[Russell]

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This Saturday, December 15[SUP]th[/SUP] will mark the first anniversary of the death of Christopher Hitchens. Sadly, Hitchens body lost its fight with esophageal cancer after a nearly two-year long battle with the disease.



As a rationalist, I won’t become too maudlin or remorseful. However, I do miss his optimism; wit and ability to obliterate any of the numerous faithful who attempted to challenge him in debate and who he'd tear to pieces with his knowledge, word choice and ideas. Sometimes he did this with half his brain tied behind his back after knocking back multiple glasses of whiskey before he’d take the podium and take down his opponent.


In this hectic and stressful world of ours it is sometimes too easy to forget both simple and great men. Sometimes without even realizing it we dim the light of memory as the years pass and as we recall less. However, I believe Christopher Hitchens is one of those seminal intellectuals who will live on for generations. This, because of his intellect, his books and articles and the numerous videos that will keep his memory and ideas alive. Hitchens' brilliance showed both in his passion and compassion for good ideas and truth versus the tyrannical lies and self-deception of superstition, religion and faith.


His voice will be circling in my head until I follow him into the nothingness void of non-existence. Until that day, if I maintain the capacity to do so, I will recall him fondly.


I think we should all acknowledge the huge debt which the non-theist movement owes to him. We stand on the shoulders of a true giant. So not only do we owe a debt, but we must also carry on in his memory for the sake of rationality, humanism and secularism to ensure each holds a firm place in our philosophy, in our politics and in our total human experience

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Paleolibrarian: One Year Later: Remembering Christopher Hitchens