Noam Chomsky on the Responsibility of Intellectuals: Redux

September 22, 2011 - Wong Auditorium, MIT - In 1967, as the Vietnam War escalated, Noam Chomsky penned The Responsibility of Intellectuals, a stunning rebuke to scientists and scholars for their subservience to political power. Today we face a similar array of crises, from wars to escalating debt. What are the obligations of intellectuals in this day and age? Introduction by Joshua Cohen.
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[@scottstevens388]

Starts at 6:55. Long rambling intro unnecessary.

[@nyceyes]

Thank you. 😊

[@doreekaplan2589]

Just say thank you as no one likes complaints.

[@jamesmoseley5428]

I'm working towards my ph.d in history at a supposedly prestigious university, Claremont California. The more I progress the more I realize how far behind the general public we are on key issues. You can't say Noam Chomsky without a professor interrupting you and condemning him. You can't cite him in your essays (not if you want to pass) and you can't ask why historians aren't discussing these key issues in our society. My professor has repeatedly lectured me on being "political" but i don't use political or fiery rhetoric. I'm simply a "biased hot headed radical" because some of my essays cover the genocide in East Timor, the mass murders of chile, the Israeli protests against their own government after the right winged Likud party took control... I'm supposed to transcend the "squabbles of the populous." Apparently I belong to "a gifted class of men (yeah he said men) that see the greater truth behind the political divisions." i think that is code for "we are too cowardly to intellectually go where non-academic people go every day."

[@mck1972]

James Moseley, I don't know whether your professors have some bias against Chomsky or not. Nor do I know to what degree Chomsky was personally responsible for reporting the stories you refer to-As opposed to just reprinting the work of others. But I DO know that Chomsky criticizes others in areas that he has ZERO Real World Experience in himself, and with the great luxury of 20/20 Hindsight. This is the forensic equivalent of Chomsky watching video of Last Week's NFL game, pointing out the losing team's mistakes, and using that knowledge to judge the performance of the players & coaches on the field! Which makes Chomsky no more than a very intelligent-sounding Monday-Morning-Quarterback, and renders his criticisms of others essentially worthless! And so the WORSE our Policy-Makers who Chomsky criticizes are, then the WORSE it makes Chomsky look for NEVER even trying to attain a Policy-Making position, and show he can do a better job, himself! So this is something to think about before you place too much value on Chomsky's views.

[@SandhillCrane42]

Apparently, this is the world the most intelligent and responsible people among us have created. They give one another a hand up, preventing the common man from orchestrating his foolish endeavors for his selfish desires. It's so hopeless it's staggering. And M CK is a recreational Chomsky hater. Yeah Chomsky, I'd like to see you run the country better! Ok. And who's running the country?

[@HuckTheUser]

@@mck1972 You're missing the point entirely. Chomsky advocates real change always comes from mass popular pressure not "policy-makers". At best, leaders step in to take credit for beneficial reforms demanded by mass popular movements. At worst (and by far much more commonly), they cozy up to the powerful and screw over everyone else. For Chomsky to try to become a "policy maker", would be a contradiction of his entire political thesis, which would be obvious to anyone that paid any attention to what he has said.

[@mck1972]

@@HuckTheUser , LOL It is you & apuat who apparently fail to grasp that after the, ' masses ', have spoken, someone still must make decisions, and take action, going forward, or else nothing will ever get done! As opposed to Chomsky's history of worthless complaining from the sidelines, about fields that he has never worked in himself! Which I actually have listened to quite a bit! Smh

[@propitupdaily-oc7oq]

@@mck1972 lmfao, this is crock of bs. Imagine suggesting Noam Chomsky's criticisms are worthless 'because he hasnt had direct experience---what a joke. Complete waste of typing those 3 paragraphs, cant believe people allow their bias to manifest as pure daftness

[@TheAbraxasNexus]

Everyone should have a granddad like Noam

[@SandhillCrane42]

When I grow up, I want to be a wild man in the wings.

[@mahmoudyehia7800]

Chomsky starts at 07:07

[@beancube2010]

Idea matters but tests and new tests are new ideas.

