Noam Chomsky on the State-Corporate Complex: A Threat to Freedom and Survival

[michael616joaquin]

the guy at the beginning is annoying..

[musick2138]

> a talk by academic, author and political activist Noam Chomsky

WHEN?

[ellistheisland]

""There is a standard technique of privatization. Namely, defund what you want to privatize; like when Thatcher wanted to privatize the railroads, first thing to do is defund them, then they don't work, then people want change. And so you say "OK, privatize them," and then they get worse. . . . That is the standard technique of privatization. Defund, make sure things don't work, people get angry, hand it over to private capital. Well that's the social security scam." 1:09: 00 -- 1:10: 00

[ellistheisland]

"The goal of marketing is to undermine markets by creating uninformed consumers who will make irrational choices. The business world spends huge efforts on that. And the same is true for the PR industry -- it turns to undermining democracy, it wants to construct elections in which uninformed voters will make irrational choices." - Noam Chomsky

[MagicByEli]

"the real level of unemployment is at the level of the great depression for much of the population...and in fact their situation (discussing manufacturing workers, and certain other sectors) is much worse than in that of the great depression..."

LOL. This recession is nothing. If the thirties was like being Brian Robeson from Hatchet, this recession is like overnight camping, with a sleeping bag, a gun, matches, a tent, and some boxes of pizza.

Other than that blip, great talk. :)

[Letes92]

@MagicByEli

you have facts and numbers on this?

[MagicByEli]

@Letes92 Of course. Unemployment during the Great Depression was around 25% at it's nadir, for the general population. The peak level of unemployment in this recession was 10%. Even if you limit it to construction workers, who have been hit hardest by the downturn, their unemployment peaked at 22.5%. That's similar to levels the general population experienced during the depression, but that's leaving out that there's now an (albeit tattered) social safety net, which was absent in the thirties.

[system0system0]

i wanna be a bolivian!

[system0system0]

He will be gone and then no one will be educated anymore. Ignorance is growing and im sad.

[ZombieSteevo]

00:07 NO PHOTOGRAPHY.

little did she know the whole thing would reach youtube

[gwachberg]

2o minutes introduction. amazing.

[JohnsonPollock]

Why doesn't that girl sit down from 1:27:50 to the end? She just stands there flipping her hair.

[turquoiselagoon]

A true master... never take away the stage from this man. Who is this lady? Must be on a schedule. Get off the stage and let the man speak!!! Late!!!

[tomdamho]

Who dislikes these videos? Feel free to Google anything he says, I do.

[jukamel]

@tomdamho Consumate Jingoists dislike what he says. The funny thing is that I have never read or heard one single counterpoint against Chomsky that had any basis in reality. The REAL bummer is that I have gotten into debates with free-market-idealogues that quote Milton Friedman as if he wasn't a propagandist, while finding it perfectly reasonable to discount what Noam says based solely on their loyalty to their ideology.

[lightandbeautiful]

Homosexual activists understand the power of words.

Please visit my channel to watch a one-minute video clip in which popular atheist author Richard Dawkins admits that homosexual activists "hijacked the word 'gay'".

The word "homosexual" is more appropriate and accurate because it, unlike the word "gay", actually describes the behavior/attraction/relationsh­ip being discussed.

The word "gay" helps homosexual activists push their agenda.

[faunchile]

@lightandbeautiful What is this 'agenda' you speak of? Surely only to have the same rights and respect as any other people?

[normalkuriboh]

@lightandbeautiful Stop promoting your channel.

[Duggins888]

Excellent speech but this information makes the possible repairs insurmountable to the common working person with their daily routine and worries. He states the truth in that there will be continued withering and then finally total collapse of the very system that we live in and believe in. It is like looking up at a fifty foot wall and knowing that somehow you must get through to the other side so that future generations can continue even in a diminished sense of what we have now. What now?

[manezz82]

@Duggins888 Well said, but I wonder the exact same thing as you do, what now?

[JohnsonPollock]

@Duggins888 Morris Berman says America is over. He recommends leaving it as he did, before total collapse occurs and totalitarianism takes over completely.

[trexpaddock]

FYI Skip the 1st 20 mins!

[Theknopf]

MAKES ME FEEL AT HOME UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO MY BROTHER WENT TO THIS SCHOOL.MUNK DEBATES ARE THEIR TO MAKE MONEY

[tstruss912]

I love hearing "Uh, well..." That's how I know Noam is about to start droppin truth-bombs on those filthy propaganda mills.

