Peter Jonathan Hitchens (born 28 October 1951,
SliemaSliema is a city located on the northeast coast of Malta. It is a centre for shopping, restaurants and café life. Sliema is also a major commercial and residential area and houses several of Malta's most modern hotels...
,
MaltaMalta , officially the Republic of Malta , is a densely populated developed European country in the European Union. The Southern European island nation is an archipelago that includes the inhabited islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino, along with a number of smaller, uninhabited islands...
) is a British
columnistA columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating copy that can sometimes be strongly opinionated. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs on the Internet....
and
authorAn author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...
, noted for his
traditionalist conservativeTraditionalist conservatism, also known as "traditional conservatism," "traditionalism," and Burkean conservatism is a political philosophy which emphasizes the need for the principles of natural law and transcendent moral order, tradition and custom, hierarchy and "Gemeinschaft" , and localism and...
stance. The author of four books, including
The Abolition of BritainThe Abolition of Britain is a book by Peter Hitchens, first published in the UK by Quartet Books in 1999 , and then in a revised edition the following year...
and more recently
The Broken Compass: How British Politics Lost its WayThe Broken Compass: How British Politics Lost its Way is the fourth book from English conservative journalist Peter Hitchens. The book dissects the British political landscape to argue that the old rules traditionally associated with the left and the right today no longer apply; the right in...
, Hitchens currently writes for Britain's
Mail on Sunday newspaper. A former resident correspondent in Moscow and Washington, Hitchens continues to work as an occasional foreign reporter, and appears frequently in the British broadcast media. He is the younger brother of author and polemicist
Christopher HitchensChristopher Eric Hitchens is an English-American author, journalist, and literary critic. He has been a columnist at Vanity Fair, The Atlantic, World Affairs, The Nation, Slate, Free Inquiry, and a variety of other media outlets...
.
Early life
Peter Hitchens was born in 1951 in
MaltaMalta , officially the Republic of Malta , is a densely populated developed European country in the European Union. The Southern European island nation is an archipelago that includes the inhabited islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino, along with a number of smaller, uninhabited islands...
, where his father was stationed with the
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
. He was educated at
The Leys SchoolThe Leys School is a co-educational Independent school, located in Cambridge, England, and is both a day school and boarding school for over 520 pupils aged between 11 and 18 years...
, the Oxford College of Further Education and the
University of YorkThe University of York , is an academic institution located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the campus university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, covering a wide range of subjects...
. He married Eve Ross, daughter of leftwing journalist David Ross in 1983; they have three children.
Career in journalism
Hitchens worked for the
Daily ExpressThe Daily Express is a conservative, British tabloid newspaper. It is a middle-market title, the flagship title of Express Newspapers and is currently owned by Richard Desmond...
between 1977 and late 2000, initially as a reporter specialising in education and industrial and labour affairs, then as a political reporter, and subsequently as Deputy
Political EditorThe Political Editor of a newspaper or broadcast media is the senior political reporter who covers politics and related matters for the newspaper or station...
.
Leaving parliamentary journalism to cover defence and diplomatic affairs, he reported on the decline and ultimate collapse of the Communist regimes in several
Warsaw PactThe Warsaw Pact is the informal name for the mutual defense Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance subscribed by eight Communist states in Eastern Europe, that was established at the USSR’s initiative and realised on 14 May 1955, in Warsaw, Poland...
countries, an assignment which culminated in a stint as
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
Correspondent, where he witnessed and reported on the final months of the
Soviet UnionThe Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the , tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union, from , Sovetskiy Soyuz...
in 1990/91.
After an interval as a roving foreign reporter, during which he reported from
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
during the last days of Apartheid, and from Somalia at the time of the U.S.-led military intervention in the country, he became the
Daily Express WashingtonWashington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
correspondent. Returning to London in 1995, he became a commentator and, eventually, a regular columnist. He continued to espouse a conservative viewpoint despite the publication's general move towards the
political centreIn politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting moderate policies which lie between different political extremes. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between left-wing...
in the mid-nineties, and its decision to support the
Labour PartyThe Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been seen since 1920 as the principal party of the Left in England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where it has only recently begun to organise again...
under
Tony BlairAnthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
in the months approaching the
1997 General ElectionThe UK general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992. The Labour Party won the general election in a landslide victory with 418 seats, the most seats the party has ever held...
.
In 2001, Hitchens announced his departure from the
Express in response to the title's acquisition by
Richard DesmondRichard Clive Desmond is an English pornographer. He owns a television production company Portland TV which broadcasts Fantasy Channel and Red Hot TV and others...
. Hitchens felt that his own moral and religious conservatism was incompatible with Desmond's proprietorship of numerous
adultPornography or porn is the depiction of explicit sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual excitement.Over the past few decades, an immense industry for the production and consumption of pornography has grown, with the increasing use of the VCR, the DVD, and the Internet, as well as the...
magazines. He joined the
Mail on Sunday where—in addition to a weekly column and
weblogA blog is a type of website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order...
in which he debates directly with readers—he produces occasional reportage both at home and abroad, including studies of the new Muslim communities in England's Pennine towns, several reports from Russia and the US, Western and Eastern Europe, many of the former Soviet Republics, the Middle East (including Israel, Iraq and Iran), Africa, Cuba, Venezuela, China, Japan, North Korea and Burma.
Hitchens has also written for
The SpectatorThe Spectator is a weekly Britishmagazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by the Barclay brothers, who also own The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
, a conservative British magazine, and sporadically for more left-leaning publications such as
The GuardianThe Guardian is a British daily newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. Founded in 1821, it is unique among major British newspapers in being owned by a foundation .The Guardian Weekly, which circulates worldwide, provides a compact digest of four newspapers...
,
ProspectProspect is a monthly British general interest magazine, specialising in politics and current affairs. Frequent topics include British, European, and US politics, social issues, art, literature, cinema, science, the media, history, philosophy, and psychology...
