> Let's keep in mind this [Chomsky] is the same guy
> who's the subject of AK Press's recent
> _Chomsky_On_Anarchism_ book, which is actually pretty
> good [I'm a "Friend of AK Press," FYI]; that he wrote
> the preface for the French queer radical Daniel
> Guerin's _Anarchism_, published by Monthly Review
> Press; and that he also wrote the intro to Rudolf
> Rocker's _Anarcho-Syndicalism_ that Pluto Press
> publishes -- among many, many other things. The first
> time I was introduced to Chomsky was in an issue of
> the punk 'zine Maximum Rock-n-Roll in the early 1990s,
> and since then he's technically had split releases
> with Bad Religion and Chumbawamba, as if he were a
> band. The underground punk label Epitaph even released
> "Old Wine, New Bottles" of his in the 1990s, when that
> label still had some cred. He's a card-carrying IWW
> member. He doesn't seem to be radical enough for some
> -- yet is also not useful to establishment liberals,
> either. Give him a break. Should he come out
> red-faced, blood boiling, red-and-black flags draped
> over his podium, every time he talks somewhere?
I hope this isn't directed at me, because generally I think that Chomsky is doing an excellent job of representing my ideas. I would be uncomfortable if Chomsky started spouting anarchist theory from the podium. Part of being a good communicator and theorist is being able to communicate your ideas without resorting to jargon and labels. And I think that anybody who is interested in Chomsky will find out his political affiliation.
On th other hand, I welcome the growing criticism of Chomsky from my comrades. More than a few of us have pointed out Chomsky's disappointing silence about the alternative radical press. Chomsky has also disappointed many anarchists through his refusal to be consistently radical--witness his endorsement of Kerry in 2004. I think that Chomsky wants to please his liberal left audience and sells his radical comrades short with these waffling positions. It's like Chomsky wants to be respected by the mainstream and is uncomfortable with radicals. Given his fame and appreciation around the world, I just don't understand why Chomsky isn't more outspokenly radical.
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