Understanding Power : The Indispensable Chomsky

If you haven't delved into the works of Chomsky, this particular volume serves as an excellent starting point. It is a meticulously edited compilation of his talks, which, while being rather wide-ranging in nature, always manage to circle back to the same fundamental themes. This gives the collection a sense of cohesion and prevents it from seeming scattered or disjointed.

I initiated my reading of this book just a few days after the presidential election, harboring the hope that it could offer some insights into the universal question that had been plaguing me: "What the Fuck?" In a way, it did. Consider this example:

I believe that the United States has been in a sort of pre-fascist state of mind for quite some time now. Fortunately for us, every leader who has emerged has been a crook. You see, people should actually be quite in favor of corruption – and I'm not joking when I say this. Corruption is, in fact, a very good thing because it undermines power. For instance, if someone like Jim Bakker were to come along – that preacher who was caught having affairs with numerous people and defrauding his followers – those kinds of individuals are fine. All they desire is money, sex, and to rip people off. As a result, they are never going to cause too much trouble. Or take Nixon, for example. He was an obvious crook, and ultimately, he didn't cause that significant of a problem. However, if someone were to show up who is of the Hitler-type – someone who simply wants power, without any corruption, straightforward, and able to make it all sound appealing, and who says, "We want power" – well, then we would all be in extremely bad trouble.

Hooray for corruption! Admittedly, the pieces in this book are a little bit outdated. But let's hope that Noam is correct, at least on this particular count. We are about to find out.

I think this audio book has truly lived up to its title.

After listening to it, I feel like I now have a much better understanding of power.

"Understanding Power: The Indispensable Chomsky" is a remarkable collection of talks and discussions by the famous MIT professor of linguistics and political activist, Noam Chomsky.

Prior to engaging with this 22.5-hour audio book, I had only been exposed to one of Chomsky's works, an article I recently came across in the June 2014 issue of "The Sun" – an interview by David Barsamian titled "Noam Chomsky: On How the U.S. Breeds Inequality at Home and Instability Abroad."

That article piqued my interest enough to seek out more of his ideas.

The world Chomsky描绘的世界令人恐惧，且这种恐惧还在不断加剧。

These talks took place from the late 1980s through around 1999, so it is fascinating to hear his perspective on events and decisions that preceded the world we are living in now.

As he describes it, there is a complex web of power spreading like an interconnected cloud of darkness over the political globe.

This web is made up of an insulated class of rich and powerful people who are getting wealthier and wealthier, while 99 percent of the world's population is slowly sinking into more or less hopeless poverty.

The ruling class generally views everyone else as cannon fodder, "consumers," or simply disposable, as evidenced by the exploding U.S. prison population.

It is indeed a dark vision, but Chomsky presents so much evidence and speaks with such plain common sense that it is difficult to simply disregard.

I may be wrong, but I get the impression that Chomsky believes this world is all there is.

He seems to view religious faith as a symptom of a lower, less advanced society, at least when he talks about the American south.

He thinks the only hope lies in the people of the world organizing social activism groups and international unions.

While I do believe there is a power higher than the power of international finance, I can understand where Chomsky is coming from.

It's as if people sense they are being taken advantage of.

We know there are powerful organizations working daily against our personal interests, as seen in all our conspiracy theories.

But most of us do not understand the details: how international currency values work, how trade deals are made that further enrich the wealthy while shutting down factories in towns, or how deals are made that enable the manufacture of chemicals for short-term profit that destroy the atmosphere and who knows what else.

We don't make the effort to understand these things because most of us have so little power to influence decisions in those realms.

Even when we do understand the basics of how these things work, we feel helpless to do anything about it.

We don't have the money or the access to the fancy dinners, golf courses, conferences, and schools where deals are made that are sucking the life out of our local economies.

So, some of us go to church, believing that our prayers and activities might at least have some influence on our lives and the lives of those we love.

Chomsky might argue that this faith energy would be better spent on organizing some sort of action.

And who am I to say he is wrong?

Maybe that is exactly what God intends.

My guess is that a combination of doing and praying would be the most productive approach.