, and the
New StatesmanThe New Statesman is a British left-wing political magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
. He is also an occasional contributor to
The American ConservativeThe American Conservative is a monthly U.S. opinion magazine founded in 2002 by Scott McConnell, Pat Buchanan, and Taki Theodoracopulos. The magazine is edited by McConnell and published by Ron Unz...
magazine.
Hitchens speaks frequently on the British broadcast media, often debating with (typically left-wing) opponents on a variety of social and political topics. He has also authored and presented several
documentariesDocumentary film is a broad category of visual expressions that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to "document" reality. Although "documentary film" originally referred to movies shot on film stock, it has subsequently expanded to include video and digital productions that can...
on
Channel 4Channel 4 is a UK public-service television broadcaster which began working on November 2, 1982. Although commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station owned now and operated by the Channel Four Television...
and
BBC FourBBC Four is a BBC television channel available to digital television viewers in the UK. The part successor to BBC Knowledge. BBC Four launched on 2 March 2002....
, in which he examined Britain's entry into the Common Market, discussed the erosion of civil liberties in the UK, and critically examined the political achievements of
Nelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela is a former President of South Africa, the first to be elected in a fully representative democratic election, who held office from 1994–99. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of the African National Congress's armed wing Umkhonto...
, and later the career of
David CameronDavid William Donald Cameron is the leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom. He has occupied both positions since December 2005....
(see
On the Conservative Party). In the late 1990s, he co-presented a programme on Talk Radio UK with Labour Party stalwarts
Derek DraperDerek William Draper is a former lobbyist, psychotherapist and former editor of the LabourList website...
and
Austin MitchellAustin Vernon Mitchell is the Labour Member of Parliament for Great Grimsby in England.-Education:Mitchell was educated at Woodbottom Council School, Bingley Grammar School, the University of Manchester and Nuffield College, Oxford....
. Hitchens recalls that he suggested the adversarial format. He was offered the chance to present a programme on his own by the station's then boss,
Kelvin MacKenzieKelvin Calder MacKenzie is an English media executive and former newspaper editor. He is best remembered for being editor of The Sun newspaper between 1981 and 1994, an era in which the paper was firmly established as Britain's best selling tabloid...
, but preferred and suggested an adversarial format with a left-wing co-presenter—believing this to be the best way of achieving broadcast fairness and balance.
In 2007, and again in 2009, Hitchens was shortlisted for the
Orwell PrizeThe Orwell Prize is regarded as the pre-eminent British prize for political writing. Every year, two prizes are awarded: one for a book, and the other for political journalism...
in Political Journalism.
Personal political history
Hitchens studied politics at the
University of YorkThe University of York , is an academic institution located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the campus university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, covering a wide range of subjects...
from 1970 to 1973. He was a
TrotskyistTrotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party...
member of the International Socialists from 1969 to 1975, and joined the British
Labour PartyThe Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been seen since 1920 as the principal party of the Left in England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where it has only recently begun to organise again...
in 1977, campaigning for
Ken Livingstone'sKenneth Robert Livingstone is an English politician; he has twice held the leading political role in London local government, firstly as Leader of the Greater London Council from 1981 until the council was abolished in 1986 by the government of Margaret Thatcher, and secondly as the first Mayor of...
unsuccessful candidature for
HampsteadHampstead & Highgate is a parliamentary constituency covering the northern half of the London Borough of Camden which includes the village of Hampstead and part of that of Highgate.-Boundaries:...
in the
1979 general electionThe United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 and is regarded as a pivotal point in 20th century British politics. The Conservatives under Margaret Thatcher defeated James Callaghan's incumbent Labour government in what would prove to be the first of four consecutive general...
. Hitchens left the Labour Party in 1983 when he became a political reporter at the
Daily Express, thinking it wrong to carry a party card when directly reporting politics.
He joined the
Conservative PartyThe Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservatives, the Conservative Party, or Tory Party is a conservative political party in the United Kingdom...
in 1997, but concluded that the party had no idea what it was facing and would never be able to challenge New Labour, and subsequently left in 2003. Hitchens challenged
Michael PortilloMichael Denzil Xavier Portillo is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party politician and Cabinet Minister...
for the Conservative Party nomination in the
Kensington and ChelseaKensington and Chelsea is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is one of the safest Conservative seats in the United Kingdom, and since its creation in 1997, has become a prestigious seat, with MP Alan Clark, the former Defence Secretary...
seat in 1999. Some critics suggest that his failure to secure the nomination explains much of his antipathy towards the Conservative Party, a claim Hitchens rejects on the basis of his having had no serious expectation of being chosen; he maintains that he put himself forward only to criticise Portillo and his plan to 'modernise' the Party.
He is now politically independent, and believes that no party he could support will be created until the Conservative Party disintegrates. He has dismissed the UK Independence Party (UKIP) as "A Dad's Army Party" with "a blazer-and-cravat feel to it which limits its appeal to the same sort of areas where the Tory Party still stumbles about in its prolonged death throes, the Southern English middle classes."
Public image
The GuardianThe Guardian is a British daily newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. Founded in 1821, it is unique among major British newspapers in being owned by a foundation .The Guardian Weekly, which circulates worldwide, provides a compact digest of four newspapers...
describes Hitchens as "the Mail on Sunday's fulminator-in-chief" and his columns as "molten Old Testament fury shot through with visceral wit". He has said of his reputation: "I know a lot of people consider me to be disreputable or foaming at the mouth, but you have to learn not to care, or at least not to mind. I don't like being called 'bonkers' and I think to some extent it demeans people who use phrases like that. But I take comfort from the fact that most totalitarian regimes tend to classify their opponents as mentally disordered."
Core beliefs
Politically, Hitchens could be classified as a
Moral and Social ConservativeTraditionalist conservatism, also known as "traditional conservatism," "traditionalism," and Burkean conservatism is a political philosophy which emphasizes the need for the principles of natural law and transcendent moral order, tradition and custom, hierarchy and "Gemeinschaft" , and localism and...
