Peter Hitchens: What going to jail taught me about Britain | SpectatorTV

[@Hereford1642]

Hitchens has experienced prison in the same way that 'I'm a Celebrity' contestants have experienced being lost in a jungle.

[@happystarhappystar1477]

What would you prefer to hear him say?

[@bernardedwards8461]

@Hereford1642 You hit the nail right on the head! Most people are duped into thinking it's real jungle.

[@Hereford1642]

@@happystarhappystar1477 That he has no experience whatsoever of prison and can only pontificate from his position as a comfortable upper middle class commentator who has never broken sweat in his life.

[@simonlevett4776]

Superb response.@@happystarhappystar1477

[@simonlevett4776]

What have you ever achieved in your life then ?@@Hereford1642

[@keithrobert5117]

The only problem with prisons is that the political class are not in them.

[@jelkel25]

And their "owners".

[@phillipecook3227]

What does that mean?

[@lordcharfield]

@@phillipecook3227You know exactly what it means, but like most of the population, you have chosen to stick your fingers in your ears!

[@lordcharfield]

@@jelkel25Exactly!

[@lordcharfield]

I totally agree, and as @jelkel25 said, “and their owners”!

[@noahschmartz2354]

i love the humility when he says, 'im well aware that the way i speak can be annoying to people'. Fan for life now.

[@Scaleyback317]

For others it may well be a case of what he thinks can be annoying to people. Having said that I suspect he is right with his views on drugs and I know he's right on the use of the word rehabilitation.

[@e-curb]

Why is his voice annoying?

[@Scaleyback317]

@@e-curb Ask him, he brought the subject up.

[@skunkworksinc.]

self awareness, great, he knows he is not an ape... but he still one of the most annoying muppets to grace our soils....

[@shaun5344]

In my younger days I got into trouble and ended up in prison. I could go into how I was from a broken family as well as being very poor but ultimately I take responsibility for my own actions. I'm 55 now and have been out of trouble for over 30 years. It was refreshing to hear Peter talk as he did as the thing that annoys me the most when I hear the general public talk of prison is how easy it is. Like a holiday camp sometimes comes up. You must remember being an ex-con does not stop when your sentence is over it stays with you all your life especially when applying for jobs, meeting a potential partner, etc. Personally I haven't seen the programme however hearing Peter talk tells me it was as real as possibly can be. Well done to all involved.

[@hmq9052]

What did you do? You might have forgiven yourself, but as a tax payer it's actually me who gets to decide. Since I paid your board and lodging.

[@shaun5344]

@@hmq9052 firstly, what I did has nothing to do with a troll like you. Secondly, I never said I have forgiven myself and I certainly couldn't give a toss whether you forgive me or not.

[@hmq9052]

@@shaun5344 I'm not a troll. I'm an interested party. I have invested in your rehabilitation. Although I'm starting to wonder if it was money wasted. Come on. What did you do?

[@vladivanov5500]

@@hmq9052 Didn't pay his taxes.

[@hmq9052]

@@vladivanov5500 You think? I reckon it's something violent

[@JosephStealin]

It made Peter feel down cast, he is normally a total ray of sunshine 😂

[@IainFrame]

I love his perpetual effervescence 😂

[@IainFrame]

@@domingodesantaclara1130 Yeah the sex would be just like old times 😂😂

[@Dave5400]

Are we talking about the same person? He is normally the most defeatist person on the planet.

[@IainFrame]

@@Dave5400 Sarcasm mate

[@latinaalma1947]

He does seem to in this interview have a depressed affect....

[@sillygoose9070]

Acting in a simulation is nothing like prison. The constant tension, threat of violence, helplessness, overcrowding, never a single moment of solitude or quiet.

[@stirlingmoss9637]

Well said

[@anthonybartlett6924]

prison is a place of mind numbing boredom, allied to petty rules designed to break your spirit. other than that what you say is correct. had a mate in exeter in the early 80's he stated over the xmas period there was more coke consumed than sugar by convicted prisioners..

[@thebillryan]

@@11235but That's a massive component of the terror of prison. Not knowing when you will leave or be allowed to leave or learning to mentally endure the seemingly endless days. This was an utterly pointless exercise as you can not recreated the psychological conditions that real life prison would instill in someone.

[@columbmurray]

Like military simulations , nothing like the reality military life is not a game.

[@stephenwalton2633]

Sounds just like working offshore in the North Sea.

[@incurableromantic4006]

I really admire Hitchins for being willing to stand consistently for things that are unfashionable but true. I've been in that position he describes of being the lone voice in a room full of people saying things you don't agree with, and it takes courage to be the single voice of dissent.

[@jackrainbow560]

yes, and here you are, a lone man with the courage to dissent whining - WHINING! - on You Tube.

[@davidphilips5543]

Absolutely.

[@hmq9052]

Mate, he believes in God. Which is very obviously untrue. What are you drinking?

[@stuartbellwithvintage2stro375]

The Big Bang is exponentially more untrue than the existence of god.

[@Billy1690-ws8jz]

@@hmq9052 you reckon

[@macclift9956]

When that prisoner stormed out, the look on Peter Hitchens' face was priceless! My first good belly laugh in a long while. He really is lovely!

[@planetclay]

my brother was a 4-time felon before he passed away....eventually he grew weary of looking at the world from inside a cell but i don't think his character ever changed....his spirit and body were beaten down, inevitably, i believe more due to the drugs than to prison, but for whatever reason, he gave up trying. on this i absolutely agree with Peter.