Anyway, Chomsky covers a wide range of interesting topics: the military-industrial complex and the way it is used to fund technology research to benefit corporations at the expense of taxpayers, corporations as entities of absolute power, the illusion of democratic states when it is really the moneyed interests making the decisions, the effects of international trade deals such as NAFTA on working people, unions and why they are no longer effective, the media's complicity in supporting the interests of the rich and powerful, education as indoctrination, how capitalism with its single-minded focus on short-term profit is destroying the planet, and a healthy dose of insider history about the Vietnam War and all those clandestine actions in Central America during the Reagan administration.

**Intellectual Dissident 101**

I first became acquainted with Chomsky through an interview by Rage Against the Machine's vocalist, which was included as bonus material on one of their live concert DVDs. At that time, I was an apolitical teenager in Canada, essentially a default liberal within the framework of cosmopolitan capitalism, and had little understanding of the interview topics, aside from a sense that they were "controversial". Despite some initial false starts, Chomsky's "Hegemony or Survival: America's Quest for Global Dominance" served as a wake-up call, flipping my liberal geopolitical views back to reality and introducing me to critical thinking on politics, with Chomsky becoming synonymous with "intellectual" and "dissident".

The book under review has several notable aspects. Some may critique Chomsky's presentation style, from his dry writing to his chalkboard eraser speech. However, for my past apolitical self, this volume would have been an excellent starting point. It is a superbly edited collection of his most concise lectures, including useful Q&A sessions with the audience. The essential Chomsky涵盖了多个重要主题. For instance, media literacy is a crucial tool for beginners learning about the world. It's not as simplistic as Trump reactionaries who label all "mainstream media" as "fake news". Propaganda is more nuanced, and fact-finding requires considering the target audience and various biases. Chomsky has useful lectures on this, as seen in "Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies". Similar principles apply to international news, as demonstrated in Herman/Chomsky's "Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media". Another important topic is power, both private and public. Chomsky's political roots in anarchism/libertarian socialism强调了权力需要证明其合法用途. Under capitalism, democracy is restricted, and the public must build social movements to pressure the political sphere while capitalist power reigns in the private sector. The book also touches on the changes in activism, such as the evolution of the anti-war movement and its impact on the US elite.

However, the book also has some不足之处. For example, while Chomsky sometimes references Marx/Marxist historical materialism, his anarchist leanings may cause him to overlook its importance. This leaves a significant gap in the introduction, as the changing material conditions and their impact on political bargaining power are not fully explored. Fortunately, there are resources like the "What is Politics?" video series that can help fill this gap. Additionally, Chomsky's geopolitical framework could benefit from a more in-depth exploration of the economy, and recommended books like "The Divide: A Brief Guide to Global Inequality and its Solutions" and "Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: or, How Capitalism Works—and How It Fails" can provide valuable insights.
There are also some questionable aspects in the book. For instance, Chomsky's remarks about Marxism/Leninism/real-world socialism, such as calling the USSR a "dungeon", may be counter-productive for a US audience already paranoid about Red Scare perversions of historical context. US audiences would benefit from a more comprehensive understanding, which can be achieved through resources like Vijay Prashad's "Struggle Makes Us Human: Learning from Movements for Socialism" and Michael Parenti's "Blackshirts and Reds: Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism". Another questionable point is Chomsky's claim that capitalism is against racism. While I understand his surface logic, there are strong historical and contemporary examples where capitalism directly exploits and magnifies racism for divide-and-rule purposes. This lack of a clear analysis of the short-term and long-term implications of capitalism and racism, as well as a possible overemphasis on idealism and lack of materialist analysis, makes his argument somewhat unconvincing. There are other theories on capitalism and racism, such as Eric Williams' "Capitalism & Slavery" and Gerald Horne's modern interpretations, that I find more useful. The same can be said for capitalism and patriarchy, especially in relation to care-work and "social reproduction", as explored in books like "The Invisible Heart: Economics and Family Values" and "Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto".

I'm beginning to believe that Noam is my spirit animal.

There's something about this character that deeply resonates with me.

Maybe it's his unwavering determination in the face of adversity, or perhaps it's his ability to see through the flaws of the system.

The main reason this book took me so long to read is that every few paragraphs I had to stop due to blinding rage at the system.

It's truly infuriating to see how unjust and corrupt the world can be.

But Noam gives me hope.

He shows that even in the darkest of times, there is still a chance for change.

I find myself constantly rooting for him, hoping that he'll be able to make a difference and bring about the justice that so many deserve.

This book has not only entertained me but also made me think deeply about the state of our society and what we can do to make it a better place.