. His stance resembles the
paleoconservativePaleoconservatism is a term for an anti-communist and anti-imperialist right-wing political philosophy in the United States stressing tradition, civil society and anti-federalism, along with religious, regional, national and Western identity. Chilton Williamson, Jr...
tradition in the United States. Apart from the occasional condemnation of the UK's tax burden, and the scope and reach of its
Welfare StateThe Welfare State of the United Kingdom was prefigured in the William Beveridge Report in 1942, which identified five "Giant Evils" in society: squalor, ignorance, want, idleness and disease....
, he rarely comments on
fiscalFiscal conservatism is a political term used in North America to describe a fiscal policy that advocates a reduction in overall government spending. Fiscal conservatives often consider deficit and national debt reduction as well as balancing the federal budget of paramount importance...
matters. Hitchens is critical of
neoconservatismNeoconservatism is a political philosophy that emerged in the United States of America, and which supports using American economic and military power to bring liberalism, democracy, and human rights to other countries...
, arguing that a unwavering allegiance to the unfettered free market is no substitute for
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
morality, and that the
free marketA free market describes a market without economic intervention and regulation by government except to regulate against force or fraud. The terminology is used by economists and in popular culture. A free market requires protection of property rights, but no regulation, no subsidization, no single...
, pursued dogmatically, can often damage institutions which conservatives should value. Correspondingly, he has frequently criticised
ThatcherismThatcherism describes the ideology, political style and policies of the British Conservative politician Margaret Thatcher, who was leader of her party from 1975 to 1990...
for ignoring the value of institutions and traditions, and has said the left are not entirely wrong when they accuse the Thatcher government of having damaged British society.
In propounding his socially conservative views, Hitchens frequently criticises
political correctnessPolitical correctness is a term denoting language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social offense in gender, racial, cultural, handicap, and age-related usages...
, which he considers to be a manifestation of
Cultural MarxismCultural Marxism is a generic term referring to a loosely associated group of critical theorists who have been influenced by Marxist thought and who share an interest in analyzing the role of the media, art, theatre, film and other cultural institutions in a society. The phrase refers to any...
. He says it is important to acknowledge that the Left has been correct in its long opposition to
racismRacism is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race. In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment...
. He maintains that opponents of political correctness will fail unless they accept that it has some positive elements, and that it is attractive to so many because of its promotion of simple good manners. However he argues (in opposition to the Left) that genuine good manners, tolerance and decency are impossible, in the long term, without the foundation of traditional morality and religious faith.
On Morality and Religion
Hitchens, who is a confirmed and communicant member of the
Church of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communion's thirty-eight independent national and regional churches...
, is an advocate of moral virtues founded on religious (particularly Christian) faith. He argues that these have been undermined and eroded by
social liberalsSocial liberalism, a reformulation of 19th century liberalism, rests on the view that unrestrained capitalism is a hindrance to true freedom. Instead of the negative freedom of classical liberalism, social liberals offered positive freedom that would allow individuals to prosper with public...
, and by those he calls
cultural MarxistsCultural Marxism is a generic term referring to a loosely associated group of critical theorists who have been influenced by Marxist thought and who share an interest in analyzing the role of the media, art, theatre, film and other cultural institutions in a society. The phrase refers to any...
, since the 1960s—a theory he explores in his book
The Abolition of BritainThe Abolition of Britain is a book by Peter Hitchens, first published in the UK by Quartet Books in 1999 , and then in a revised edition the following year...
.
In support of this thesis, Hitchens cites, among other things, what he describes as serial attacks on the institution of marriage by the State. He identifies these attacks as the introduction of
no-fault divorceNo-fault divorce is a divorce in which the dissolution of a marriage requires neither a showing of wrong-doing of either party nor any evidentiary proceedings at all...
, the removal or redistribution of what were formerly the exclusive privileges of marriage (and the resultant decline in status of the matrimonial state), the abolition of the Christian Sunday and the growing economic and cultural pressure on wives and mothers to go out to work. He believes that without
faithFaith in Christianity, as in other Abrahamic religions, centers on a belief in God, a belief in the reality of a transcendent domain that God administers as his kingdom, and in the benevolence of God's will or plan for humankind....
and without strong families, the development of conscience is stunted, private life is diminished and the power of the state increased.
He believes that many of the measures which created the "
permissive societyThe permissive society is a label given to a society where social norms are becoming increasingly liberal. This usually accompanies a change in what is considered deviant. An extreme of permissiveness would be a society that has few moral codes beyond "do not harm others". Aspects that often change...
" were mistaken or excessive and need to be re-examined, and posits that
homosexualHomosexuality is the romantic or sexual attraction or behavior among members of the same sex, situationally or as an enduring disposition. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is considered to lie within the heterosexual-homosexual continuum of human sexuality, and refers to an individual’s...
relationships should not be granted
legal paritySame-sex marriage is a term used to describe a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Other terms used to describe this type of recognition include gay marriage or gender-neutral marriage.Same-sex marriage is a civil rights,...
with traditional marriage. Hitchens maintains that he bears no ill-will towards homosexual individuals, and rejects the term "
homophobiaHomophobia is defined as an "irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals", or individuals perceived to be homosexual; it is also defined as "unreasoning fear of or antipathy toward homosexuals and homosexuality", "fear of or contempt for lesbians and gay...
" in this context as an
epithetAn epithet is a descriptive word or phrase accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a person or thing, which has become a fixed formula...
which, he argues, is increasingly used to stifle legitimate debate on social policy. In February 2009, Hitchens stated that people are being "forced to say that we think homosexuality is a good thing, that homosexual couples are equal in all ways to heterosexual married couples". In his view, Britons are now "the subjects of some insane, sex-obsessed Stalinist state, compelled to wave our little rainbow flags as the 'Gay Pride' parade passes by".
Hitchens believes that abortion should be illegal at any stage of pregnancy.
Hitchens is an
AnglicanAnglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures...
, and he defends the use of the
Church of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communion's thirty-eight independent national and regional churches...
