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Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Doesn't need to run for sheriff

Hitchens, Matthew Chapman,
Richard Dawkins, and Carol Blue
(Hitchens's wife)
While I was attending a mini high school class reunion two weekends ago at Lake Tahoe, Christopher Hitchens was in Houston receiving the Freethinker of the Year Award at the annual convention of the Triple A (the Atheist Alliance of America). In "A Voice, Still Vibrant, Reflects on Mortality," by Charles McGrath, published October 9 in The New York Times, Hitchens is quoted as saying
I’m not sure [atheists] need to be honored. We don’t need positive reinforcement. On the other hand, we do need to stick up for ourselves, especially in a place like Texas, where they have laws, I think, that if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ you can’t run for sheriff.
    The word "mortality" in McGrath's title refers to the fact that Hitchens discovered in June 2010 that he had Stage 4 esophageal cancer. About that he wrote in September 2010, "In whatever kind of a 'race' life may be, I have very abruptly become a finalist."

2 comments:

  1. The Hitchens quote is very close to the truth. Here's a snippet from Article 1, Section 4 of the Texas state constitution:

    No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being.

    What prevents a Texas atheist from challenging this section in court? Fear of getting lynched?

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  2. Ken, thanks for the fact-checking, including a quotation that I can use for today's post on Mitt Romney. Don't look for it yet; as of this moment I've only drafted it in my mind.

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