At age 62, from esophageal cancer.
He was one of those prickly public intellectuals whose love of drink and sensual living matched his passion for words and an insistence on squarely looking at history's lessons for our species. He was more often than not caustic in his writing, but personal friends recount ample evidence of his graciousness and loyalty. As he grew older, he became increasingly difficult to categorize. He remained steadfastly atheist, but was staunchly pro-life. His writings were less likely to appear in The Nation and moreso in publications like the Weekly Standard. He supported the invasion of Iraq.
A force to be contended with by thinkers of all stripes, and one whose contributions will be the subject of debate for years to come.
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