[SWISHAMANE1]

White people are stupid!! Okham's Razor hoes!! Ha Ha!! Sorry, LOL! Right???

[seppukuification925]

that dude in the beginning has a girls voice

[Xwaxtaxper]

Sorry, but where was the "debate"?

[ravenouscolonelhart]

I don't think Harris has supported American wars overseas at all. He does not support the Iraq war. On the other hand, prominent left intellectuals have basically ignored or culturally excused the negative aspects of Islamist ideology, so Harris is right to point out that however corrupt and harmful US policy is, this does not make it reasonable to ignore the human rights violations committed in the name of Islam or their basis in the ideology of Islam. Islam and women's rights are incompatible.

[GOODWILL8726]

@ravenouscolonelhart , everywhere religion is used to control people, to keep them under the influence of the religion. but it's undeniable fact that everywhere religion serves the government, the policy. that's why don't say that Islam & women's rights are incomatible.I won't speak here about Islam, or any other religion.just know one thing Allah/ God gave all people equal rights to live in this world but some think that they have the right to control all over the world

[nonners21]

Chomsky is on at 19:42

[liverbitz91]

Noam starts talking at 0:20:00

[Aiden057]

What was the actual date of this talk? I see it was uplaoded in April, so I'm assuming it was around then, but I'm just curious as to the actual date. Again, thanks so much for posting this and my compliments to the technical team for excellent sound and picture quality.

[BloggerMusicMan]

@Aiden057

April 7th, 2011...I think

[Aiden057]

Thank you so much for posting this important lecture.

[metyzermanfan19]

How is international mining Canada's fault?!

[metyzermanfan19]

University of Toronto!!! Woo! lol

[pablo4115]

i very much like listening to chomsky but at 15:37 i'm afraid i have to shoot myself in the head.

[pablo4115]

i don't know about you but when i click on a chomsky upload i want to spend forever listening to someone else waffle. gimme a break. the academese of the first contributor is so in contrast to chomsky's straightforward prose.

[sugersnook]

Semra needs to keep things in perspective (the event not having anything to di with her) and show some respect for the invited guest and go sit down.

[DjWellDressedMan]

Chomsky mentions:

Thomas Ferguson, Golden Rule: The Investment Theory of Party Competition and the Logic of Money-Driven Politics, 1987

[TheNamezor]

Hitchens and Harris are nothing more then warmongering neocon scum. I'm glad that Noam Chomsky cleared that out.

[BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER]

@theawesomemanman-I am not going to waste any more words on you. Watch this documentary. You can thank me later. youtube.com/watch?v=YtevF4B4Rt­Q

[BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER]

@theawesomemanman-BAWHAHAHAHA!­!! 98% in fact DON'T BELIEVE IN GLOBAL WARMING. You need to do some real research on the subject before quoting your "so-called facts" from the main stream media. Sorry pal, i'm not part of this Global Warming-CULT that you seem to be so in love with. All I can say again it

PLEASE DO SOME RESEARCH SIR!!!

[BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER]

I can believe him on everything except the "GLOBAL WARMING SCAM" EVERYONE KNOWS GLOBAL WARMING IS A SCAM BY THE GLOBALIST TO CONTROL YOU FROM CRADLE TO THE GRAVE, BY SAYING THAT C02 IS KILLING EVERYTHING, WHEN ITS THE SUN THAT IS THE MAJOR DRIVER TO TEMPERATURE CHANGE. The globalist want to depopulate "mother earth" to supposedly save it. No better way to depopulate the earth than by saying if we only had less humans the temperature will decrease. ITS ALL BULL SHIT. VOTE RON PAUL-2012!!!

[fallenempireoverdrve]

@BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER fuck off

[BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER]

@fallenempireoverdrve-SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU BRAIN DEAD ZOMBIE. Everything you see on the "almighty" T.V you believe don't you. DUMB ASS!!!!

[fallenempireoverdrve]

@BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER No i believe what i learn in school and read in science journals.Now where did you here that global warming was a myth, let me guess fox news, Sarah palin or your pseudo god Ron paul. So yeah you want me to believe the people just listed over 99 percent of scientist, and i'm the "BRAIN DEAD ZOMBIE"?

