Dr Gray's thought is confused.
About a man who whose task is thought (thinking about political philosophy and communicating his thoughts), what worse thing could be said?
I bought one of John Gray's books (Black Mass) because Nassim Nicholas Taleb said on his website that Gray was the "greatest living thinker". Now I'm wondering about both of them.
But all this is explained by the fact that Appleyard is, and always has been, at every moment of the day, a total dickwad.