Oh, Peter Hitchens, you silly goose. I do intensely dislike the man, he seems to be a sort of British equivalent to Ann Coulter. Fortunately he hasn't developed the kind of following that she has and there are few voices left in government, or even in parliament, of his particular "Go back to the fifties!" type in Britain (unlike in the US, where they routinely get voted President).
His rant is deeply idiotic, and of course rests on the rather hefty assumption that anyone who acts unethically is an atheist, which he then backs up with, well, nothing, really. Not to mention that "Morality is what you do when people are watching" is a rather troubling religious meme that surfaces again and again and seems to suggest that humans are only capable of restraining themselves from utter decadence and acts of hate if they are worried about getting caught, and only capable of acts of kindness or mercy if they feel they are to be rewarded, or at least applauded, for it. People who make this argument then claim moral superiority, which is an odd thing to do when you've just suggested you are a serial killer who is only being stopped from your murderous ways by threat of eternal punishment, but there you are. I don't for a second believe that this is actually true of any of the people who claim this , but it is the natural consequence of the argument that ethics and religion are completely inseperable.
And is he really Christopher Hitchens brother? I bet there are some uncomfortable moments at family reunions between those two. Or perhaps some blazing rows.