[@lumpyfishgravy]

There is line from Carlito's Way with the same sentiment. Some people DO change, though. I've seen it.

[@mitar6206]

To be honest, I only heard the first couple of minutes. But any experiment done in front of cameras and edited is not real or gives a true indication of anything. If for any reason Hitchens would find himself in prison with real hard core convicts then I would be more than interested to hear about it.

[@RyanJJ32]

Yeah, good point, PH does allude to that but in truth, only an ex-con can really let you know what it's like with the constant threat of violence, likely extortion and knowledge you have a LONG stretch ahead

[@PaulGappyNorris]

Yawn

[@TheReubstar]

Agree with Hitchens. We need to reform prisons.

[@vivo-audio]

Fake prisons or real ones?

[@skunkworksinc.]

profound lol... we also need to end world hunger... put on your slippers and go to bed...

[@juanpablojones]

Sure. Thank God we've got top crank Peter Hitchens to help us see that.😅

[@toddgardner2826]

He didn't experience prison, he had a themed bed and breakfast.

[@annmorgan5130]

I like Peter Hitchens. He talks a great deal of sense

[@_Stroda]

He also talks a lot of nonsense. Arguably more than he does sense. Does free will exist? Yep. But is addiction a myth? Nope. Is marijuana inherently a 'hard drug'? Nope. He says sensible things from time to time but, whether deliberate or not, he comes across to me as something of a contrarian, and his contrarian views are often silly, impractical and contradictory to things he otherwise claims to believe.

[@quentinkumba6746]

In the 5-factor model of personality he has a high levels of neuroticism and low levels of agreeability. From an attachment perspective he has a self-preoccupied ‘C’ type strategy. Either way what it means is that he alternates between an exaggerated sense of victimhood and then an exaggerated sense of anger about that, he will also have a tendency to fail to recognise the contribution he makes to personal interactions that end negatively and he will have a sense that his own point of view is straightforwardly factual and true and he will have difficulty understanding that other people have perspectives that differ from his own. He will therefore assume that people who disagree with him are either stupid or ill-intentioned. He will however have an explanation as to why his radical changes of opinion over time are not evidence for either of these characteristics in himself.

[@danielearley5062]

@@_Stroda Perhaps you should consider his points regarding those subjects more closely. I do not mean this in that either he or you is right or wrong, but in that at least he is willing to discuss and back up his beliefs and convictions regardless of who he is discussing them with. He did, after all, state that he had to stand up for what he believed in even though he felt some fear about it in the circumstances. Could you do as much?

[@_Stroda]

​@@danielearley5062 He talks nonsense re drugs and religion. He is entirely unwilling to listen to reason and evidence. He doesn't 'discuss', he dismisses those who try to discuss with him. You defend him on the grounds that he had to 'stand up for himself', whilst making a TV show. My background isn't quite so 'privileged' as Peter's. I work in construction. My first jobs in construction were labouring. I have spent plenty of time around people that would, through some combination of ignorance and/or stupidity, agree with much of what Peter says. And I've argued with them. Could I 'do as much'? Yep. More than I imagine you or most of this echo chamber could do. I am, after all, the one in a space where many are going to disagree with me. You'll no doubt, if you've read to this point, have jumped to the conclusion that I'm a 'leftie'. Guess what? I'm not. I'm a boring, pragmatic centrist. I like evidence. I like facts. I like reason. I don't like it when people, for whatever prejudiced reasons, unquestioningly lap up the nonsense that people like Peter spew.

[@johngilmore697]

@@_Stroda He's a pompous arse

[@napoleonfeanor]

I have long said similar things. Prisons need to be under state control. No to violence between inmates. It must be ordered to work. Physical addiction is very real. Weed isn't worse than alcohol but alcohol certainly isn't harmless. I used to be addicted to opioids. I have chronic pain and still take them. When I had severe depression, they also made me feel normal again and got addicted. Depression improved and I have absolutely no desire to take psychoactive doses anymore.

[@vladivanov5500]

Peter takes a particularly unique stance on the alcohol argument, which he details in his book about the [non-existent] war on drugs. Essentially, his response to the common defense of weed 'alcohol is worse, would you ban alcohol??' is 'yes, if it were still feasible' He argues that, ideally, the widespread problem of alcoholism would have been nipped in the bud many years ago before it became a net negative on society, but now that genie is out of the bottle it is nigh impossible to put it back in. The primary difference, thus, is that there is still a narrow window to prevent the consequences that will come from yet another drug being normalized across a broad strata of society.

[@napoleonfeanor]

@@vladivanov5500 We all know how alcohol prohibition worked. And weed prohibition doesn't work either. The war on drugs does exist and did even more in the past decades in America. And it's huge in Asia. I personally am no fan of either alcohol or weed. I have insomnia and get zopiclon. When I know I cannot fall asleep and need to get up early the next day, I will take half a pill an hour before the next half so I feel relaxed for usually less than an hour before sleep. But I don't want to depend on it and don't do it often.

[@trodd77]

@@vladivanov5500 there are countries where both are legal, proof will be in the experimental pudding. Physical addiction is real, but can only last so long with a determined fight to give up. Weakness is a part of addiction.

[@Hereford1642]

@@vladivanov5500 If Peter Hitchens believes that cannabis is not already ubiquitous and normalized then he is more naive than I imagined. I live in a nice area. I was prosecuted for growing a large amount of cannabis. Nobody cared one bit. Not my neighbours, not work, not the pub, not even the police. My supervisor on the community service smoked cannabis.