's 1662
Book of Common PrayerThe Book of Common Prayer is the common title of a number of prayer books of the Church of England and of other Anglican churches, used throughout the Anglican Communion. The first book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English Reformation following the break with...
and the Authorised (or
King JamesThe Authorized King James Version is an English translation of the Christian Bible begun in 1604 and completed in 1611 by the Church of England. Printed by the King's Printer, Robert Barker, the first edition included schedules unique to the Church of England; for example, a lectionary for morning...
) version of the Bible not only because he believes they are beautiful and memorable, but also because he feels that they are the indispensable foundations of Anglicanism's "powerful combination of scripture, tradition and reason". However he opposes the current liberal positions of the current Archbishop of Canterbury
Rowan WilliamsRowan Douglas Williams is an Anglican bishop and theologian. He is the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003....
, whom he dubs the "Ayatollah of Canterbury" in relation to the Archbishop's views on
IslamIslam Islam Islam ( al-’islām,
[There are ten pronunciations of Islam in English, differing in whether the first or second syllable has the stress, whether the s is or , and whether the a is pronounced as in father, as in cat, or (when the stress is on the i) as in the a of sofa...]
.
On Liberty, Security, and Crime
Hitchens advocates a society governed by
conscienceConscience is an ability or a faculty that distinguishes whether one's actions are right or wrong. It leads to feelings of remorse when a human does things that go against his/her moral values, and to feelings of rectitude or integrity when actions conform to moral values. It is also often viewed...
and the rule of law, which he sees as the best guarantee of
libertyLiberty is a concept of political philosophy and identifies the condition in which an individual has the right to act according to his or her own will....
. He believes that
capital punishmentCapital punishment or the death penalty, is the execution of a person by judicial process as a punishment for an offense. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences....
is a key element of a strong justice system.
He warns that the decline of
conscienceConscience is an ability or a faculty that distinguishes whether one's actions are right or wrong. It leads to feelings of remorse when a human does things that go against his/her moral values, and to feelings of rectitude or integrity when actions conform to moral values. It is also often viewed...
and morality will inevitably lead to a strong state. He is especially critical of the use of "
securitySecurity is the degree of protection against danger, loss, and criminals.Security has to be compared and contrasted with other related concepts: Safety, continuity, reliability...
" as a pretext for diluting and eroding individual liberty. He argues that increased "security" destroys freedom without necessarily increasing safety, and says that there is no contradiction between maintaining liberty and protecting the realm.
Hitchens is critical of moves towards authoritarian government and the erosion of
civil libertiesCivil liberties are rights in Freedom that protect an individual from the government of the nation in which they reside. Civil liberties set limits on government so that its members cannot abuse their power and interfere unduly with the lives of private citizens.Common civil liberties include the...
, whether they come from the Right or the Left of the political spectrum. Accordingly, he has been highly critical of the British government's desire for
identity cardsThe United Kingdom National Identity Card is a personal identification document and European Union travel document.The card requirement was established by the Identity Cards Act 2006....
, its attempts to abolish
jury trialA jury trial is a legal proceeding in which a jury either makes a decision or makes findings of fact which are then applied by a judge...
, to centralise the police, and its creation of a national law enforcement body in the form of the
Serious Organised Crime AgencyThe Serious Organised Crime Agency is a non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom government and a national law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom....
(SOCA). He describes these developments as facets of governmental desire for permanent, irreversible constitutional revolution, and an attack on
English libertyOn Liberty is a philosophical work by 19th century English philosopher John Stuart Mill, first published in 1859. To the Victorian readers of the time it was a radical work, advocating moral and economic freedom of individuals from the state....
in general. In his newspaper columns, Hitchens referred to
David BlunkettDavid Blunkett is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside since 1987. Blind since birth and from a poor family in one of Sheffield's most deprived districts, he rose to become Education Secretary in Tony Blair's first Cabinet from 1997 to 2001,...
, British
Home SecretaryThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security and order. As such it is responsible for the police, United Kingdom Borders Agency and MI5. It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs, counter-terrorism...
between 2001 and 2004, as "Minister of the Interior", on the grounds that the title, reminiscent of
police stateThe term police state describes a state in which the government exercises rigid and repressive controls over the social, economic and political life of the population...
s, better reflected Blunkett's policies than the traditional British title of "Home Secretary".
Hitchens is opposed to the relaxation of laws against the possession of
illegalThe illegal drug trade is a global black market consisting of the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of illegal controlled drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug control laws...
recreational drugsRecreational drug use is the use of psychoactive drugs for recreational purposes rather than for work, approved medical or spiritual purposes, although the distinction is not always clear ....
. He argues that the law's active disapproval of drug taking is an essential counterweight to the "pro-drug propaganda" of
popular culturePopular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture...
. He has said that attempts to combat drug use by restricting supply and persecuting drug dealers are invariably futile, unless possession and use are punished as well. He counters claims that the "
War on DrugsThe War on Drugs refers to the controversial prohibition campaign undertaken by the United States government, with the assistance of participating countries, intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade. This initiative includes a set of laws and policies that are intended to...
" has failed by suggesting that the state has made no serious efforts to reduce or eliminate illegal drug consumption for many years. Hitchens has said that the prevailing approach, known as "
Harm reductionResponsible drug use is a harm reduction strategy which argues that people can use drugs, with reduced or eliminated risk of negatively affecting other parts of their lives or those of others...
", is defeatist and counter-productive. He was among the earliest commentators to argue that
cannabisCannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa L., Cannabis indica Lam., and Cannabis ruderalis Janisch. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for medicinal purposes, and as a...
presents a major mental-health risk to users.
On Foreign Policy
Hitchens opposed the
KosovoThe NATO Bombing of Yugoslavia was NATO's military operation against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The strikes lasted from March 24, 1999 to June 11, 1999...
and
IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq, was led by the United States, backed by British forces and smaller contingents from Australia, Denmark, Poland and Spain. Four countries participated with troops during the initial invasion phase, which lasted from March 20 to May 1...
