Christopher Hitchens And The Uses Of Demagoguery

"Christopher Hitchens is a real asset to the war party," writes Ed Herman, "because he is a facile writer and covers over by vigorous assertion and imagery his new reactionary politics and the feeble intellectual defenses he musters for it. His value is enhanced by the fact that he is a 'straddler,' that is, a man in transition from an earlier left politics to apologetics for imperial wars, but with a foot still in The Nation's door and a harsh critic of Kissinger and Pinochet. He is therefore presentable as a member of the 'rational left' or left that has 'seen the light.' Such folks are much honored by the mainstream media."

Nothing surprising with this comment, as Herman has been at Hitchens' throat on many different occasions, especially since 9/11. Check out this post from a while back for some context (especially the links).

As an added bonus, also see David Brooks' review of Hitchens' recent book on Orwell.