I'm a big fan of Hitch, I enjoy a good Hitchslap, and I think he was near unbeatable on the religion debate circuit. Wait, Jayne, what do you mean by "near unbeatable"? Well, I'm glad I asked that for you, here's why I think this: The second you make a personal attack against a debate opponent is the moment you lose the debate. (If you're first to attack anyway.) While Hitch rarely did this without provocation, he still did it a few times. Debate isn't just arguing, it's presenting an argument and defending it logically and respectfully, at least until your opposition becomes disrespectful. If you present an excellent argument poorly or disrespectfully you will still probably lose the debate. While I love a good verbal beat down, one should know when it's appropriate in the context of a debate.