>The interesting part came when he opened it up for a few questions. One
>of the first, reflecting, I think, a general interest of the audience,
>was on the lines of "What can we do to change things?" Chomsky's answer
>was "Nothing", saying the historical and cultural situation and the
>forces in place were too broad, powerful and entrenched to be moved by
>activism.
>As I was not looking for action to take, but to understand the
>situation, I wasn't as much troubled as others. But I did have a sort of
>sensation of futility. What was his purpose in coming if that was all he
>could offer. Couldn't he have just sent a postcard saying it's all
>inevitable and there's nothing to do about it?
>Considering how long it has been since and what's happening in the area,
>it appears he may well have been right.
See, that was my biggest problem with the guy when I saw him speak.
He offered a lot of criticisms but no solutions. He could have just
said "I don't know" and at least been honest about it. But he has a
problem with that. He's so entrenched in his views and flat out
arrogant, that he often practices intellectual dishonesty under the
guise of activism, but doesn't even realize he is doing it (e.g. his
take on the Cambodian atrocities, his misquotes of President Truman
and subsequent refusal to admit that he was wrong, his opposition to
ownership of intellectual property when he in fact holds the
copyrights to his own work and profits off of them).
I do agree with him on a lot of things though, even if they are
largely self-evident: that those in power will do whatever they can to
stay in power (including the invasion of other countries), the media
only serves the interests of those in power, and both history and
current event reporting are written by those in power, to serve them
in whatever way suites them best. Since the US is currently (in his
opinion) the most powerful nation in the world, they are frequently
the target of his criticisms (I think maybe he should start
criticizing China).
His ideas on local democracy also appeal to the libertarian in me.
DISCLAIMER: I am not in any way trying to start a political flame war,
just sharing my opinion on Chomsky as a thinker and political
activist. And it's just that, an OPINION, as I am not a scholar on
Chomsky, nor am I very political.
--
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