[@vladivanov5500]

​@@Hereford1642 The crux of the book is that the existing laws have been largely unenforced and the cultural normalization could be reversed if only they were. It was published in 2012, mind you. I imagine he's given up all hope on that front by now.

[@hieronymusbosch9421]

What an entertaining interview. Mr Hitchen's responses to the questions were enlightening and charming at the same time. What an original thinker he is.

[@jackrainbow560]

you're being sarcastic, right?

[@wallybingbang4350]

Like his late brother 🙂

[@Enhancedlies]

the only person to have ever described Peter as 'charming' is purely farcical lol

[@handcrafted30]

The man is a complete tit

[@gomperhooblet]

I think he would admit he only states the obvious, is without charm and humour and is entirely unoriginal.

[@HerbertDuckshort]

I love the expression on the interviewer’s face. The cognitive dissonance as she juggles being “nice, progressive and liberal” with happily encouraging people to destroy themselves and their families with drugs.

[@davidphilips5543]

As a famous man once said, "drugs changed everything." Unfortunately he didn't add - " for the worse".

[@vladivanov5500]

It's primarily because most are or have been substance abusers at some point in their life nowadays. Back when hard drugs were a rarity in most civilized communities, most rightly looked down upon such practices, but once it became easy access and normalized across a broad strata of society... As Peter says, when a vast swath of the 'free people' are substance abusers, of course it's a fool's errand to expect the dregs of society to give it up. It's as if we hold the worst to the highest standard.

[@goodyeoman4534]

The mental block some people have about it really is something to behold. She's clearly smart, but still refuses to see it. I drink alcohol but I can still be objective and admit it's dangerous and causes societal problems. Why can't she and other druggies do that with drugs?

[@macclift9956]

A prison in Britain would possibly seem like a luxury hotel compared to a prison in the Rainbow Nation - a country listed as having a fairly low average quotient of the stuff that matters. A low IQ and/or low EQ comes with a laundry list of negative traits it inflicts on society and right at the top, in terms of its negative impact, is an increased propensity for violence and predatory aggression. The thousands upon thousands of white crosses in the country can attest to this. Since 1994, thousands upon thousands of victims of the vulnerable minority cultures in the country (high average quotient and very low violent crime statistics) have died under similar conditions and terror to those in the heinous October 7 massacre. Sadly, the civilised has chosen, for so *many* years, to avert its gaze, and those in high places in the country get to deny that the killing fields exist.

[@bennym5244]

Yes, sadly South Africa and Israel gets the same treatment from the overly opinionated and under educated West.

[@stuartbritton4811]

Imdont knowmwhatbyoure on about

[@johng1634]

White Lives Don't Matter.

[@geoffreylotz3661]

Well said, man....I am surprised at leftard Commie people I know who laugh at the use of the word Genocide to describe happenings in the so-called Rainbow Nation yet are absolutely convinced that Israel are committing a genocide against Palestinians....usual double standards.

[@phillipecook3227]

​@@stuartbritton4811I was about to say that.

[@AngelaHavey]

I agree with Peter. I think drugs do a lot of harm. I can see around me today people taking drugs as if they were smarties. The smell travels, and it is very anti-social.

[@johngilmore697]

Really? Tell us more, Mr. Science.

[@AngelaHavey]

@johngilmore697 one does not need to be a scientist to see the harm. I think one is blind not to see it.

[@johngilmore697]

@@AngelaHavey It sick it piss

[@debbiewright8452]

I watched the series and you got a sense of how scary it is, and how the drugs are used as a coping mechanism for being banged up all day. Staff shortage huge problem.

[@MGHarris]

Nice little hint at the end from Peter hitchens that in fact free will may not be as prevalent as he believes - when it comes to changing your character, there's no free will according to Peter's own experience.

[@noweternity3101]

Thank you Peter Hitchens! I agree re. Marijuana is not a safe drug. I spoke with a distressed mother of a teenage son who was ensnared by Marijuana. She said he became reclusive, depressed, had mood swings and became suicidal. He ended up in Psychiatric and she said this was very common with young people taking this drug. Of course this once intelligent and academically doing well young person had to drop out of school also. This mother was naturally, extremely upset. I know another woman who regularly takes Marijuana as a social drug and she also has regularly ended up in Psychiatric too. I have heard that Marijuana is good for extreme pain relief - maybe under strict medical supervision it would be worth having it for this. A person can sometimes change their behaviour - but only the Holy Spirit can change the relentless, evil desires of a person from the inside out.

[@themk4982]

That’s not the weed, that’s mental health. That’s like blaming any mental health issues someone who drinks alcohol has on alcohol.

[@noweternity3101]

@@themk4982 This woman’s son had no mental health issues before her son took the ‘weed’ and she said that the Psychiatric ward had quite a few cases exactly the same - but they try to hush it up the high extent of the damage done by this drug. Heart breaking!

[@herseem]

Fom my experience, substance abuse issues ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS arise from other unresolved issues in someone's life, and are essentially a coping mechanism. If the issues are resolved, what tends to happen is that the substance abuse gradually fades away by itself. Chemical addiction is only temporary, it's the unresolved psychological issues that keep the addiction topped up.

[@noweternity3101]

@@herseem Yes, that is often the case. I think with the teenage boy he wanted to fit in, be included but what a disaster that was for him.

[@karllandegren9727]

Absolutely, I've been addicted to everything under the sun years ago, had no problem at all quitting them as soon as I understood the root cause of my SUD. Except for the Pharmaceuticals. Benzos and Pregabalin are the absolute worst experience you can imagine when trying to quit them. I've tried for years with multiple doctors and methods and now I'm on a stable dose and never misuse like I did before, but getting off of them completely? I don't think it'll happen in my life. @@herseem

[@War_Piglet]

there are people, innocent people in prison in England who can not even get a court date to be released. This situation needs to be addressed, surely British citizens have human rights.

