Christopher Hitchens and Paris Hilton

On of the less-appreciated aspects of Christopher Hitchens' writing is that he's a sucker for the underdog.
Much of his antagonism towards Bill Clinton for instance was, I think, founded upon what he considered Clinton's abuses of power and the certain sympathy Hitch felt for Monica Lewinsky, Gennifer Flowers and the other women with whom Clinton was, shall we say, involved. Equally, Christopher's support for and empathy with the Kurds was, I suspect, the major driving force behind his decision to support the removal of Saddam Hussein from power.

In that respect, then, it's not too surprising that he should rally to the aid of another beleaguered, put-upon figure to deliver a sharp and provocative yet generously compassionate defence of, yes, Paris Hilton:

I didn't at all want to see this, but what choice did I have? It was typical of a universal, inescapable coverage. Not content with seeing her undressed and variously penetrated, it seems to be assumed that we need to watch her being punished and humiliated as well. The supposedly "broad-minded" culture turns out to be as prurient and salacious as the elders in The Scarlet Letter. Hilton is legally an adult but the treatment she is receiving stinks—indeed it reeks—of whatever horrible, buried, vicarious impulse underlies kiddie porn and child abuse.