[BLACKPUSSYPUNISHER]

@fallenempireoverdrve-Oh, I know you learned this in school. Exactly what "think tanks" such as the Rockefeller Foundation wants to teach you. Watch this documentary...You can thank me later.

youtube.com/watch?v=Ov0WwtPcAL­E

[wubbadubdub]

jesus, that chick in the beginning has a flexible neck. just read the damn script if you can't look the crowd in the face.

[nailofwit]

Man, stop fucking with his mic during the conversation...

[scorchedearthdj]

That introduction was way too long

[AdoraV7]

Miss Piggy is extremely irritating.

[borjon23]

@AdoraV7

Best in that case to restrict your criticism to the behaviour and not remark on her appearance.

[AdoraV7]

@borjon23

I agree with you, and I welcome your comment, but in this case it was her behaviour that reminded me of Miss Piggy. Appearance just happens to correspond.

[cameronmichaelkeys]

If you were someone who had no capacity to register Chomsky's irony and sarcasm, he often sounds like Lord Palmerston.

[cameronmichaelkeys]

He mentions Harry Dexter White's role in the Bretton Woods system. He doesn't mention that White's testimony before the Senate Committee prior to Nixon's amendation of the charter of the IMF in 1970 is to this day classified. Efforts to release this testimony have been met with fierce legal opposition. What did Harry Dexter White say that merits his remarks being declared classified? Do they threaten national security because they may lead to a reformation of public tastes?

[cameronmichaelkeys]

He's saying that democracy was created in a colonial context (the masters of mankind), and that industrialized societies are careful not to export democracy to countries without first or simultaneously exporting financial hegemony. Democracy if independent of this financial hegemony produces surprising results, as in the case of Bolivia. The Middle East uprisings are potentially interesting because we will see the masters of mankind exporting their public relations power to stifle democracy.

[BloggerMusicMan]

I was at this lecture. It was amazing, and seeing him speak outside at the Munk protests outside Simcoe Hall was also certainly a treat.

[gunnerfan87]

@BloggerMusicMan

Lucky you. I live in Toronto and I MISSED IT :( I used to check Chomsky.info Now I realize those are talks he's already given. His new talks were posted on his Facebook page.

[BloggerMusicMan]

@gunnerfan87

That sucks. A little misleading on the part of the web designers, I don't blame you for thinking lectures would be posted there, but yeah, checking all resources to for sure see where he was speaking would have been a good idea early on.

Hopefully he'll be around again, although sadly he is getting old, and he needed help just walking and getting around.

[gunnerfan87]

@BloggerMusicMan

If I get enough from my summer job, I may attend another of his talks next year, don't care if I have to go Australia or UK or wherever.

But Finkelstein is following in his footsteps.

[acedshort]

This moderator is a nice looking guy.

[stoprainingonme]

@acedshort I thought it was Dustin Hoffman.

[TheLockon00]

Sad face. After reading all the comments I was hoping for on the Hitchens/Harris part. He didn't say much at all, pretty much just that they're lap-dogs for state violence and that's fucked up. Didn't really say anything about they're philosophies or the like.

[bcn533]

@TheLockon00 You shouldn't be lumping the two together as they don't have the same views.

[TheLockon00]

@bcn533 ???? I never said they had the same exact views, though they do have many similar ones. Chomsky's the one lumping them together, poorly I might add. While we're at it, we should point out that Chomsky's labelling of them as members of the state religion or whatever is ridiculous and kind of beneath him.

[bcn533]

@TheLockon00 Glad to know we agree. It's not always easy to know how to read a comment. I guess I mis-read you. Sorry.

[TheLockon00]

@bcn533 It's all good.

[gunnerfan87]

Harris and Hitchens are intellectual midgets. Put them both in a live debate against Chomsky and they'll get bulldozed by facts. This man's ability to cut through the propaganda is UNPARALLED.

Sir, it is an HONOR to live in your time.

[bcn533]

@gunnerfan87 You must be joking. Your comment is ironic in that it actually reflects unfavorably on your own intellect. Harris may be wrong on some things. Hitchens may be wrong on some things. But they are both most certainly not stupid. On the contrary, they're clearly brilliant men. As is Chomsky. I share your immense respect for the man.

PS-You might want to check out Hitchens in a few debates. The man is a force in a debate format. (for the record, I disagree with his foreign policy views)

[gunnerfan87]

@bcn533

"Intellectual midgets" was made in the context of foreign policy. May be I should have made that explicit.