The text seems to be a rather brief and somewhat critical assessment of something related to Chomsky. It starts by stating that the content is not what was expected (not a collection of greatest hits), which is annoying. Then it mentions the issue of footnotes being on a website somewhere, and clarifies that Chomsky's footnotes were more often citations, including to his own prior work, rather than just explanations. Finally, it concludes by saying it's standard Chomsky stuff, solid, and so on.

Perhaps this could be expanded as follows:

The work in question fails to meet the anticipation of being a collection of greatest hits, which is rather frustrating. Additionally, the placement of footnotes on a website elsewhere is an annoyance. It should be noted, however, that Chomsky's footnotes typically serve as citations, often referring to his own previous work, rather than mere explanations. Overall, it is the standard Chomsky material, which is solid in its own right.

Despite the initial disappointment and the inconvenience of the footnote placement, there is still value to be found in this work, as it adheres to the established style and substance that is characteristic of Chomsky's contributions.

Noam Chomsky presents a compelling argument that our media and government are under the control of ultra-wealthy corporate interests, which aim to subjugate the average American, regardless of their ethnicity. He provides more evidence than any other source I've come across. Some of his key points include:

- Conservative critics of 'welfare' are actually among its largest beneficiaries. Taxpayer-subsidized handouts are given to defense and technology research firms like IBM and Boeing. This shows that our capitalist system is highly state-run and controlled, with the intention of protecting the rich and suppressing the poor.

- Big media, such as CNN, FOX, and corporate channels, as well as newspapers like the New York Times and WSJ, only cover the topics that are approved by their financial backers. Real journalism is completely ignored, as supported by studies of their coverage.

- The average worker is being severely disadvantaged in terms of paid leave, representation, wages, and working hours, compared to the top 10% who deliberately maintain the status quo.

After presenting these points, Chomsky addresses those who roll their eyes and dismiss his ideas as 'conspiracy theories'. He argues that if these same points were about Soviet planning, no one would call it a conspiracy theory. However, as soon as we start discussing anything related to the West, it is immediately labeled as a conspiracy theory rather than just planning. According to Chomsky, 'planning' is not allowed to exist in the West.

Free Palestine is a cause that has been long fought for. The people of Palestine have endured great hardships and injustices for far too long.

They have been deprived of their basic rights, including the right to live in peace, the right to self-determination, and the right to their own land.

The international community has a moral obligation to support the Palestinian people in their struggle for freedom and justice.

We must condemn the occupation and all forms of violence and oppression against the Palestinians.

We must work towards a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, based on the principles of international law and human rights.

Free Palestine is not just a slogan, but a call to action. It is a call for all of us to stand up for what is right and to support the Palestinian people in their pursuit of freedom and dignity.

Let us join hands and work together to make this happen.

In the 21st century, it is an open secret that the United States has wreaked more havoc on the world than any other country in modern times. This knowledge is indeed one of the standard rites of passage in the education of world history and politics. I witnessed it firsthand during my travels through Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, which were completely devastated by the US. It was then that I first realized that the history of the world is far more tragic than I had ever imagined. Every subsequent travel of mine uncovered a little more of the history of human suffering. The story is the same and sad everywhere. It is not even a matter of ideology, as ideologies merely serve their master, power with a capital P, relentlessly attacking freedom around the world, whether it is in Russia or Guatemala.

By the time I began reading this book, I could have claimed to have a fairly good understanding of world history and politics. However, after reading it, I realized that all I knew was just the tip of the iceberg, with a much uglier underside of history struggling to break free from the powerful propaganda machine. It makes me wonder at times what a farce we live in. No, it is not a world of conspiracy theories. It is a world of whitewashed histories. Although the book mainly focuses on the US and exposes its disgusting campaigns around the world to undermine free-spiritedness, it reveals what happens when power goes to extreme lengths to preserve itself. How every popular institution in society is ultimately a mercenary of power. How people are bred and groomed for conformity and obedience, ultimately becoming cogs in the great machine. Hence the truism that it is not a matter of the system not working; in fact, the system is working precisely as it is designed to be, to keep freedom at bay at all costs.

Yet the takeaway from this book is not one of despair but of immense hope. It may seem almost paradoxical to reach this conclusion. But the truth is that we have come a long way on this journey to freedom. Although we still have a long way to go, our self-determination serves as a tiny flicker of hope against the vast darkness of the path ahead.