Wars on the grounds that neither was in the interests of either Britain or the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He has not, however, associated himself with the Left-dominated
anti-warThe term anti-war usually refers to the opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many activists...
campaigns, not least as he remains a strong supporter of the
State of IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
. He also opposes the British military presence in
AfghanistanThe Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a landlocked country in south central Asia. It is variously described as being located within Central Asia, South Asia, or the Middle East...
arguing that it is futile, foredoomed and has no achievable aim.
On the Europe, Hitchens argues that the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
should negotiate an amicable departure from the
European UnionThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 Member States, located primarily in Europe. Committed to regional integration, the EU was established by the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing European Economic Community...
, whose laws and traditions he regards as incompatible with the laws and liberties of England, and with the national independence of the United Kingdom as a whole. He also believes that the interests of the European Union are often different from—and in many cases hostile to—those of the UK. Devolution of governmental powers to
ScotlandThe Scotland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is the Act which established the devolved Scottish Parliament....
and
Wales in 1998This is about the Act that set up the Welsh Assembly. For the newer Government of Wales Act 2006, see that article.The Government of Wales Act, 1998 This is about the Act that set up the Welsh Assembly. For the newer Government of Wales Act 2006, see that article.The Government of Wales Act, 1998...
was, for Hitchens, not a step towards true independence for those countries, but rather part of an EU-inspired strategy to dissolve the UK into statelets and regions, as a preliminary step to its complete absorption into a European superstate. For the same reason, he has opposed attempts to divide England itself into regions.
Non-intervention in World War II
Hitchens views as inadvisable Britain's entry into
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and in particular the declaration of war made against
Nazi GermanyNazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany between 1933 and 1945, while it was led by Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Worker's Party . The name Third Reich refers to the state as the successor to the Holy Roman Empire of the Middle Ages and the German...
(after the
invasion of PolandThe Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II...
) which had, in his opinion, disastrous consequences for Britain. An analysis that Hitchens made of this issue in one of his columns was described by
Michael WhiteMichael White is an associate editor and former political editor of The Guardian. White was raised in Wadebridge, Cornwall. He was educated at Bodmin Grammar School and then studied for a BA in History at University College London...
of
The GuardianThe Guardian is a British daily newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. Founded in 1821, it is unique among major British newspapers in being owned by a foundation .The Guardian Weekly, which circulates worldwide, provides a compact digest of four newspapers...
as being "as melancholy a cry of pain about the modern world as I have recently encountered". Hitchens's non-interventionist stance is shared by American
paleoconservativePaleoconservatism is a term for an anti-communist and anti-imperialist right-wing political philosophy in the United States stressing tradition, civil society and anti-federalism, along with religious, regional, national and Western identity. Chilton Williamson, Jr...
Pat BuchananPatrick Joseph "Pat" Buchanan is an American conservative political commentator, author, syndicated columnist, politician and broadcaster. Buchanan was a senior advisor to American presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan, and was an original host on CNN's Crossfire. He sought the...
in his book
Churchill, Hitler and the Unnecessary WarChurchill, Hitler and the Unnecessary War: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World, is a book by Pat Buchanan. The book was released in May 2008.- Synopsis :...
.
On Northern Ireland
Hitchens condemned the 1998
Belfast AgreementThe Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement or the Good Friday Agreement , and occasionally as the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process. It was signed in Belfast on 10 April 1998 by the British and Irish governments and endorsed by...
as a surrender to the
Provisional IRAThe Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation which sought to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
and a violation of the rule of law. He believes that the best approach to solving
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
's problems would have been the full integration of Northern Ireland into the United Kingdom, arguing that creating a Northern Irish Parliament at
StormontThe Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which existed from 22 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
was mistaken because it impeded just that. He believes that the achievements of direct rule over Northern Ireland, not least in removing discrimination against Roman Catholics, have been greatly underestimated. He maintains that Northern Ireland is now only a provisional part of the UK since, under the terms of the agreement, it can be transferred to
Irish sovereigntyA united Ireland is the term used to refer to a sovereign state covering the whole of the island of Ireland. Presently, the island encompasses the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers the southern 26 counties of the island, and the United Kingdom, one...
by a single, irreversible referendum.
On Education
Hitchens condemns
comprehensive educationA comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. The term is commonly used in relation to the United Kingdom, where comprehensive schools were introduced in the late 1940s to the early 1970s. It corresponds broadly to the...
, the
PlowdenThe Plowden Report is the unofficial name for the 1967 report of the Central Advisory Council For Education into Primary education in England. The report, entitled Children and their Primary Schools reviewed Primary education in a wholesale fashion. The collation of the report took around 3 years...
reforms of primary schooling and modern child-centred teaching methods, seeing them as
egalitarianEgalitarianism has two distinct definitions in modern English. It is defined either as a political doctrine that holds that all people should be treated as equals and have the same political, economic, social, and civil rights or as a social philosophy advocating the removal of economic...
political projects with no educational justification—and many educational disadvantages. Hitchens asserts that comprehensive education has brought about a general dilution of education and of examination standards. He believes this has done grave damage to the national culture, and fears that lowered standards in technical, scientific and mathematical education, combined with poor teaching of English and the resulting decline of literacy, threaten to leave Britain lagging behind emerging economic powers such as
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
and
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
.
As a means of improving standards in the UK, Hitchens supports a return to the
grammar schoolA grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally schools teaching classical languages but more recently academically-oriented types of secondary school.The original purpose of...
system which has been gradually dismantled by successive British governments since the issuing of
Circular 10/65Circular 10/65 was a document issued by the Department of Education and Science requesting Local Education Authorities in England and Wales to begin converting their secondary schools to the Comprehensive System. For most of England and Wales, it marked the abolition of the old grammar schools...
by
Anthony CroslandCharles Anthony Raven Crosland , otherwise Tony Crosland or C.A.R. Crosland, was a British Labour Party politician and author, and an important socialist theorist. He served as Member of Parliament for South Gloucestershire and later for Great Grimsby...
in 1965.