[@edwardcatt2399]

_’My very voice annoys people . . . my manner and the things that I say, they annoy people’_ . . . I can relate. Seems like in spite of a consistent conscious effort to get along with people I just ‘irk’ a disproportionate many of ‘em 🤷‍♂️

[@edwardcatt2399]

@joebrennan.4389 - I dunno . . . it’s contextual but, whether or not it constitutes patience or cowardice on my part, it takes _A LOT_ of sheer bloody-minded arrogance and / or rude obsequiousness to have me abandon any pretense of civility and unmask my dislike of any one person. Because I rub a lot of people the wrong way myself through using an unconsciously ‘wrong’ tone of voice or mannerism - something which I’m unaware of doing and which I seldom mean to do - I know how easy it is to misunderstand another’s intentions and so I try to act accordingly even if I’ve already made up my mind that I dislike someone. I dislike a lot of people and I suspect that a lot of people dislike me, but it all stays harmonious if we all stay civilized. Having said all of that . . . I can understand the challenge of it to maintain the pretense but I consider it a necessary thing regardless (particularly in the holiday season when tensions are high and nerves are wracked). I’d tend to agree somewhat that people can act quite viciously upon their jealousy of others as well.

[@perryedwards4746]

Always great to listen to Peter!! Also very interesting...

[@Mike-gd4zd]

*As an ACOA, he’s 100% right about drugs…* and with a horrendous personal life experience I won’t be swayed to the contrary popular opinion either.

[@libertasdemocratiam887]

The problem is with his view is he puts a drug that's been proven to help with particular ailments into the same group as just having a free for all. The prescribed drugs I'm on for chronic pain caused by a disease I have, have many, many side effects and long term use problems. Many of which are no as harsh when cannabis is used for chronic pain. I am not for legalising recreational use, but I am for medicinal, because the side effect short and long term are nowhere near as bad as man made drugs that are used for chronic pain, and do not have long term effects as bad as those man made drugs. The two I'm on damage your liver over long term use, I'm 34 and I'll be on them for a long time, unless cannabis isare more readily available for my condition. The same goes for epilepsy, it's the only drug that seems to help with severe epilepsy in children. Alas this issue is lost in the legalise everything and don't legalise anything debate.

[@RichardHowells1234]

Cannabis for dementia...no death as a side effect🤗BIG pharma drugs death as a side effect😢🤯for example

[@edonruse]

What's an ACOA and why does that make you an authority? You can't just make sweeping statements like all drugs are 100% bad. It's obvious that they're not.

[@edwardhoulton8725]

@@edonrusepeople make sweeping statements every day. Get a grip.

[@RichardHowells1234]

Marijuana used as a propaganda word for cannabis! Peter... American Medical Association didn't like it 1one bit back in the 1930's.

[@undesignated3491]

I spent 18 hours in Thailand holding cell, there was only 4 other people in there at the time. No water or food, you were at the mercy of the captors. It was for playing cards in a bar, off duty police officer called his bros, its a fucking giant shakedown racket. 200 pound fine.

[@chrispekel5709]

Were you gambling with money?

[@thelastdetail1]

Although he can come across as a blusterer occasionally, I feel that deep down Peter Hitchens is a man who actually truly cares about what he says and how he acts. Refreshing to see these days.

[@TheFamousMockingbird]

i find it scary more than refreshing, someone with horrible ideas that truly and deeply hold them are far more dangerous than grifters and the like

[@chrispekel5709]

@@TheFamousMockingbird Maybe as you age you'll start to realise that most of your ideology is garbage

[@kelrogers8480]

I agree. He's far from perfect, but there's a honesty to his rawness, and, yes, I also believe he cares.

[@seanmoran2743]

@@TheFamousMockingbirdLiberal ideas about the self are pretty scary

[@hazelhadley-britt6396]

Prison is not a hotel and should not be treated as such. It is for punishment. Teach people skills. Let them work as in the past for a wage. The low level criminals clean streets etc. Prisoners have too little to do and left to playing pool etc. The prison guards etc are the reason drugs etc get in. And I agree that people use the term addiction as an excuse, yet the physical is an addiction. He has never been addicted to something.

[@paddymeboy]

You didn't go to jail. It was just a 'reality' pantomime.

[@egverlander]

Hey, Paddy. Why don't YOU try it instead of trolling.

[@Ps119]

I worked in prison and I can testify that people can change, not just their behaviour but their thinking/character.

[@Glottris]

More Peter Hitchens, Spectator!

[@punypixel2795]

For anyone unsure about what 'the most dangerous drug' is. Alcohol related deaths in the UK 2021 - 20,970 Cannabis related deaths in the UK 2021 - 26

[@Blujonny11]

Alcohol is self regulating in the sense that if you do too much you feel like sh**. Marijuana you can be high 24/7 if you want and not realize the kind of psychosis you live under. 99% of marijuana users believe there is 'zero' consequences mentally or physically to being high every other hour 365 days a year. Not to mention the amount of THC in marijuana these days is insane. You're talking on average marijuana these days is 60% THC compounds compared to maybe 12% in the 60's. There's absolutely no way to predict the long term effects of using high THC marijuana over a lifetime especially from childhood on. With alcohol we have had hundreds of years under normal society to see the physical consequences. It seems to me there's 'shame' towards people who get drunk around their kids or who drive drunk or who are drunk every night. Are there not the same standards with marijuana in a sense of reasonable equivalency?

