Jon Stewart's TKO of Christopher Hitchens !! Transcript & Video (Post #4)

[Laura PourMeADrink]

http://wonkette.com/

Hitch v. Stewart: Stewart, TKO
The thing about Christopher Hitchens is that no matter how wrong or drunk he is, he always sounds like he's making sense. It's an impenetrable articulateness that makes him a compelling talking head even when he's talking out of his ass. He doesn't often fail to get the last word, but Jon Stewart just beat him to it. After a sublimely cordial conversation that began with Stewart asking Hitchens to explain "why I am wrong about Iraq," Hitchens bristled to Stewart's suggestion that the war was just "the British and Churchillian method that we'll just go into the Middle East and we'll redraw the map."

Stewart: The people who say we shouldn't fight in Iraq aren't saying it's our fault. . . That is the conflation that is the most disturbing. . .
Hitch: Don't you hear people saying. . .
Stewart: You hear people saying a lot of stupid . . . But there are reasonable disagreements in this country about the way this war has been conducted, that has nothing to do with people believing we should cut and run from the terrorists, or we should show weakness in the face of terrorism, or that we believe that we have in some way brought this upon ourselves. . .
Hitch:
Stewart: They believe that this war is being conducted without transparency, without credibility, and without competence...
Hitch: I'm sorry, sunshine... I just watched you ridicule the president for saying he wouldn't give. . .
Stewart: No, you misunderstood why. . . . That's not why I ridiculed the president. He refuses to answer questions from adults as though we were adults and falls back upon platitudes and phrases and talking points that does a disservice to the goals that he himself shares with the very people needs to convince.



Hitch: You want me to believe you're really secretly on the side of the Bush administration. . .
Stewart: I secretly need to believe he's on my side. He's too important and powerful a man not to be.

Hitch:

Have never seen Hitch rattled like this. Really. Stirring. Go, Jon. Oh, and ass-fucking, boobies, gin, etc.

[GR]

1. That Was The Strongest I've Ever Seen Jon...He's Quite Brilliant

and so quick that it's difficult for anyone to beat him in a debate. Especially when the facts are on his side.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

5. I saw him (Jon) give a speech in NYC one time, he is quite

erudite. In public, he is also very foul mouthed. Not that I care, just found it interesting. C-Span had to issue a warning before airing the speech.

I do think, however, that he is becoming a little like Chris Mathews - by not letting his guests get their thoughts out - he is talking over them. Otherwise he is amazingly funny and brilliant.

After his emmy, there was a time where he became quite neutral. He said that he hadn't realized how wide his audience was. I am so glad he is speaking his opinion now. He is our strongest advocate out there !

[magnolia]

12. That doesn't make sense.

Isn't the Emmy a reward that says "Hey, your doing a great job, keep it up"? So...why change??? It's the losers who have to re-think what they are doing.

[Roland99]

2. Crooks and Liars has the video

Jon could have ripped into Hitchens on Zarqawi but let that slide.

Otherwise, yeah, the "platitudes and phrases" line was awesome!

[Kolesar]

3. Best TDSw/JS I can remember

Jon's disseration deconstructing Bush speech was awesome. Then the show did that music-video with Bush repeat-repeat-repeating the same lame words as he morphed his problem into his message.

What's "Crooks and Liars"?

[Roland99]

4. Here ya go. Enjoy!

http://www.crooksandliars.com/

[Kolesar]

9. It's not polite to point, Jon

Jon was a wee bit pumped up last night. Thanks for the link:)

[Toots]

13. Not to mention the quip of Bush* stating what his job was

"It is my job to repeat things over and over until the 'truth' gets out, you know to propel the propaganda"

[Old Vet]

6. Jon lost his mind last night, He was in rare form..........

When hes on a roll look out,

[Agnomen]

7. The knock-out blow was

"you want me to plug your book or not"? Hilarious.

[Brotherjohn]

8. Hitchens sounds as though he's intelligent, but he's a moron.

People saying we shouldn't have gone into Iraq and/or should get out is NOT AT ALL the same as "showing weakness in the face of terrorism" or "not taking the fight to the terrorists". They're saying that Iraq was the WRONG PLACE and the WRONG WAY to "take the fight to the terrorists".

Saying us staying (or even going there in the first place) would only make terrorism worse is NOT AT ALL the same as saying "terrorism is our fault" or "terrorism is caused by our mistreatment of terrorists". It's simply saying that our actions and reactions, when misguided, can (greatly)aggravate the problem.

That's just simple common sense to me, which Hitchens appears to lack in spades.

Did Hitchens' momma never tell him not to stir a hornet's nest?

[gasperc]

10. personally i'd whack Hitchens with a baseball bat

but Jon did good very good

[SCDem]

11. Do you know where I can get a whole transcript of the show?

And does the Daily SHow have DVD of past seasons out?

[Laura PourMeADrink]

14. Do you get this line ???

The people who say we shouldn't fight in Iraq aren't saying it's our fault

[SheepyMcSheepster]

16. what i took it to mean is

that everyone who is critical of the way the situation/war is being handled does not believe that terrorism in general is caused entirely by our campaigns against terrorism.

the right likes to argue that everyone who has a problem with bush admin and their handling of iraq also believes that all terrorism is our fault and we should just not try to offend anyone and make nicey nicey. jon tried to counter that argument/strawman.

[xxqqqzme]

15. they come on the show thinking

Jon is a lightweight - comic - it is part of his charm, they think they can get away w/ whatever schtick they're peddling. Jon is disarmingly charming and they don't think he will use that club propped up against the desk.

After lott, hearing hitchens was going 2 B on, I was ready 2 turn it off. I'm glad I didn't. Jon has a mind like a steel trap. hitchens never had a chance even though he thought he had the upper hand.

[Greenpeach]

17. Sometimes, A-holes with a British accent

can doublespeak, sideswipe and con people who are slightly intimidated by the teddibly, teddibly literate "sounding" hogwash that is coming out of their butts. Don't get me wrong I love the language and usually, the English accent. But the caricature is "Lord Bottomly" who sputters and stutters, has an overbite and repeats "Jolly good, jolly good, old man...Harumph, harumph." and no one ever understands what he is saying.

Hutchins doesn't have a speech impediment but he does overlap and jump around his non-point, with what he thinks is flair but what, in fact is the grandiose rambling of a complete phony. Babbling with a British accent is still babbling.

He was had last night, royally! Jon Stewart is brilliant and my hero!

[Catrina]

18. So true!!

I never thought he was brilliant ~ especially after I read his 'critique' of Fahrenheit 9/11. It was so bad, so wrong on almost every point, I thought I saw a different movie, or I was reading a piece of garbage by Ann Coulter.

My favorite comeback from Jon to Hitch (who probably thought this was a brilliant expose of Jon) was this one:

Hitch: You want me to believe you're really secretly on the side of the Bush administration. . .

Stewart: I secretly need to believe he's on my side. He's too important and powerful a man not to be.

:rofl: :rofl:

[LondonReign2]

19. Ah Crap!

I turned off TDS when I saw that faux intellectual scum bucket Hitchens was going to be on.

Shoulda had more faith in Jon.