Mother Theresa and Urban Legends (Till)

Steven Carr steven@bowness.demon.co.uk
Thu, 12 Feb 1998 21:43:01 +0000 (00887341381, Moks3DAlz240EwqB@bowness.demon.co.uk) 

Austin Cline <Pioneer@infidels.org> writes


>>CARR

>>Christopher Hitchens is hardly an 'insider'. Nor does he have

>>a very high reputation in the UK. It was higher before he wrote that

>>book which just seemed to go in for slinging mud and guilt by

>>association tactics. It was not well received here, even by people with

>>no great love for Mother Teresa.



>AUSTIN

>Harsh comments. I've read the book, and consider it reasonably well

>written. I don't suppose you'd care to try to back up your assertion that

>it is merely "slinging mud" and an effort to establish "guilt by

>association?" In what way were the specific charges not supported to your

>satisfaction?


CARR
I recounted the reception his book was given in the UK. I have not
personally read his book. I decided from the reviews that other books
were higher on my list, especially as I'm not hugely interested in
Mother Teresa. It is a couple of years since it came out, so I can't
remember all the details. The fact that I have not read the book does
not stop me saying how it was received here. I have not read 'Satanic
Verses' but I know how it was received.

I did see his TV programme about MT. He seemed to me to be just saying
'Look. She's talking to this bad person and to that bad person', which
struck me as guilt by association. Im sure she did get money from bad
people, at a cost of bolstering their image. There are worse crimes.


He also accused her of fiddling charitable contributions. He did say
that her organisation had not released any figures as to amounts
received and spent. I think it is very bad that her organisation had not
released the figures to him, but it did mean that he was unable to give
any evidence in the TV programme of exactly what had gone missing.
Perhaps his book went into more detail than his TV programme.

There were much better articles in the Times about a volunteer nurse who
was very surprised at the lack of medical training that the nurses got.



-- 
Steven Carr steven@bowness.demon.co.uk