[@Tosspot67]

How many cannabis smokers in the 74800 smoking deaths that year?

[@andyhunt457]

I'd counter that sugar is in fact the biggest drug killer of all and yes its proven to be additive.

[@RichardPain3]

60% is not average. King's College reported that from 2005 and 2016, the average THC content for cannabis in the UK was 14%. The "world's stongest" cannabis was recorded slightly above 30% THC.

[@Blujonny11]

@@RichardPain3 What about 2023? 2005 average could be lower while '16 is much higher. Marijuana wasn't legal in 2005.

[@viewfromtheanglo4334]

Though I disagree with some of the points Peter made here, it's always a pleasure listening to Peter and hearing the way he delivers his answers to questions put to him

[@afh001]

In his eloquent way, Hitchens proves over and over again that he has no idea about the emotional complexities of other people. It's all just abstract categories and Daily Mail simplicities, delivered with his customary Vulcan coldness.

[@noneofyoubusiness4895]

Watching Banged Up certainty didn't change my view on prisons. The worst thing about prisons is still the other prisoners.

[@nuuky]

Truth is its only 'thinkers' who can be persuaded by Peter's wisdom and honesty. His talk will simply be misunderstood by many.

[@SaintlyAussie]

Yes your Lordship.

[@jurisbogdanovs1]

I don't agree with Peter on addiction, but totally agree with him on weeds. Smoking weeds brings a long term problems, most of which aren't even clear yet. Let's remember that humans cherished once sugar and smoking tobacco, and even prsexeibed these things as cure against many diseases. It took decades to fully grasp the full scale of problems from these things...

[@davegibbs6423]

Agree. People do walk into it, but addiction is a real thing. It’s the physical outcome of the decision.

[@leveragebeverage2705]

I’ve got to say his comments regarding rehabilitation made perfect sense to me. I grew up around a culture where I was heading towards jail. I made a conscious effort to redirect my life and did so with great success. Any idea that the state could have done this would have been laughable to me at the time, in hindsight my only saviour was my own willingness to mature and face up to the situation I had gotten myself in. Full accountability not the weakness of seeing myself a one of societies victims as so many do.

[@EliteRock]

The problem with "marijuana", Mr Hitchens, is that thanks to criminalisation it has been massively hybridised over many decades to maximise THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) but in the process its otherwise natural CBD (cannabidiol) content _has been almost totally eliminated._ The latter is non-psychotropic and acts as, among other things, a neural inhibitor which is why it's used to treat epilepsy and neuropathic pain *and has been found to be an effective anti-psychotic.* I would, incidentally, hence recommend anyone smoking weed take CBD in some form at the same time.

[@TerrellMethvin]

Love this guy disagree a bit but not enough to not like him. The diffintion of words seems to be the pivot point. We all need to evaluate how we define the words we use. Addiction, rehabilitation, punishment. Along with subjects like the role of the prison system. These are all very important conversations that need to be had.

[@chrispekel5709]

A lot of people don't like him because he sounds snooty and he makes them feel depressed, rather than any actual reason to dislike the guy. It's all emotional

[@bazglsgw1208]

This is the fool who went to a drug workshop and stated that weed was the worst drug in the world, never mind crack, meth or heroin.

[@davidgood7621]

So what kind of fool are you? One who believes that the hierarchy of drugs from soft to hard starts with heroine?

[@doyle6000]

“How can this guy be related to Christopher Hitchens?” “Same parents. Anything else I can help you with?” - Peter

[@MrVvulf]

Peter is a vapid troll compared to Christopher, and prone to veering off on spurious and/or specious tangents.

[@moonlightray8493]

With all due respect to Peter, he gives off the distinct impression of having an inferiority complex against his brother, which (consciously or subconsciously, I don't know) causes him to assume the exact opposite stance to try and distinguish himself from Christopher as much as possible... The older Hitchens was an outspoken atheist, so the younger Hitchens becomes a vocal born-again Christian. The older Hitchens was constantly drinking and smoking, so the younger Hitchens is vehemently anti-substance use. I can't help but feel like most of Peter's strongest held beliefs are borne primarily out of constrarianism against Christopher's views.

[@qqyoung2899]

@@moonlightray8493 I don't think that at all. There is quite a lot that Peter and Christopher would probably agree upon... having read several of their books, this is the strong feeling I got.

[@TerryStewart32]

@@moonlightray8493I have always said the same thing and I cannot imagine him ever been a favourite child of his parents over Christopher. Christopher excelled academically and progressed to Oxford university where Peter didn’t and had to settle for York university. Christopher moved in the upper echelons of those in politics and was liked by even those who disliked his view which is a contrast to Peter who most individuals view as insufferable. Christopher was charismatic and Peter is dull. One could imagine all the girls fancying Christopher and Peter struggling to get a girl to listen to him as a teenager. There is no question he has always felt second best to his brother snd lives in his shadow which he doesn’t want to get out of as much as he may dislike it because his own identity is modelled after Christopher Hitchens in the way he speak and his attempts at rhetoric and oratory. I totally agree that I think he takes an opposing view to his brother in faith and politics as a way of trying to liberate himself from Christopher in so far as he can and wield his own sovereignty. But anyone can see he’s a poor man’s version of Christopher Hitchens

[@TessaTickle]

@@TerryStewart32 glad someone is saying this. In one of the debates with the two brothers on opposing sides, Peter tries to quote a famous philosopher from memory and flubs the line. Christopher follows a few minutes later and recites the quote flawlessly and then destroys the argument that Peter was using the quote in. I can't help but think that that must have felt humiliating.

