When I look back on what I did for the Left, I'm in a small way quite proud of some of it - I only wish I'd done more.
Interpretation
This quote reflects a sense of pride in past actions while also expressing a desire for greater achievement.
In this quote, Christopher Hitchens conveys a complex mix of feelings regarding his contributions to the Left. He acknowledges a sense of pride for what he has accomplished, recognizing the impact of his efforts, but simultaneously feels a lingering regret for not having done enough. This duality highlights the often challenging balance between satisfaction and ambition in one's pursuits, particularly in the realm of social and political activism.
In practice
In a speech about social responsibility, you might quote Hitchens to remind others of the importance of striving for greater impact.
In a public dialogue with Salman in London he [Edward Said] had once described the Palestinian plight as one where his people, expelled and dispossessed by Jewish victors, were in the unique historical position of being 'the victims of the victims': there was something quasi-Christian, I thought, in the apparent humility of that statement.
What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.
Never ask while you are doing it if what you are doing is fun. Don't introduce even your most reliably witty acquaintance as someone who will set the table on a roar.
[E]xceptional claims demand exceptional evidence.
The worst days are when you feel foggy in the head - chemo-brain they call it. It's awful because you feel boring. As well as bored. And stupid. And resigned.
Let me tell you something: for hundreds of thousands of years, this kind of discussion would have been impossible to have, or those like us would have been having it at the risk of our lives. Religion now comes to us in this smiley-face, ingratiating way — because it’s had to give so much more ground and because we know so much more. But you’ve got no right to forget the way it behaved when it was strong, and when it really did believe that it had God on its side.
Voyages are accomplished inwardly.
There is not a single line in this diary that does not call for a correction or a denial...Yes: throughout these pages I meant what I was writing and I meant the opposite; reading them again I feel completely lost...I was lying to myself. How I lied to myself!
We have time to grow old. The air is full of our cries. But habit is a great deadener.
God is a scientist, not a magician.
Augustus, perhaps you’d like to share your fears with the group.” “My fears?” “Yes.” “I fear oblivion,” he said without a moment’s pause. “I fear it like the proverbial blind man who’s afraid of the dark.” “Too soon,” Isaac said, cracking a smile. “Was that insensitive?” Augustus asked. “I can be pretty blind to other people’s feelings.
I enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.