[HistorySkeptic]

Hitchens & Harris critique at 1:48:00

[bcn533]

@HistorySkeptic You call that a critique? That is Chomsky off his game. He hasn't even done his homework as he attacks Harris as though he takes the same foreign policy positions as Hitchens. Well, I've got news O ignorant viewer: Harris does not support the Iraq war. Nor does he advocate torturing suspected terrorists. Do your homework.

[HistorySkeptic]

@bcn533 okay...... i just looked at what you're replying to and my comment was simply to help out anyone interested in AndrewMann552's highly rated comment above about Chomsky's "critique" of H&H. I watched the entire talk waiting for just that & thought I might help someone else out who too was interested. I like Chomsky a lot, but I realize he isn't "God," and yes I agree with you here; he was talking outta his ass about Harris. Thanks for setting me straight, not ;)

[shallbeagain]

Chomsky on Fox News? Was she joking?

[kaymanklynman]

CHOMSKY IS THE BEST TEACHER I HAVE.

[scdlbrdr]

Next Halloween I'm going to be Chomsky.

[mikkelchap]

Difficult to find ...

Thanks for the upload. I am miffed it was sold out before I could get a ticket.

[TheTeeOhDoubleDTV]

@mikkelchap same thing happened at my school (Carleton), had to watch it in the room right below on a screen, what a tease!

[stoprainingonme]

@LothairApoclyane He blames violence committed by Muslims almost exclusively on Islamic fundamentalism. This plays into power interests.

[bcn533]

@stoprainingonme "plays into power interests"? What? Are you implying that Harris is disingenuous in making the arguments he does regarding the cause of 9/11? His view may "play into power interests", but is it correct? That is the first question we should be asking.

[stoprainingonme]

@bcn533 No, I don't think Harris is disingenuous.  'Is it correct?'. This is certainly the first question we should be asking. No, it's not. 9/11 was a response to decades of violent intervention in the middle-east, particularly support for Israel. To blame Islamic fundamentalism absolves the White House (and others) from guilt and provides an excuse to carry on oppressing the people of the middle east.

[AndrewMann552]

Good to see Chomsky give a good kick in the face to Hitchens and Harris, I'm tired of dumb kids trying to behave as if admiring them gives you intellectual credentials.

[bcn533]

@AndrewMann552 An attempt at a kick in the face that should embarrass him. What Chomsky said doesn't even make sense. Who are religious fanatics? Hitchens? Harris? the Gnu Atheists? Why? If someone wants to take issue with the stance Hitchens takes on the Iraq war and US foreign policy generally, fine, do that. But stop talking about the 'new atheists' as an ideology. Every time someone does that they immediately show they have no idea what they're talking about. continued......

[AndrewMann552]

@bcn533 That's Chomsky's point. A radical religious fundamentalist would provide your exact same response to a critique of their ideaology. Hitchens and Harris don't come across as intellectuals asking questions, but as radicals on some religious crusade against religion. Consider that most of Hitchens' points or attacks on religion don't offer anything new, he simply takes what everyone already knows and has stated and transforms it into a banner to run around for some unknown end.

[bcn533]

@AndrewMann552 You're dismissed, pal.

[emotionalinvalid]

@AndrewMann552 spot on about Hitchens. Furthermore and formost Hitchens is all about Hitchens, unlike Tariq Ali, Chomsky, Parenti, etc. Indeed they also have egos like all of us but they also speak in sympathy and in concert with the oppressed, exploited, "the 99%", etc, and help us with their participation to protest the powerful who fleece and oppress "we the people". Hitchens came to the US playing the role of communist. Fact,Hitchens born wealthy, his support for hell on Iraq no surprise.

[paullap88]

@AndrewMann552  I want to be your friend. Good show!

[bcn533]

@AndrewMann552 Case in point: Harris has never supported the war in Iraq. And he doesn't advocate that the US torture suspected terrorists, despite what the idiot questioner says. Read the The End of Faith. Or just check out his blog where he has recently clarified his views on torture (again) because of the determination of many people to misunderstand. So Harris is a "religious fanatic" because he believes in the "state religion". Nonsense. That comment is worthy only of dismissal.