[@tahulanyon3995]

Its probably just that Hitchens doesn't have the capacity or work ethic to change his character. Its a serious weakness this poor man has had to live with his whole life.

[@joedennehy386]

I truly cannot believe that Christopher or Peter could ever be in prison. Im happy to hear it was merely a stunt

[@dcworld4349]

Some people would probably want Christopher in prison, cause I don't see him putting up with what is going on today and would be viewed as dangerous because he didn't hold strict opinions on one side. Rather taking it all in account on a level even his fellow peers at the time had trouble keeping up with.

[@nobody-x7g]

Peter the prophet. Everything he says comes true. Truly rational and witty.

[@vicicooper4720]

As I type my grandson (19) is in a mental unit with what is diagnosed as Cannabis Induced Psychosis. He is in a constant state of paranoia and his antipsychotic drugs are not working. Week four.

[@LeoRikimaru]

Funny, he doesn't *look* like he got beaten half to death and violated in the showers. Or lived under constant threat of violence. Or has the sound knowledge that even if he gets out he will be treated like scum and essentially unemployable. Or addicted to drugs to cope with the years upon years of... need I go on. This is the most bad faith argument for prison I have ever seen.

[@alanzee_]

"Or addicted to drugs" - Hitchens thinks "addiction doesn't exist" its strange that such an intelligent erudite man can be so misinformed on this one subject.

[@LeoRikimaru]

@@alanzee_ Very true. My guess? Willful ignorance. It makes sense he would set himself up as the opposite of everything his brother was to avoid a direct comparison in talent, charm or intellect. A comparison that he may not fare well in.

[@IainFrame]

I can just imagine him doing the Johnny Cash thing. "Hello I'm Peter Hitchens".

[@Breca]

Yes it felt very real at times....What a tosser....There's nothing like being inside for real tested for disease bent over naked and jailed up first time. Watching a guy get beat up in the bullpen and made to clean his own blood so the guards don't see, before one of the multiple trips to court chain ganged in the paddy wagon. I met a murderer in the court holding cell who proceeded to talk some gay advances on me (pushing buttons) just shook my head and minded my own. Then me and my cell mate threatened just before lights out and wake up to the cell door open and having to cross that threshold. The top dog in my pod smacked the tea out of a guys hand beside me at the new guy card table and thankfully just words were had. I spent Just shy of a week in what they call the *Super Jail* a Med / Max security prison. What felt very real to me was staring out that 4 inch wide cell window to the road and getting picked for the leg shackles in the chain gang on the way out my last day. R.I.P. Christopher

[@skylongskylong1982]

In many U.K. prisons who have what is nicknamed Taking The Mat, if do not want to suffer, Physical and Mental from a religious minority on the outside, but large in prison. Ask ex-prisoners for the full story, sorry I have to be so cryptic.

[@robertjsmith]

Respect to Peter,legalise all drugs

[@JiLL615]

The likelihood of being caught is the overwhelming consideration for deterring criminals NOT the harshness of prison life.

[@bobrussell3602]

Poor Peter. It is still the case that ' when one Englishman speaks, another one despises him.'

[@keithwesley2471]

Spot on Peter! Long overdue conversation on this topic.

[@richard2btrue]

Wonderful! Most entertaining and informative 15 minutes that I can remember!

[@mikepaulus4766]

In the tradition of his brother volunteering to be water boarded, and then becoming a vocal critic of the practice.

[@jamessones4044]

The fact that we still see hundreds of mobile phone tic-toks videos being uploaded is a slap in the face to us!

[@frusciantesplectrum7980]

I think his views on everything aligns with my views other than weed. Weed is not responsible for any violence…. The only danger it has is that it’s a gateway for other things…. But if you’re the sort of person to break a law, it’s little surprise that crime and cannabis are correlated for this very reason.

[@BudahOfBirmingham]

In our prison system we have a recidivism rate of 80% . In Norway it’s 20%. Our system is terrible so we need to get away from just punishing people to rehabilitation. It obviously works

[@brynleytalbot778]

When it appears that white collar crime goes unpunished and enriches them it’s no surprise blue collar crime recidivism is so high. The real knack is not getting caught. It’s far easier to do that with financial skulduggery rather than shooters at the bank. Perhaps Norway has a different prison demographic to explain the difference. Maybe white collar crimes are punished more and they don’t commit again. Without the actual crime statistics a comparison with the UK isn’t that valid.

[@badcarlos551]

Unfortunately, even though the prison system in England and Wales has been broken for a long time, we remain unwilling to reform it

[@mairiconnell6282]

Peter manipulates any experience that is relevant to his own narrative. Yes I agree with a little of what he says. I have visited many prisons in the UK. The squalid explanation is very valid. I am constantly amazed by his performance.

[@qqyoung2899]

Manipulate? You seem to agree with him...

[@johnl5316]

Stanford Professor Phil Zimbardo terminated his famous Prison Experiment because it had gotten out of hand

[@MrVvulf]

Do they still teach this lesson as a polemic against creating "other" groups, or is your age showing? The other famous experiment usually covered in the same lesson used to be the "Brown Eyed vs Blue Eyed" one. The lessons weren't lost on me and are a major reason I will NEVER side with the DEI crowd. Telling people their physical/ethnic characteristics are more important than the content of their character/morality/behavior is societal poison.