As a supporter of
orthodoxThe word orthodox, from Greek orthodoxos "having the right opinion", from orthos + doxa , is typically used to mean adhering to the accepted or traditional and established faith, especially in religion.The term did not conventionally exist with any degree of formality The word orthodox, from Greek...
Christian morality, Hitchens opposes
sex educationSex education is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, contraception, and other aspects of human sexual behavior...
in schools. He alleges that the general introduction of sex education in schools has been accompanied by an increase in sexual activity among the young, with a resultant rise in
pregnanciesPregnancy is the carrying of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, inside the uterus of a female. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets. Human pregnancy is the most studied of all mammalian pregnancies. Obstetrics is the surgical field...
,
abortionAn abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo. An abortion can occur spontaneously due to complications during pregnancy or can be induced, in humans and other species...
s and instances of
sexually transmitted diseaseA sexually transmitted disease , also known as sexually transmitted infection or venereal disease , is an illness that has a significant probability of transmission between humans or animals by means of sexual contact, including vaginal intercourse, oral sex, and anal sex...
s—the very things that sex education is intended to prevent.
On the Labour Party
Hitchens described
Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom and the Head of Her Majesty's Government...
Tony Blair'sAnthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
constitutional reforms as a "slow-motion coup d'état". He is critical of
New LabourThe Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been seen since 1920 as the principal party of the Left in England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where it has only recently begun to organise again...
for what he describes as "attacks on the constitution" (and of the
previous Conservative governmentOn November 28 1990, British Conservative Party leader and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher resigned after serving as Prime Minister for over 11 years. She had been a quintessential leader and her policies had promoted a free market economy, privatised industries and public services and introduced...
for its perceived role in facilitating these changes through "rash and unconstitutional acts"). The huge expansion of the role of "special advisers", which Hitchens describes as "political commissars" in the civil service, was based, in his view, on similar but smaller-scale appointments by the Conservatives.
Hitchens contends that the most profound changes brought about by the Labour Party have been designed to concentrate power in the hands of the
executive}}In the study of political science the executive branch of government has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the democratic idea of the separation of powers .In many...
, to debauch
civil serviceThe term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
neutrality, and to turn Parliament into a mere tool of
Downing StreetDowning Street is the street in London, England, which for over two hundred years has contained the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the...
. In Hitchens' view, the most significant single action in this programme was the passing of Orders in Council allowing
Alastair CampbellAlastair John Campbell served as Director of Communications and Strategy for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2003...
and
Jonathan PowellJonathan Powell served as chief of staff to British Prime Minister Tony Blair from his election in 1997 until his resignation in 2007. The official Downing Street website described his job as having "direct responsibility for leading and co-ordinating operations across Number 10". Despite his low...
, both political appointees, to give orders to civil servants. It signalled, in his view, a general attempt to politicise Whitehall which has continued ever since. He claims to have detected a parallel effort to appropriate some of the trappings of monarchy and to diminish the Crown's significance and standing, which he sees as embryonic
presidentialismA presidential system is a system of government where an executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislature, to which it is not accountable and which cannot, in normal circumstances, dismiss it....
.
Hitchens has also often caricatured Blair as "Princess Tony". This is a reference to Blair's use of the expression "The People's Princess" to euologise
Diana, Princess of WalesDiana, Princess of Wales, was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. Their sons, Princes William and Harry, are second and third in line to the thrones of the United Kingdom and fifteen other Commonwealth Realms.A public figure from the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles, Diana...
after her death. Hitchens is also heavily critical of Blair's successor
Gordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party. Brown became Prime Minister in June 2007, after the resignation of Tony Blair and three days after becoming leader of the governing Labour Party...
, describing him as a "boring, dismal
MarxoidMarxism is the political philosophy and economic worldview based upon a materialist interpretation of history, a Marxist analysis of capitalism, a theory of social change, and an atheist view of human liberation derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; three primary aspects of...
", though he has criticised what he sees as a "prejudiced, shallow" attempt to destroy Brown by the media since he became Prime Minister.
On the Conservative Party
Hitchens is dismissive of the modern
British Conservative PartyThe Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservatives, the Conservative Party, or Tory Party is a conservative political party in the United Kingdom...
, frequently deriding the party's leadership as the "useless Tories". He has often been at odds with fellow conservatives, and argues that the Conservative Party has a consistent record of ill-considered parliamentary acts and policies that cannot be dismissed as accidents or mistakes. He cites as examples: the
reorganisation of local government in 1974The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, the
Police and Criminal Evidence Act of 1984The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 is an Act of Parliament which instituted a legislative framework for the powers of police officers in England and Wales to combat crime, as well as providing codes of practice for the exercise of those powers. Part VI of PACE required the Home Secretary...
, the introduction of the
GCSEThe General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 15–16 in secondary education in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland...
exam, the Criminal Justice Act of 1991, the negotiation and signing of the
Single European ActThe Single European Act was the first major revision of the 1957 Treaty of Rome. The Act set the European Community an objective of establishing a Common Market by 31 December 1992, and codified European Political Cooperation, the forerunner of the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy...
and the signing of the Maastricht Treaty, the severe reduction in defence spending at the end of the Cold War, the
privatisationThe privatisation of British Rail was set in train when the government enacted, on the 19th January 1993, the British Coal and British Rail Act 1993 . This enabled the relevant Secretary of State to issue directions to the relevant Board...
of the
UK's railwaysThe United Kingdom consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and previously consisted of Great Britain and the whole of Ireland. Rail transport systems developed independently on the two islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and most of the railway construction in the Republic of Ireland was...
, the Iraq War and the final abandonment of all attempts to re-introduce grammar schools (though Hitchens prefers the German system of selection to the Eleven Plus examination).
