*HOWEVER*, he's also said he doesn't have faith in anything -- not the power of people to change society or "anything else." (This particular quote is from an interview @ the front of The Chomsky Reader and is often used by the right against him in their endless polemics.)
He frequently notes, for example, the massive levels of U.S. religiosity that rival those of the Mid East, and has noted that significant numbers of Americans seemed to be literally scared Saddam Hussein was going to hurt them -- citing folks' irrationality.
But his point is these things are consciously trained into people. Having taken all that into account, hammering away relentlessly with facts is about all he can do, no? Or maybe write a Broadway musical...? He said he isn't good at organizing, just getting info to people so that THEY can organize with it.
-B.
Doug Henwood wrote:
"Actually that's one of the problems I have with Chomsky, as much as I admire him. The power of fact-checking and rational argument is limited - and not just on foundational myths. We had a pretty chilly spring in the northeast this year, which has led people to say, 'What global warming?'"