[@wendywolfman]

Gotten is not English 😉

[@MrVvulf]

@@wendywolfman A quick google search reveals - "Both "has got" and "has gotten" are correct, but their usage can vary depending on where you are. In American English, "has gotten" is more commonly used to indicate the present perfect tense, while in British English, "has got" is more commonly used. For example: American English: She has gotten a new job."

[@steveatkins814]

@@MrVvulfBut ‘gotten’ is not correct English, have you not seen Americans struggling to use a knife and fork?

[@stirlingmoss9637]

​@@MrVvulffirst of all, British English is just English, and has got as you described as a correct grammatical phrase is not necessary. Has, is all that's need. Just has. Forget got and its american bastard gotten.

[@c.philipmckenzie]

What’s with the 70’s sitcom intro music?

[@lrwguitar]

Nothing at all like prison in UK believe me.

[@neilrollason]

He seems to have a real resentment with cannibis,does he present evidence to back it up.

[@tikunani]

Yes but the fact that it wasn't real means its just a holiday. I imagine a buddhist retreat is scarier.

[@BlueOstinato]

10:39 I have to say I'm surprised to hear him say he thinks people fundamentally cannot change their character. He seems to conflate authoritarian state 'rehabilitation' with legitimate rehabilitation which can come from a combination of self-determination , family and friend support. It can also come from God. I'm surprised that as a former atheist turned Christian, he can't think of anyone ever having been rehabilitated when the entire Bible is about the redemption of mankind by being born again in Christ. "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh." - Ezekiel 36:26 Is there room for the transformative, life changing power of God in Peter's seemingly deterministic outlook on the capacity to change? I enjoy Peter's content mostly and would certainly be interested in hearing him demonstrate how some of his social views fit in with his faith.

[@jassonsw]

I wish they'd kept him there.

[@opinion3742]

How real did it feel to be in a reality tv prison for 4 days? Oh come on....

[@egverlander]

Why don't YOU give it a try?

[@opinion3742]

@@egverlander You have no idea how funny that is. You have obviously had a sheltered life.

[@Wearywillie-x5t]

He wasn't a prisoner. He could leave whenever he wished. A prisoner has to mix with people he wants nothing to do with. He wasn't stuck 23 hours a day , in a cell with two psychopaths and a chamberpot. He wasn't forced to get involved in illegal activity through fear of extreme violence. He wasn't coming out with his nothing but his bus fare and a criminal record which would follow him for life...

[@kevinwhelan9607]

What a decent man is Peter Hitchens- he held his own during the series and came across very well. I hope that kid he shared his cell with got around to reading the Bible - everything one needs to know about life is between its covers. Speaking of books - PH's The Rage against God is superb.

[@herseem]

As long as you recognise that the Bible is a book of the best of what is possible, but also of human folly, outrageous abuses, contradictions, and things that are claimed instructions from God that are so obviously wrong they are clearly meant to be an example of why you need to think for yourself and not blindly follow instructions.

[@CSUnger]

Reading it before one has met God personally, it can certainly seem that way.

[@Blujonny11]

What would scare me the most is if the system had forgotten I was only there for an experiment and just left me there.

[@edbop]

The loss of his brother was as loss for us all, if only things had been different.

[@typhoontim125]

The wrong brother...exactly.

[@wungabunga]

About as tasteless, and predictable, a comment as you could have made. You are a (unwittingly) a terrible character witness.

[@edbop]

@@wungabunga His brother had what this guy lacks, the intellect to be considered a public intellectual.

[@mikechrissan]

What. He didn't go to prison. He went on a reality TV programme which was rather distastefully set in a prison.

[@sjpga]

Cant say I agree with you on all things Peter. But? Respect? For sure sir.

[@Superfantastictop10]

Prison is, in many cases, cruel and unusual punishment.

[@Heidi123]

Norway appears to be able to rehabilitate and the US fails. It would be interesting to compare both and their wider culture.

[@anthonydunn-1297]

That’s Norwegian society it’s way better than usa

[@eleanorwalmsley635]

It's a bit of a myth from start to finish. For starters, crime is minimised in Norway, in opposition to say, how Dubai maximise crime. Not many are sent to prison in the first place in Norway. To the point where their own citizens are angered by leniency shown to criminals. The idea of their system is put them in a "home environment" in prison. The punishment is the withdrawal of liberty, without taking their dignity away. That I can agree with, the harder a prison is the more of a monster you create in the deprevation of dignity. However don't let this fool you into thinking alls hunky dory, crime free out there

[@chemicalreagent120]

Well I never thought I’d see Peter Hitchens interacting with Chet sandhu, we do live in strange times indeed

[@frazz297]

The hand of the state is what makes prisons so squalid, Peter.

[@ReaIJohnDoe]

One of the main and worst issues with prison is vulnerability, fear of attack and the micro politics your constantly trying not to trip up on. That being taken out of the equation completely removes any understanding at all of the prison experience. Ultimately he slept in a strange bed in a strange building with strangers, rather like we all do each year when we go on holiday.

[@Paul-eb4jp]

It would have been nice if they'd kept him a bit longer.

[@AllIsWellaus]

I saw this guy in an interview with Alex O'Connor. He came across incredibly insecure of his views, an entitlement of how dare Alex proposes another opinion and throws a tantrum when the interview didn’t quite go as he planned. Alex tried to talk to him, even apologising, his failure to move forward from the drug debate. The entitlement was incredible. Silly behaviour from an adult of his position.

[@mad-official]

It taught him how to be a c*'t when being interviewed. Lol

[@jamesedwards.1069]

When I saw the headline I assumed that Peter Hitchens had finally been arrested for felony aggravated thoughtcrime.

