Customer Reviews

Charlie Rose - Bill Maher / Christopher Hitchens (May 4, 2007)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a DVD that every thoughful person should own. I have seen it three

times. It was propitious pairing Maher and Hitchens in the same program. I

enjoyed Bill Maher for years on non-cable TV. I bought the DVD and Hitchen's

book forthwith. Charlie talked over Hitchens a bit during the interview, but

the book was one of the best non-fiction books that I've read. As an English

major, I don't give many 5 stars. M.MacLeod, M.D.

This is a very thought-provoking discussion of the current problems with U.S. policy in Iraq. Bill Maher first makes his case that Bush has not only made decisions about going to war with Iraq based on Bush's personal faith (rather than knowledge based on facts), Maher comments about the issues surrounding Bush's ignorance of historical Suni and Shia politics. Maher convincingly states that an example of the trouble with Bush is that he is so stubborn and relies more heavily on the policy advice of graduates from Messiah College or Pat Robertson Law School rather than expertise about Mid-East policy from those American officials who had traveled to the Mid-East prior to the Iraq war. He calls the Iraq war "too far gone."

There is comfort in Maher's relating comments of British politicians' reaction to Dubya currently being in office - they say [shrugging] "look, we've seen terrible leaders come and go in our long history, we even had the Sheriff of Nottingham.?

I know some of Hitchens writing, and he is far better at writing than at speaking. What's interesting is how humorless he is. Being humorless always makes a person a bit boring. The conversation centers at first in the war in Iraq. An initial supporter he explains his present disappointment, foreseeing that the U.S. is racing to defeat. He does provide some, for me, new information on the situation within Iraq. He is a champion of the Kurds of the North and claims that they have been faithful U.S. allies, and deserve not to be betrayed again as they have been in the past. I sense he is right here. However he may well have underestimated U.S. staying power.

In the second part of his presentation he discusses 'religion' and his conviction that it is responsible for much of the evil in the world. He points out how dangerous 'true - believers' are and says they have become menacing. He does not however take the trouble to distinguish between different religions, and between the people and groups within each religion. Radical Islamism is I would suggest what he is really getting at here. And it is hard to quarrel with the idea that it is threatening the world with disaster. I would too second the notion that 'fundamentalism' of any kind does not add to human wisdom and goodness. Yet had he looked carefully within the Jewish tradition he would have found a faith which works to enhance the well- being of humanity and the dignity of Man, to serve God by making it a better world.

Missing the distinction between the faiths means wrongly accusing innocent and even virtous religion people.

Hitchens in the camp of those who reject a personal God. It is his decision and his right. But many of us feel, and even know otherwise, sense our life and world given meaning because G-d is in it.