[@ReeceofConsciousness]

Chomsy studies linguists and with that if the human brain is inherently born with the mechanisms for language. In coherence with "The Blank Slate" this would mean whether we are completely open to learning any sort of language or whether the means are inherent in the brain. Just my opinion, but I've read both authors extensively and this seems to make some sense.

[@rohgenextfan]

Heheh, that should be on Penn Jillete's tombstone. "Penn Jillete: Amazing Atheist!!"

[@davidschulz9558]

If you go to "bloggingheads.tv" and search "Noam Chomsky" in the top right corner, you'll find a conversation between Robert Wright and Steven Pinker where Chomsky comes up a few times early on. Cheers!

[@shodanxx]

anyone knows the relation between Chomsky and Steven Pinker ? he mentions him in The Blank Slate in a seemingly positive way

[@jamesragsdale8202]

Their friends since they were both major intellectuals in Cambridge Massachusetts but they have very different political views and very different cultural stances.

[@NicoleEtJoelle]

2 people are responsible intellectuals.

[@chrisknight7813]

To read Chomsky's latest book for free, 'The Responsibility of Intellectuals: Reflections by Noam Chomsky and Others after 50 years', go to this link: discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10080589/1/The-Responsibility-of-Intellectuals.pdf

[@shodanxx]

seirously, guy in the beginning, be concise and Do. Not. Put. A. Pause. Between. Every. Words. also 7 minutes of essentially advertising is not the kind of thing that Noam Chomsky-interested viewer want to ear

[@cfr5005]

hello my name is blah blah blah and here are some wordsssss me me me 7 minutes later Noam Chomsky everybody!

[@JesusisLord12343]

lol

[@SandhillCrane42]

Ha, every Chomsky lecture begins that way. Noam Chomsky is 12 feet tall and has thrown bales of hay over the moon, his achievements include...my uncle once had a dog...and that was how I became familiar with elementary hydraulics... Boo! Get off the stage!

[@Davemac1116]

@28:01 “...[T]hey even challenge the institutions for the indoctrination of the young.” Lol. They (Trilateral Commission Chomsky’s quoting) don’t even blink at the irony of this statement !

[@bryncomeaux]

uh yeah actually

[@10kfpoLMSportal]

Judge a person by his works not by jargon such as intellectual and poster-boy !! According to the Arts and Humanities Citation Index in 1992, Chomsky was cited as a source more often than any other living scholar from 1980 to 1992, and was the eighth most cited source overall.

[@mck1972]

Which merely proves that Chomsky has the ability to recite facts & figures-with the great luxury of 20/20 Hindsight-Nothing More...

[@coreycox2345]

This is because he has a remarkable grasp of history and is a great analyst, Himanshu Rai.

[@eddiemaxblack]

Noam Chomsky is great.

[@philippedamphousse7293]

Useless ego guy with the introduction. Starts at 7mins

[@OD533]

7:10 skip bs

[@nyccarini]

what is this guy, the poster boy of intellectuals?

[@mck1972]

Sadly, yes...

[@coreycox2345]

For those who have any sense, Takht.

[@benweb1105]

He may have many merits but nobody could be called "father of modern linguistics" without starting to study the Real Science of Linguistics which start with Petro Zheji work: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petro_Zheji ...those who are interested to learn the truth... which N. Chomsky advice... should start learning Albanian history and language!

[@borjon23]

Yeah, being a atheist is unquestionably his most notable contribution to learning. He's always spoken of little else! That should be the epitaph on his gravestone: "Noam Chomsky: Amazing atheist!!"

[@jamesragsdale8202]

What an evil statement and lie!

[@bryncomeaux]

law breaking is not the same as being an anarchist living without exploitive authority is

[@AntiChrista4WPeace]

Shared, respect. But regards to Obama, may I remind Hon. Chomsky to go back 3 years in history of GOP's, Financial, Media + more, boycotts. Tha's who calling Obama's shot. He is alone. Behind the scene, google Jim Douglass JFK Obama and the Unspeakable.... Please comment. Facebook-Flower for World Peace.

[@antartica1999]

Amazing atheist

[@brandynhenry7107]

If you want to skip bs, just don't watch this, it's an hour and a half of it.