions and seeming disinterest of the interviewer.

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22. Comment #90383 by Conrad on November 25, 2007 at 1:03 am

Interviewing niceties aside, this was mostly rehash. Though I will say that it's a bullet point rehash, thus we get to hear the sound bite version of most of Hitchens' talking points, which is always helpful to hear for when one might find themselves in a debate and asked similar questions.

As for his smoking and drinking and what-have-you, I always counted it simply to the fact that as an obstinate contrarian. No matter what public opinion is, he's going to do whatever he damn well pleases if it brings him pleasure (and isn't a felony). :)

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