Prosperity Posted November 6, 2005 Share Posted November 6, 2005 recommendations? I am thinking about reading some of his books Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted November 6, 2005 Share Posted November 6, 2005 Years ago: CRV Necessary Illussions Not my style ,but I used to read a lot for insight in others rational. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I recommend reading his praise of the Khmer Rouge, whitewash of their atrocities and his subsequent denial thereof and assignation of blame on US bombing for the evils of the Killing Fields. Or you can read up on his praise of the revolution in North Vietnam. :2cents: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I recommend reading his praise of the Khmer Rouge, whitewash of their atrocities and his subsequent denial thereof and assignation of blame on US bombing for the evils of the Killing Fields.Or you can read up on his praise of the revolution in North Vietnam. :2cents: You obviously loved his BS too :laugh: I think Liberty is smart enough to see his faults or I hope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrockster21 Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I recommend reading his praise of the Khmer Rouge, whitewash of their atrocities and his subsequent denial thereof and assignation of blame on US bombing for the evils of the Killing Fields.Or you can read up on his praise of the revolution in North Vietnam. :2cents: :rotflmao: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckydevil Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 Manufacturing Consent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted November 7, 2005 Author Share Posted November 7, 2005 I saw a video version of Manufacturing Consent, and, I have to say it left me feeling that Chomsky gets a very bad rep and doesn't really deserve all of it. He made a very compelling argument, and at the very least he should be recognized for being so incredibly intelligent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Destino Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I saw a video version of Manufacturing Consent, and, I have to say it left me feeling that Chomsky gets a very bad rep and doesn't really deserve all of it. He made a very compelling argument, and at the very least he should be recognized for being so incredibly intelligent. He deserves the bad rep. He is very smart and capable of making good valid points, but he seems to be just as likely to be intellectually dishonest. He has a anti-US tilt that I find seriously annoying, blowing up the US wrongs and down-playing the wrongs of others constantly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 HE's a crackpot. I would'nt wste my time with him again, and neither should you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamingwolf Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 Penn and Tellers BS have an episode called "college" in season 3, that has chomsky in it. Its very funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 Destino said it best...intellectualy dishonest sums it up well. But you are certain to get something from his writings,even if it is time better spent in other pursuits :2cents: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo-toni Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 If an outspoken university professor proclaimed that the Jewish holocaust never happened, and that America was responsible for WWII, would he be merely "intellectually dishonest"? The Khmer Rouge were every bit as evil (and perhaps more so in some ways) as the Nazis. They slaughtered over a million people for "crimes" like wearing eyeglasses or being able to speak a second language (anything that could be taken as a sign of intelligence made that person a risk to their dreams of a purely agrarian society). For Chomsky to continually insist in the face of undeniable evidence that such a brutal slaughter never took place is inexcusable, and puts him squarely in the same category as any holocaust denier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancalagon the Black Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 Syntactic Structures is probably his best work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishhead Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I've been reading Chomsky for a long time, and I have to say nowhere have I read Chomsky deny the genocide that took place in Cambodia. I've seen things Chomsky has said taken out of context regarding the issue, and thats about it. I've actually had a chance to look at the anti-Chomsky reader and it is really hard to believe the amount of lies that were within it, and things taken out of context. Anyone who's actually read Chomsky or listened to him know for a fact most of the things people say about him are complete bs. Back to the apparent whitewashing and support of the Khmer Rouge Chomsky had.. can anyone point me to a writing where he directly said he supported Pol Pot? Please nothing wrote by a fanatical U.S. Gov't apologist who took a quote out of context, or someone just coming up with things out of thin air. As a matter of fact if you watch Manufacturing Consent they go into detail about this whole subject. Recommended Chomsky Reading: Manufacturing Consent, Imperial Ambitions, Hegemony or Survival, and probably the best intoduction to his views, in my opinion - Understanding Power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted November 8, 2005 Author Share Posted November 8, 2005 Chomsky did not deny the holocaust, he wrote a letter defending the freedom of speech of someone that did thoug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slateman Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 He deserves the bad rep. He is very smart and capable of making good valid points, but he seems to be just as likely to be intellectually dishonest. He has a anti-US tilt that I find seriously annoying, blowing up the US wrongs and down-playing the wrongs of others constantly. Thank you. Few educated people believe this. Being a psychology major, I've been introduced to Chomskey. And frankly some of his theories are actually quite interesting. At least those in the realm of psychology. Things like memory and such. Its when he goes off on his socio/political rants that I completely lose respect for him. Basically he is an American-hating socialist. I usually discount whatever he says. In fact, if I can do the opposite, I usually will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckydevil Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 My stance on Chomsky has softened up over the last year. However, a couple things about Chomsky bother me 1. He tends to have a black and white view of the Cold War. While I agree with a great deal (if not most of it) of his criticism of America's role in the Cold War, he downplayed Soviet Aggression and praised Maoist movements. However, he wasn't and is not alone. He often fails to see context. Now in all fairness, he is no different than Murray Rothbard (a libertarian who I admire- from a cautious distance) who at times is maddening and at times brilliant. 2. Portrays himself as an anarchist, but the truth is he is a Marxist (and that's fine- Marxists have many insightful things to day). Some left-anarchists have rightfully scolded him for this. 3. Chomsky's failure to draw the logical conclusions from his own arguments. His criticism of corporatism/the current system is brilliant and unlike many leftists he understands the difference between crony capitalism and laissez faire (that probably has to do with the fact that at one time his work was only published in libertarian publications). He understands that much of so called "progressive" regulation can further entrench corporate interests. He also understands the link between big government and big business. The state is the vehicle of the ruling class. In other words, his analysis is often spot on. My beef with him is his solutions, which is more government (a Marxian prescription). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Air Force Cane Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 make sure to read about how all the problems of the Middle East derive from the Jews, how Bush has committed genocide, and how the left can bring peace to the entire Muslim world :doh1: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I actually think he's an excellent writer. I just hate his views (and him actually) with the fire hot intensity of a billion suns. Hegemony or Survival would top my list. But you should heed Destino's warning of him. He is absolutely intellectually dishonest. And temper any reading of his with an equal nutjob on the right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Air Force Cane Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 there are NO similar nutjobs on the right- who are also tenured professors and put forth as "best philosopher" of the country like Chomsky is... that is why they are leftists.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted November 8, 2005 Author Share Posted November 8, 2005 There really are no extreme right wingers that could be considered anywhere near intellectual, definitely not Coulter, or anyone similar. I guess some would say Rand is a right wing extremist intellectual, but I don't consider her a nut job, or a right winger for that matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 there are NO similar nutjobs on the right- who are also tenured professors and put forth as "best philosopher" of the country like Chomsky is... I think you are not giving the right any credit for having brains, because there are certainly similar nutjobs equal to Chomsky in terms of ideological ranting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo-toni Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 There really are no extreme right wingers that could be considered anywhere near intellectual, definitely not Coulter, or anyone similar. I guess some would say Rand is a right wing extremist intellectual, but I don't consider her a nut job, or a right winger for that matter. Maybe not extreme, but William Buckley is certainly in the same intellectual caliber, though I find his writing to be annoyingly pointless at times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.