Noam Chomsky

Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, and social critic, born on December 7, 1928, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Often regarded as one of the most influential intellectuals of the 20th and 21st centuries, Chomsky has made groundbreaking contributions to the fields of linguistics, philosophy, and political theory.

Chomsky is best known for his work in linguistics, particularly for developing the theory of generative grammar, which revolutionized the study of language. His book Syntactic Structures (1957) is considered a foundational text in modern linguistics. Chomsky's ideas about language, especially the concept that humans have an inherent ability to learn languages, have reshaped our understanding of cognition and the mind.

In addition to his academic work, Chomsky has been an outspoken political activist, especially regarding U.S. foreign policy, corporate power, and media manipulation. His critique of American imperialism, neoliberalism, and the role of media in shaping public opinion has made him a leading figure in progressive and left-wing circles. Notable works like Manufacturing Consent (co-authored with Edward Herman), Hegemony or Survival, and The New Military Humanism reflect his critical stance on government actions and corporate control over information.

Chomsky has also written extensively on topics such as economics, social justice, and the environment, often advocating for grassroots political movements and greater democracy. Despite his political influence, he maintains a strong academic presence and continues to teach and write, with a prolific output of books, essays, and interviews.

Throughout his life, Chomsky has been a passionate advocate for human rights and free expression, and his work continues to influence not only academic fields but also political thought and activism worldwide.

Articles by the author

In the US, there is basically one party - the business party. It has two factions, called Democrats and Republicans, which are somewhat different but carry out variations on the same policies. By and large, I am opposed to those policies. As is most of the population.

Noam Chomsky

If you ask the CEO of some major corporation what he does, he will say, in all honesty, that he is slaving 20 hours a day to provide his customers with the best goods or services he can and creating the best possible working conditions for his employees.

Noam Chomsky

There's very little dislike of Americans in the world, shown by repeated polls, and the dissatisfaction - that is, the hatred and the anger - they come from acceptance of American values, not a rejection of them, and recognition that they're rejected by the U.S. government and by U.S. elites, which does lead to hatred and anger.

Noam Chomsky

Education must provide the opportunities for self-fulfillment; it can at best provide a rich and challenging environment for the individual to explore, in his own way.

Noam Chomsky

If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all.

Noam Chomsky

The major advances in speed of communication and ability to interact took place more than a century ago. The shift from sailing ships to telegraph was far more radical than that from telephone to email!

Noam Chomsky

The more you can increase fear of drugs and crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all the people.

Noam Chomsky

Significant anniversaries are solemnly commemorated - Japan's attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, for example.

Noam Chomsky

Debt is a trap, especially student debt, which is enormous, far larger than credit card debt. It's a trap for the rest of your life because the laws are designed so that you can't get out of it. If a business, say, gets in too much debt, it can declare bankruptcy, but individuals can almost never be relieved of student debt through bankruptcy.

Noam Chomsky

Social Security is based on a principle. It's based on the principle that you care about other people. You care whether the widow across town, a disabled widow, is going to be able to have food to eat.

Noam Chomsky

I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying child in Heaven - that's none of my business, ultimately. I won't lecture her on the philosophy of science.

Noam Chomsky

If there was an observer on Mars, they would probably be amazed that we have survived this long.

Noam Chomsky

The internet could be a very positive step towards education, organisation and participation in a meaningful society.

Noam Chomsky

Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws. Citizens are not supposed to know what their government is doing to them.

Noam Chomsky

If you are working 50 hours a week in a factory, you don't have time to read 10 newspapers a day and go back to declassified government archives. But such people may have far-reaching insights into the way the world works.

Noam Chomsky

The whole infrastructure of air travel was, and is, part of government policy. It is not a natural development of a free economic system - at least not in the way that is claimed. The same is true of the roads, of course.

Noam Chomsky

If workers are more insecure, that's very 'healthy' for the society, because if workers are insecure, they won't ask for wages, they won't go on strike, they won't call for benefits; they'll serve the masters gladly and passively. And that's optimal for corporations' economic health.

Noam Chomsky

What happened in the missile crisis in October 1962 has been prettified to make it look as if acts of courage and thoughtfulness abounded. The truth is that the whole episode was almost insane.

Noam Chomsky

By curious accident of history and geography, the world's major energy resources are located pretty much in Shiite regions. They're a minority in the Middle East, but they happen to be where the oil is, right around the northern part of the Gulf.

Noam Chomsky

The Bible is one of the most genocidal books in history.

Noam Chomsky