Noam Chomsky: Anarchist?

[Guns]

I remember reading a short, interesting discussion on Infoshop about a year ago in the comments on a Chomsky article. The discussion gravitated to whether Noam Chomsky is even an anarchist at all, as he so adamantly claims to be.
I don't know if there's already talk here among Flag's many, many, many threads, so I took the liberty(!) to start one.
So how about it:
"Is Noam Chomsky an anarchist?"

[Zazaban]

With him it's probably down to one's own interpretation of things. I'd say he is, but with unusual views on some things. If you look at link most of what's there is in line with anarchism. There's a couple iffy things, but they don't really override the good. I don't really have time to read the main article on his views, but skimming over it most of it seems okay.

He also makes for very good publicity.

[Yarrow]

some folk think he's a servant of the state...

like the rest of us.

[Francois Tremblay]

I don't know why so many Anarchists rag on Chomsky. He freely admits himself that he's an amateur insofar as Anarchy goes. He still believes government can do some good. He's wrong about that, but hey, it's a common mistake.

[ambi]

he's the alex jones of left acadamia, an 80/20 operation if there ever was one. sadly, he's sunk to about a 50/50 post 9/11. the last time he spoke in berkeley, the local lefty radio station was offering chomsy tote bags for donations of a certain size. tote bags.

he has steadfastly refused to examine the world's true power structure. he will spend an entire 4/5 of a book demonstrating (quite aptly) how the democrats and the republicans are no different. then in the last 5/5 he tells you to go out and vote. it's very obvious intellectual fraud that the diseased USleft eats up. he pretends carrol quigley doesn't exist. he pretends the bilderburgers dont exist.

his stance on 9/11 (that if it were an inside job it "wouldnt matter") is straight-up genocidal. it matters to the people in iraq and afghanistan quite a bit, not to mention what exposure of the likely truth would do in the US.

he's out. the only one left that is at that level of acadamia is peter dale scott. and even then, trusting professors at elite institutions is ... silly.

[Guns]

yea, I enjoy his foreign policy analysis for what it's worth, but it seems many people look to him for answers on what to think about everything. He talks about how, until an anarchist world is realized, he will still rely on the police for protection, and how we need to develop institutions.
I suppose he may have introduced a few more people to the anarchist way, I only wonder how many have moved beyond his very moderate references to anarchism and joined the more radical ranks..
he's really sharp, and quite careful not to leave himself completely open to criticism by saying something totally self-contradictory. Like Marx, some of his ideas are insightful and worth consideration, but I never look to him for an inspirational anarchist message.

[Yarrow]

i was a chomsky baby, and look at me now!

[Superdog]

My first Intro to radical poltics was reading a large chunk of "What Uncle Sam Really Wants" for free online, and it blew my mind wide open. How could this be true? And well, upon further research it was sadly all too true.
I just read Chomsky on Anarchism, and he is certainly an anarchist, admittedly very much in the "Use the tools you have available" vein. After all, he does work at a public university.
I have five of his books and appreciate his perspective alot, especially on Leninism and conspiracy theories.

[rebelmouse]

chomsky said anytime that he is anarchist, or maybe he represented anarchism publicly? no? than he is not. I think some anarchists have need to get public persons for movement but I think it shows their creating of hidden hierarchy and elitism. I would like to hear what one peasant anarchist say, but nobody respect and nobody publish what say one man who work on the land.
there were so many anarchist in spain 1936/39 but we can read only what said the most prominent anarchists from that time. but why no one noted/wrote what thought and said peasants? if we are really for equality, why we don't respect peasant at the same level as we respect academics who criticize or maybe even support anarchist idea?
so, power to the people!

here is list of texts/standpoints of homeless-anarchist: link

[Superdog]

chomsky said anytime that he is anarchist, or maybe he represented anarchism publicly? no? than he is not.

He calls himself a "libertarian socialist" and wrote an introduction to anarcho-syndacalism by Rudolph Rocker and has a book called Chomsky on Anarchism where he talks about how awesome anarchism is. Sooo....yeah

[ambi]

"as soon as you describe elementary reality and attribute minimal rationality to people with power - well that's fine as along as it's an enemy, but if it's part of domestic power, it's a "conspiracy theory" and you're not supposed to talk about it...So, the first thing I would suggest is, drop the term." -- noam chomsky.

"Look, this is just conspiracy theory." -- noam chomsky to barry zwicker on 9/11

i liked books like what uncle sam really wants too back in the 90s. even so, it always bugged me that chomsky was incredibly inconsistent on issues like voting. i didn't really understand until his 9/11 book, at which point i realized the guy's a sham.

barry zwicker does the best job of deconstructing chomsky in his book towers of deception... luckily the chapter is available online in three parts here

[scarydreams]

i really appreciate alot of what Noam Chomsky has done for us and this movement, thats why I've been especially hurt by his recent comments. Discounting the whole 9-11 debacle as 'conspiracy theory' is despicable, and of course it matters, its altered the course of world events considerably in the last 7 years. i expected more from him.

[Francois Tremblay]

I don't know if you guys have read this entry. It's been propagated in left-lib circles:
http://www.theartofthepossible.net/ ... anarchism/
Pretty much says everything that needs to be said about Chomsky's government fetishism.

[ambi]

thanks for that link.

Chomsky’s aim is in effect anarchy, but not yet.

in other words, a gatekeeper.

[|Y|]

As are all anarchists who don't work toward achieving it here and now, really. If you sit by thinking it will happen "a long time from now" while participating in whatever quasi-anarchists behaviors that make you feel better, you aren't doing much.

Of course, I wouldn't expect anyone to do much, so it's all good. Those who can, will.

And not "a long time from now."