Noam Chomsky, �9-11�
Yeesh. I�ve let the pile of finished books grow far too large. I have 15 books waiting for a so-called review. I finished this just over a month ago, so it stands to reason that I can barely remember anything about it.
Actually, that�s not totally true. I remember thinking while reading this that it was such a rush job to get it out as quickly as possible after the buildings fell in New York, that it was dangerously close to being considered war profiteering.
Sent to the printer on October 15, 2001, this rush job only saves face in that you can see the difference in the media from around the world. Set up mostly as transcriptions from e-mail questions sent from journalists from everywhere in the world but the United States, it soon becomes obvious how the rest of the world looks at the situation. Instead of finger pointing, war mongering, and setting an agenda of fear, these reporters are much more interested in trying to understand why the attacks happened in the first place.
Chomsky�s long-winded answers don�t answer these inquires. In fact, he seems to be shell-shocked and some of his answers have little to do with the questions, using history as a base to try and understand where we as a country stand now.
Just in case you weren�t paying attention, we�re standing neck deep in shit, and are apparently ready to sit down in the same pile.
Of course, Chomsky isn�t willing to put things in such base terms. That�s why his books are usually 700 million pages long, with nary an exclamation point to accentuate what he�s saying. That�s the saving grace of books like this, where he�s forced to conform to the small(ish) answer.
But allow me to be serious for a minute or two. It won�t take long.
Much is touted with a wink and a nudge how Jon Stewart came in fourth in a Columbia University poll of trusted political journalists. The insinuation is that Americans are too dull-witted to do any serious analysis on the situation of the world around them.
I always bristle at these reports, because I know why people would rather listen to Stewart verses people like Chomsky. He�s interesting and he�s funny. Seriously, is it worse to dumb down the material if people still pay attention? The average person who has only a minimal understanding of the atmosphere of politics wouldn�t be able to grasp the concepts and history of any given Chomsky book, because they all suffer from a kind of intellectual elitism.
Part of this is the fault of our celebrity-obsessed mindset. But I also lived in England, which is just as obsessed. And think about the pop-culture wasteland that is Japan. England, however, considers politicians and world events as part of the celebrity culture, and that�s why they�re more informed about the world around them.
Political satire in the U.S. has had a death rattle about it for the last decade that I�ve been paying attention, and it�s probably been going like this for longer than that. The reason is simple � what we are presented with is so mind-numbingly dry that it turns everybody off.
That�s a shame. We live in ludicrous times, and it�s only getting funnier. All you have to do is pay attention and you�ll realize that.
But there are plenty of people who don�t pay attention. Hell, one of my roommates isn�t registered to vote, and doesn�t read anything that isn�t either the lyrics to whatever grindcore punk band he bought this week, or some kind of magazine that features girls in a bikini or less. And this guy, who I�ve seen stay on the couch for ten hours straight, watching everything from COPS to Cheaters, will get up and leave when I finally go in the front room, reclaim the remote, and watch The Daily Show.
A book by Chomsky is not going to change this guy�s mind. Christ in Himmel, I don�t think he�s even opened my book. If it weren�t for me seeing him reading the liner notes on that grindcore album, I wouldn�t be sure that he could read.
And therein lay the problem. The only people (in this country anyway) who will read this book are people who have a pretty good grasp on the situation anyway, and most likely, will be people who agree with his assessment. And do we pass on this information? Not usually. Us progressive intellectuals line our shelves with these works, and sometimes we actually read them, but I think it�s only so we can pat ourselves on the back for how attune we are as to how the world works as we scoff at those watching so-called reality television.
If there�s one thing that�s obvious, looking at those maps awash in seas of red and blues, it�s that we�re not talking to each other. That�s where the failure comes in � the nation, and indeed, the world has degenerated into high school cliques all over again, with the jocks teasing the nerds, and the cheerleaders snubbing the theater kids.
It�s no wonder that occasionally somebody starts shooting. Or flying airplanes into buildings.
A long time ago, Operation Rescue rolled into town designating San Jose as one of five cites under siege. The plan was to shut down Planned Parenthood clinics to try and make their point, a point that they thought was the right one.
I disagreed, and therefore my friends and I went to different clinics every day, using spies to try and find out where they were going to strike next. After the initial fight to try and keep the doors open, the cops would eventually come on the scene, and separate the warring ideologues.
It was at this time that I would try and find one other person who would be willing to debate me. I had rules for this: no name calling, no slogan shouting, no repeating rhetoric from public figures, and it would be done away from the crowd.
�Stop trying to change the world by force,� I�d say. �Let�s see if you can change one mind using nothing but reason, and I�ll try to do the same.�
Only two people ever accepted my invitation. The first conversation went poorly, as the person I picked was the kind of guy who doesn�t listen to the other side, instead only thinking about what he was going to say next. But the second person, a girl around 18 years of age (I think I was 19 at the time), accepted my offer.
I let her talk for about 15 minutes, asking probing questions, having her expand on her answers and beliefs. And when it was my turn, I presented points that she obviously hadn�t thought about before. You could see it in her face, her mouth opening slightly, her eyes going distant.
The people on the Operation Rescue side broke the rules. They rushed in and surrounded her, cramming a Bible into her hand, literally forcing her head down to pray. They then, and I�m serious here, whisked her into a car and drove her away. There were still four days left of Operation Rescue�s siege, and I didn�t see her again until the last day.
By comparison, by this time I knew at least twenty people on the pro-life side on a first name basis. That�s how much we saw each other.
Anyway, I went up to the girl and tried to restart the dialogue. She wasn�t having any of it, looking at the ground for the most part. Finally, just as I was ready to give up, she looked at me and apologized, saying her family said she wasn�t allowed to talk to anybody on the other side anymore.
I don�t know what happened to that girl, but I bet she no longer spends her time trying to block the entranceways to clinics. I also bet she remembers that conversation as well.
So, christ, people. Just start talking to one another, even � no, especially if it�s the kind of person whose views you find morally repugnant. Because maybe, just maybe, they�ll get that far-off look in their eyes, and start using critical thinking skills. And then perhaps they�ll be the ones buying these Chomsky books, so I don�t have to read all of them.
End of seriousness.
Did I mention that you�re momma�s so fat...
