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Noam Chomsky warns against rise of extremists using poverty to attract support
Friday, 30 October 2009
Professor Noam Chomsky who will deliver the annual Amnesty International lecture during the Belfast Festival at Queen's University
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Far-right political groups could use rising poverty to attract support for their extremist policies, leading international commentator Noam Chomsky warned today.
Professor Chomsky met students ahead of giving the annual Amnesty International lecture as part of the Belfast Festival at Queen's University.
He warned that in the US right-wing voices are trying to tap-in to grievances and he urged communities around the world to mobilise against poverty and inequality in their society as a safeguard against extremism.
"In the US, inequality has soared to unprecedented heights," he said.
"There is now a mass of people with real grievances, who want answers but are not receiving them.
"The far-right is providing answers that are completely crazy: that rich liberals are giving their hard-earned money away to illegal immigrants and the shiftless poor.
"A common reaction in elite educated circles and much of the left is to ridicule the right-wing protesters, but that is a serious error.
"The correct reaction is to examine our own failures. The grievances are quite real and should be taken seriously."
The leading intellectual said history showed that it would be a mistake to fail to answer those calls.
"If the protesters are getting crazy answers from the hard-line right-wing extreme, the proper reaction is to provide the right answers, and do something about them," he said.
"An organised public can achieve a great deal, as we see right now in many places.
"In South America, there are at last serious steps to confront poverty and other severe human rights abuses. The driving force is mass popular movements.
"They are beginning to address what Amnesty calls 'the unheard truth': that 'poverty is the world's worst human rights crisis, this generation's greatest struggle'."
Amnesty International's Northern Ireland programme director Patrick Corrigan said Noam Chomsky's message is as relevant for people in Belfast as it is for those in Beirut, Baghdad or Beijing.
"We all have a responsibility to stand up for justice and to stand against those who would take away the human rights of the most vulnerable," said the Amnesty spokesman.
"By standing together, through organisations like Amnesty International, ordinary people can make a call for justice which will be heard in all the world's capitals."
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Chomsky is a hard line communist. Anyone that listens to him and agrees with him is lost. He would side with any dictator who takes freedom from the people. Being a friend of Lenin would be right down his alley.
Posted by Marie | 25.04.10, 04:27 GMT
Certainly the pendulum will swing the opposite direction and extreme right may prevail as we are currently experiencing the radical extreme communist left at the moment. I hope chomsky didn't expect the extreme left to prevail forever.
Posted by LEL | 25.04.10, 01:07 GMT
Paul from Craigavon states "What a bunch of stale old left-wing drivel".
Chomsky wrote about right wing military dictateships in Latin America , which are called "fledgeling democracies" , and how their military are trained by the US in counter insurgency against its own people.
Maybe that is stale old-left wing drivel to you.
Maybe the CIA backed coup in Chile was a stale old left wing piece of drivel.
What about the US funding and and support for the Contras in Nicuaraga , the Contras , a terrorist army if they were not funded by the US.
Posted by Steve | 01.11.09, 10:57 GMT
Paul if you bothered to read the article and what Chomsky says elsewhere you would know that he is not an Obama fan. As for left-wing drivel he is criticising 'the left'. He is saying that poverty creates grievances and that can lead some to support the extreme right. Fact. Look at England - most BNP supporters are working class people with genuine concerns. Chomsky is saying that these people are being fooled by the right-wing extremists but it is wrong to ridicule them. "The grievances are quite real and should be taken seriously." That isn't left-wing drivel that is factual. But then again Paul in Craigavon I doubt you even read the article before spouting off in a rant.
Posted by Dave in Newry | 31.10.09, 18:55 GMT
Chomsky: "A common reaction in elite educated circles and much of the left is to ridicule the right-wing protesters, but that is a serious error. The correct reaction is to examine our own failures."
Absolutely, Naom. Now you are beginning to understand!
Posted by Paul, Craigavon | 31.10.09, 16:59 GMT
While rational people can be persuaded by rational argument, it is much harder to deal with irrationality. This is the great Republican advantage. Their base is totally irrational. Persuasion will require more than rational alternatives.
The only thing that will work is an appeal to emotions. Democrats, other than Franklin Roosevelt) have rarely been very good at such appeals, but they must learn.
Posted by Paco | 31.10.09, 13:16 GMT
Anyone who has witnessed a recent "tea party" can see rightwing propaganda in action. Yes the right will use the very poverty they help to create to divide the masses upon themselves.
As far as spendig goes, Paul, at least the wars are now on the budget. I guesss if the spending occurs off budget it never happened. By the way who started these wars and why? If the money the U.S. spends to kill people was spent on helping people we would all be better off.
In the end I am tired of the rightwing liars blaming others for the suffering that they themselves cause. The left is not perfect but far far better for the world as a whole.
Posted by dave | 31.10.09, 11:48 GMT
every now and then we get something useful from him
Posted by LT | 31.10.09, 11:04 GMT
"There is now a mass of people with real grievances,who want answers but are not receiving them". One of the grievances is having to watch Amnesty International, Human Rights and other like-minded groups putting their full weight of support behind the deviants in society, while undeniably ignoring the plight of the law-abiding citizens. I've seen relatives of victims condemned to a life of misery, brought about by people who these simple-minded do-gooders gather round and demand assurances that they get the best possible treatment and leniency. And Noam Chomsky, you also talk about people not getting answers. Well, I'm afraid neither you nor the groups I've mentioned are in a position to even understand the reasoning behind the questions.
Posted by Daniel | 31.10.09, 00:56 GMT
What a bunch of the old conservative bad mouthing of anything Liberal and Progressive!
The republicans are bound and determined to see our President fail during his first term in office. This means voting against any (and I mean any) piece of Progressive legislation that would provide such non-conservative legislation such as health insurance for all Americans' including the 47 million uninsured.
Posted by Dan | 31.10.09, 00:19 GMT
Well said Paul- Noam is spouting the usual leftist-liberal nonsensical lies. What did he actually say??? I have no idea what his point was? There was not one fact or truth, delivered in what he was putting forth. Speaking to the liberal "elite" he asked them to provide "real answers" . I will give him some answers: rich liberals are spending our money on illegal immigrants, as well as providing a class of people who give nothing back to society the ability to do so without consequence. This needs to be stopped and stopped quickly.
Posted by Stuart | 30.10.09, 19:27 GMT
What a bunch of stale old left-wing drivel. Rich liberals are free to give their money to whomsoever they wish. It's the fact that America's out-of-control spending and spiralling debt will have to be paid for by the middle class and future generations that is so disconcerting for cautious conservatives.
Even the American media is starting to understand that Obama is nothing more than a regular, big spending, high taxing liberal Democrat. And a lot of people are getting nervous!
Posted by Paul, Craigavon | 30.10.09, 16:17 GMT