[BloggerMusicMan]

@bcn533

Harris never supported the War in Iraq, but he has in the past supported torture:

ww w .huffingtonpost . com/sam-harris/in-defense-of-t­orture_b_8993 . html

He still does support waterboarding a suspect if it could cause a lack of collateral damage:

ww w . samharris . org/site/full_text/response-to­-controversy2/

[bcn533]

@BloggerMusicMan I think you should read those again. His conclusion is that torture should remain illegal but he does not think that it is always unethical. And he presents an argument. He simply points out the contradiction between being willing to cause "collateral damage" through dropping bombs, etc. but not willing to cause collateral damage of the sort that torture would cause. Note that I am not endorsing the views of Harris; just reporting them.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@bcn533 "His conclusion is that torture should remain illegal but he does not think that it is always unethical"

That's because Harris holds to the principle of 'the lesser evil'. Unfortunately he doesnt see the greater 'evil' of the US. I'm not sure where I stand on the 'lesser evil' principle. The principle on its own seems perfectly ethical, but unfortunately it is very open to abuse, ignorance and so forth. These days I'm tending toward the pacificistic philosophy of total non-violence.

[shakur420]

@AndrewMann552 No joke. I would probably try to punch hitchens in the face if I ever met him. And then explain to him that his justifications for combating what he considers threats - popular resistance that manifests itself in minor terrorism and theist beliefs - gives me expressed permission to punch him in the face. I wonder if he would even recognize the irony.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@AndrewMann552

Hitchens is overly paranoid about Islam to the point of delusion hence his support for imperialist policies. Sam Harris has no such excuse, however I rather suspect Harris is far more likely to be open to Chomsky's work, it just needs to be put to him.

Don't forget that religion is a very real problem. Harris's and Hitchens' problem is in failing to recognize that it is not nearly the biggest problem facing humanity and that it is being exacerbated by the bigger problems.

[AndrewMann552]

@TheGodlessGuitarist I agree with the majority of your points except on the idea that religion as a whole is a problem, it's a problem with bad people but no so with good people. Consider that Hitchens' Marxist beliefs have much of their political origins in the Radical Reformation and Anabaptist movement, read Engels' writings on the German Peasant Wars and Thomas Muntzer for example.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@AndrewMann552

Hmmm, well, religion teaches people to adhere to dogma and reject sceptical thought, thus making people easy to manipulate by demagogues and states. There is an execellent study of international metadata on religion and society showing a good correlation between religion and various undesireable behaviours such as murder, if you are interested.

You should probably also note that popular German support for murdering Jews came from Catholic doctrine.

[bcn533]

@TheGodlessGuitarist Unfortunately, Harris is not open to Chomsky's work (there is no doubt he is familiar with it). As I look into the political views of Harris more I find them very far away indeed from those of Chomsky (and myself), regrettably. It really is a shame that among all the books on his recommended reading list at his website there is not a single Chomsky volume. Tells you a lot about a person.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@bcn533

Interesting stuff. Hadnt though of checking Harris's site for a reading list. That is disappointing to hear that he cites no Chomsky. It does seem like it is deliberate. I can't write the guy off completely though, he is very insightful, and many of his criticisms of religion are very valid. I just feel he is missing the bigger picture. I just hope that is not for ideological reasons.

[bcn533]

@TheGodlessGuitarist There is a great deal of value in Harris' work, no question. He has been something of an idol to me since I first learned of him ('05 or '06). I have become more critical of him over time however, and in the past year it has become my opinion that he is very wrong on some very important matters. One would be the nature of American power, of course.

If you drop Harris a line and get a reply I would like to hear about it.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@bcn533 "I have become more critical of him over time however"

Likewise. I'm probably about where you are on him then.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@bcn533 "If you drop Harris a line and get a reply I would like to hear about it."

Harris is hot on ethical reasoning and I have him over a barrel with the question! His discussions of violence and torture tacitly support the greater evil in the world i.e. the US gov't, whereas Islam is much less of an issue than has been portrayed in the US press. Harris's positions are unequivocably unethical with respect to the 'issue' of the 'US vs Islam'.

Will let you know if he responds.

[TheGodlessGuitarist]

@bcn533 I might drop Harris a line and ask the question.

[VoidOnTuesday]

@AndrewMann552 Because people don't like certain philosophers because they agree with or identify with or ar interested by their arguments, they only say they feel that stuff to get street cred. Really very intellegent of you to point that out. Have a cookie

/sarcasm

[gimlithepimp88]

Date?

[paradoxicalparabola]

Chomsky at 20:00

[newdimensionfilms]

@paradoxicalparabola

Jesus christ they took their time with that intro, thanks for the heads up.

[jackbug43]

Lol i like how semra is so awkwardly close to chomsky during the Q&A :p

[buflobill]

@jackbug43 Is that your best analysis of the talk?