He is also critical of what he considers to be a continuing
idolatryIdolatry is usually defined as worship of any cult image, idea, or object, as opposed to the worship of a monotheistic God. It is considered a major sin in the Abrahamic religions whereas in religions where such activity is not considered a sin, the term "idolatry" itself is absent...
of
Margaret ThatcherMargaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She is the only woman to have held either post....
among many Conservative Party supporters. Thacther, in his view, weakened Britain's institutions and singularly failed to address moral or cultural questions.
Hitchens has expressed contempt for
David CameronDavid William Donald Cameron is the leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom. He has occupied both positions since December 2005....
, the current party leader, regarding him as a member of the "
liberal eliteIn the United States the term liberal elite is a political phrase used mostly by conservatives to describe affluent, politically left-leaning people...
" with little conception of the challenges facing modern Britain. He argues that the Conservatives have indiscriminately adopted the policies of their opponents over the last century out of an unprincipled desire for office at all costs, a process, he maintains, that has accelerated under Cameron's leadership.
In March 2007 Hitchens wrote and presented a television programme for
Channel 4Channel 4 is a UK public-service television broadcaster which began working on November 2, 1982. Although commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station owned now and operated by the Channel Four Television...
,
Toff at the Top, in which he argued this view. Hitchens views Cameron's social, educational, and foreign policies as being indistinguishable from those of New Labour. Cameron, having declined previous interview requests from Hitchens, also declined to participate in the broadcast. Subsequent to the programme's airing the Conservative leader described Hitchens as "a maniac" at a public meeting in
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
.
Hitchens has called for the establishment of a new
political partyA political party is a political organization that seeks to attain and maintain political power within government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns...
in the UK, representing the traditionalist conservative strand of opinion that he espouses, and which would, in his own words, be "neither bigoted nor politically correct". He believes that such a movement cannot come into being until the Conservative Party collapses, arguing that many millions of Britons habitually vote for this and other political parties out of tribal loyalty, from which they cannot be detached by reasoned argument.
On Evolution
Hitchens sees
evolutionIn biology, evolution is change in the genetic material of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. Though changes produced in any one generation are normally small, differences accumulate with each generation and can, over time, cause substantial changes in the population, a...
as a speculative and unfalsifiable theory which cannot be observed in progress. He reasons that if it took place in the past it did so before there were any human witnesses, and that if it is taking place now it is operating so slowly that our civilisation is likely to perish long before it has been able to record it in action.
He maintains that supporters of
DarwinismDarwinism is a term used for various movements or concepts related to ideas of transmutation of species or evolution, including ideas with no connection to the work of Charles Darwin. The meaning of Darwinism has changed over time, and varies depending on who is using the term...
often mistake adaptation of existing species for a far more ambitious process required for evolution. He therefore contends that the theory of evolution is wholly unlike other scientific
theoriesThe term theory has two broad sets of meanings, one used in the empirical sciences and the other used in philosophy, mathematics, logic, and across other fields in the humanities. There is considerable difference and even dispute across academic disciplines as to the proper usages of the term...
with which it is often compared. He regularly likens belief in evolution to
religiousA religion is a system of human thought which usually includes a set of narratives, symbols, beliefs and practices that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power, deity or deities, or ultimate truth...
faith, on the basis that religious claims also cannot be tested and similarly have their origins not in certain knowledge, but rather in the preferences of the believer. In support of his scepticism he cites
Karl Popper'sSir Karl Raimund Popper, CH, FRS, FBA was an Austrian and British philosopher and a professor at the London School of Economics. He is considered one of the most influential philosophers of science of the 20th century, and also wrote extensively on social and political philosophy...
remarks on the scientific status of evolution, in which Popper confesses to being disturbed by the apparent tautology of the theory of natural selection.
Hitchens argues that neither he nor anyone else knows how life began or how the realm of nature assumed its present form. He says he is willing to accept the possibility that evolutionists may be right, and asks that they extend the same courtesy to
theistsTheism in the broadest sense is the belief in at least one deity. In a more specific sense, theism refers to a particular doctrine concerning the nature of God and his relationship to the universe. Theism, in this specific sense, conceives of God as personal and active in the governance and...
. He agrees with evolutionary biologist
Richard DawkinsClinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL is a British ethologist, zoologist, Neo-Darwinian evolutionary biologist and theorist and a popular science author....
that a belief in the truth of evolutionary theory, properly understood, is incompatible with a theist position. He maintains that the question remains a matter of choice, and that intelligent people should be free to decide for themselves which explanation they prefer. He does not criticise evolutionary theory, believing it to be an ingenious possible explanation for the origins of species, but one which he himself prefers not to embrace.
Like many other sceptics on this subject, Hitchens does not subscribe to a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis. In a review of his brother's work
God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, he stated that, "many decades have passed since I fancied the story of
Adam and EveAdam and Eve were, according to the Book of Genesis of the Bible, the first man and woman created by God...
was literal truth, if I ever did."
On Poverty and Wealth Distribution
Hitchens believes there to be a correlation between adherence to strong ethical standards, including conscientious labour, deferred gratification, self-denial and thrift, and middle class status (and the material well-being it generally brings). He has stated that "The middle classes are not good because they are better off. They are better off because they are good." He rejects the belief that any
povertyPoverty is the condition of lacking basic human needs such as nutrition, clean water, health care, clothing, and shelter because of the inability to afford them. This is also referred to as absolute poverty or destitution...
which exists in Britain is anything other than relative. "The British 'poor' of today do not starve, do not freeze, do not go without medical treatment—as truly poor people across the world undoubtedly still do." He argues that the claim that absolute
povertyPoverty is the condition of lacking basic human needs such as nutrition, clean water, health care, clothing, and shelter because of the inability to afford them. This is also referred to as absolute poverty or destitution...
continues to exist in Britain is "a lie the Left uses to destroy the middle class".