[@rjflores438]

I agree with Peter Hitchens on many things, but his views on cannabis are ridiculous. He equated weed smokers with child beaters and terrorism as if that was the actual cause. He also wanted it to be a class A drug despite it never killong anybody in human history and then informing everyone that he liked to drink red wine, which is also a drug. And alcohol has caused way more violence and social problems than cannabis.

[@jamesrichardson3500]

I'm so in awe and full of admiration for Peter, his journalistic skills, the way he orates and rationalises his viewpoints. I just cannot find any common ground on his stance on drugs, addiction or rehabilitation, it seems so archaic to think that way. Almost like the flat earth views of the 14th and 15th century

[@drifty_grifty]

Maybe you've never seen the devastation that easily available drugs cause to people every day in Britain.

[@egverlander]

The stubbornness of your comment reflects Peter is right. Try to change your mind; your character.

[@Stu047]

5:40 - Hitchens. He's a walking paradox of justiified reason balanced in equal measure by his capacities for wilfull arrogance, peddling the same old stagnant points of view that imply he had the whole human behaviour enigma figured out decades ago. In one breath he reiterates that "addiction doesn't exist..." is his opinion which of course is his privilege but before the close of that sentence he adds "...which it doesn't" transcending that opinion as though it had suddenly become a provable fact. He just can't help himself. 6:19 - No free will and not being reponsible for your actions. I wouldn't dispute that human beings have free will and that the measure of free will we impress upon the world is somewhat proportional to the penalty of assuming responsibility for our actions. That's not to say that we as humans are 100% responsible for our actions 100% of the time. Indeed if you've ever wondered about where the seeds of your behaviours actually come from, asked why you're inclined to make one choice over another and also wondered why others wouldn't make the same choices as you given the same situations; how can you not bring in to question this idea of everybody being 100% responsible for the choices they make, good and bad? There isn't one organism on this planet that is free from having its existence entertain a constant negotiation with its environment and that most definitely includes us and not just in the physical sense; the brain is a complicated biological system, right? - May in fact be the most complicated system in existence. Our environment feeds our experience. Our experiences shape our psychology and our psychology informs our behaviours... And our behaviours close loop back to affecting our environment. You think that you could only ever action your best choices Peter? - Let's pluck you from your positions of privilege and advantage and dump you in the most run down broken nation on the planet, where corruption permeates, communities are dominated by gang violence and the threats to your wellbeing if not your very existence is a daily concern... Then we'll bring you back after 24 months and see how a little PTSD has affected your behaviours. Let's see how effective the medications you're prescribed are at addressing your anxieties, keeping you free of agression, depression or suicidal thoughts. I'm sure your interpretation of the results would be fascinating. Your lifes experiences have the potential to squeeze the civility out of you; everybody has their limits. None of us are immune... Including Peter Hitchens.

[@alst4817]

Why didn’t he want to talk to Alex O Connor about drugs?😂 what a strange man, he has grown old before wise.

[@subplantant]

He seems very happy to talk about drugs in every other scenario. Must have been truly intimidated by old cosmo septic!

[@Objectiveansthensome]

Dont agree with Peter Hitchens all that much .. but do respect him .. Man of insight when he is at his best

[@ytdertignulses201]

Sounds like a very real description of an English public school

[@DavidElstob73]

We are all products of our genetics and environment. Therefore, while it is not impossible to change our character, it is highly unlikely that a person will change themselves in a big way. People who do are the exception not the rule. Point being, we are most comfortable being ourselves. People are more comfortable with others from the same background, which is why it is so hard to break the cycle of drugs and crime.

[@bobbobertbobberton1073]

When it comes to weed Hitchens doesn't understand the difference between causation and correlation. Just because you have weed in your system when you commit a crime doesn't mean it caused that person to commit the crime. Weed is far more harmless than alcohol.

[@PorchBass]

The prisoners destroyed any points he has. They couldn't stand him

[@freebornjohn2687]

He makes some good points but to say weed is the most dangerous drugs reflects the fact he hasn't taken many drugs. Weed can cause paranoia for sure but more dangerous than smack, crack or some of the synthetics like black mamba is nonsense.

[@seancorrigan9340]

A true gentleman is Hitchens. 🚨

[@RyanCFoster]

If someone cares so fervently about marijuana, then I think that such a reaction rather proves Peter Hitchens point. If stoners are only ready to fight when its about pot, then clearly pot can thus be harmful and not harmless.

[@nospoon4799]

Funny how the screws have more ink than the prisoners.

[@doncholio4108]

Quite horryfying that Peter Hitchen can't speak his mind in public without fear of beeing attacked. I live in austria and I worry in public too.

[@GodsOwnPrototype]

His point here, (though yours still stands), was that his voice is distinctively class marked such that he frequently encounters people of other classes that take affront to it and wish to assault him.

[@doncholio4108]

@@GodsOwnPrototype I know that and Britain might have a bigger class devide than Austria, that doesn't change the fact that there is still hate against people with university degrees. And I am pretty sure most of the hate comes from the same demographic. I think english press likes to call them Asian our press calls them Südländer ( which would have been Italians)

[@allenwixted1992]

The man who stormed off a show for “making it all about drugs” signed every email “you’re still wrong about drugs” 😂 A totalitarian society offers rehabilitation whereas a free society punishes people 😅 Honestly can’t wraps head around him

[@kaw420TSVR]

Was it an honest and realistic reflection of what prison really is in the UK right now? I am not convinced at all.