Christopher Hitchens On 'The Daily Show': Author Talks 'Hitch-22,' Life As An Idealist In The 60's (VIDEO)

Christopher Hitchens On 'The Daily Show': Author Talks 'Hitch-22,' Life As An Idealist In The 60's (VIDEO)

Christopher Hitchens spoke to Jon Stewart last night on "The Daily Show" about his new memoir, "Hitch-22." The controversial journalist, famous for his books that take aim at figures like Mother Theresa, has turned inward to recount his own life -- "finally, someone is going to take this bastard down," said Stewart.

Hitchens spoke dryly and with a deadpan humor about his idealistic youth in the 60's, when he interacted with American Rhodes scholars like Bill Clinton (who didn't inhale, but did enjoy pot brownies and cookies, he said with a smirk). Ultimately, he moved away from his idealism, and told Jon that he now feels sorry for many of the young people he works with as a teacher. "What are they going to do? They're going to say 'I'm a global warming activist.' It's not quite the same." Hitchens finished the interview on a somewhat sad, cynical note. He quoted Oscar Wilde: "A map of the world that doesn't include Utopia isn't worth looking at" -- then said, "I used to think that was a beautiful statement. I don't think that at all anymore."

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