On Transport
Hitchens has criticised the
Privatisation of British RailThe privatisation of British Rail was set in train when the government enacted, on the 19th January 1993, the British Coal and British Rail Act 1993 . This enabled the relevant Secretary of State to issue directions to the relevant Board...
in the 1990s, and mocks
ConservativesThe Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservatives, the Conservative Party, or Tory Party is a conservative political party in the United Kingdom...
for their belief that road transport, heavily state subsidised, is in some way more conservative than railways. He has also bemoaned the
large-scale reductionsThe Beeching Axe is an informal name for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard Beeching...
made to Britain's rail infrastructure in the 1960s, and subsequent increased focus on the motor car as the central plank of transport policy.
Publications
Hitchens is the author of
The Abolition of BritainThe Abolition of Britain is a book by Peter Hitchens, first published in the UK by Quartet Books in 1999 , and then in a revised edition the following year...
(1999, ISBN 0-7043-8140-0) and
A Brief History of Crime (2003, ISBN 1-84354-148-3), both critical of changes in British society since the 1960s. A compendium of his
Daily Express columns was published under the title
Monday Morning BluesMonday Morning Blues by the conservative journalist Peter Hitchens is a collection of articles reprinted from the Daily Express, which were originally published during the mid to late 1990s. Topics range from arguments for the death penalty and laments for the decline of the BBC among other...
in 2000.
An updated edition of
A Brief History of Crime (2003 ISBN 1-84354-148-3), re-titled
The Abolition of Liberty: The Decline of Order and Justice in England (ISBN 1-84354-149-1) and featuring a new chapter on
identity cardsThe United Kingdom National Identity Card is a personal identification document and European Union travel document.The card requirement was established by the Identity Cards Act 2006....
, was published in April 2004.
The Broken Compass: How British Politics Lost its Way (Continuum ISBN 1-84706-405-1), was published in May 2009, and
The Rage Against God: Why Faith is the Foundation of Civilisation (Continuum ISBN 1-44110-572-7), is due for publication in March 2010.
Relationship with elder brother Christopher
Peter Hitchens' elder brother
ChristopherChristopher Eric Hitchens is an English-American author, journalist, and literary critic. He has been a columnist at Vanity Fair, The Atlantic, World Affairs, The Nation, Slate, Free Inquiry, and a variety of other media outlets...
is also a prominent journalist, author and critic. Christopher is an anti-theist whose views on most issues are to the left of Peter's. Christopher, however, has been a strong defender of the intervention in Iraq, asserting that it is an inherently moral endeavor. Peter has described it as a 'left-wing war' motivated by liberal idealism, whereas Christopher views it as a radical enterprise, and not a conservative
imperialistImperialism, as defined by the dictionary of human geography, is “the creation and maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination.” Imperialism, in many ways, is described...
one.
Christopher has said that "The real difference between Peter and myself is the belief in the
supernaturalThe term supernatural or supranatural pertains to an order of existence beyond the scientifically visible universe. Religious miracles are typically supernatural claims, as are spells and curses, divination, the belief that there is an afterlife for the dead, and innumerable others...
. I'm a
materialistThe philosophy of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance. As a theory, materialism is a form of physicalism and belongs to the...
and he attributes his presence here to a divine plan. I can't stand anyone who believes in
GodGod is a deity in theistic and deistic religions and other belief systems, representing either the sole deity in monotheism, or a principal deity in polytheism....
, who invokes the divinity or who is a person of faith."
The brothers were estranged for several years, following a 2001 article in
The SpectatorThe Spectator is a weekly Britishmagazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by the Barclay brothers, who also own The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
in which Peter alleged his brother had said he "didn't care if the
Red ArmyThe Red Army The Red Army The Red Army was the Soviet government’s revolutionary militia beginning in the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the USSR. Since 1946, after the Second World War, it was called the Soviet Army.The 'Red...
watered its horses at
HendonHendon is a London suburb situated north west of Charing Cross.-History:Hendon was historically a civil parish in the county of Middlesex. The manor is described in Domesday , but the name, 'Hendun' meaning 'at the highest hill', is earlier...
", which Christopher said was used "in the reactionary press in the US" to imply that he was a "
communist sympathiserThe term fellow traveler 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...
". However, after the birth of Peter's third child, Christopher expressed a willingness to reconcile and to meet his new nephew. Shortly thereafter the brothers gave several interviews together in which they said their personal disagreements had been resolved. Christopher clarified this in an interview the following year: "There is no longer any official
froideur", he says of their relationship. "But there's no official — what's the word? —
chaleur, either." Peter's recent review of Christopher's book
God Is Not GreatGod Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything is a book-length critique of religion by author and journalist Christopher Hitchens...
: How Religion Poisons Everything led to public argument between the brothers but not to any renewed estrangement. On 21 June 2007, both Hitchens brothers appeared on
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
TV's
Question TimeQuestion Time is a topical debate television programme in the United Kingdom, based on Any Questions?. The show typically features politicians from at least the three major political parties as well as other public figures who answer questions put to them by the audience.It is usually recorded...
, where they clashed over the intervention in
AfghanistanThe Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a landlocked country in south central Asia. It is variously described as being located within Central Asia, South Asia, or the Middle East...
, among other issues.
In April 2008, the brothers debated before a large audience at the
Fountain Street ChurchFountain Street Church is perhaps unique in the United States as being both liberal and non-denominational. This arose from its unusual history as an ever more liberal Baptist Church, responding to the ascendency of liberal Christianity in the late 19th century, in a consistently conservative...
in
Grand Rapids, MichiganGrand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River and is approximately 30 miles from Lake Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 197,800, making it the 114th largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Kent County,...
. The debate was divided into two parts, dealing with the
invasion of IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq, was led by the United States, backed by British forces and smaller contingents from Australia, Denmark, Poland and Spain. Four countries participated with troops during the initial invasion phase, which lasted from March 20 to May 1...
and the
existence of GodArguments for and against the existence of God have been proposed by scientists, philosophers, theologians, and others. In philosophical terminology, "existence-of-God" arguments concern schools of thought on the epistemology of the ontology of God....
respectively. Peter Hitchens said both before and during the debate that it would be the last time he would participate in such an event with his brother.
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