Hug Noam Chomsky

By Ahmed Nassef

Noam Chomsky, professor of Linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is often described as America’s leading dissident intellectual. A close friend of the late Edward Said, Chomsky has been a paragon of progressive opposition to US foreign policy ever since he became an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam war.

On a recent visit to Egypt, I saw the Arabic translation of his book on 9/11 prominently displayed at bookstands in downtown Cairo. In fact, while the US corporate media largely ignores him, he is much sought after by the international press. The day I visited him at his MIT office, a camera crew from France’s largest TV network was setting up for an interview.

MWU!: How does it feel to be so idolized by so many people around the world who seem to be hanging on your every word? Do you ever feel any pressure?

Noam Chomsky: People shouldn’t feel that way, really. I just say what I think, so I don’t feel any pressure.

MWU!: Have you ever said anything that you later regretted?

Noam Chomsky: Often. I try not to read anything I have written.

MWU!: Anything in particular that stands out?

Noam Chomsky: I wish I had begun to speak out against the US involvement in Vietnam even sooner than I had.

MWU!: What should the progressive position on Iraq be?

Noam Chomsky: Progressives should be demanding the transfer of real sovereignty to Iraqis and demanding that the United States pay reparations to the Iraqi people for supporting Saddam Hussein for so many years.

MWU!: What do you think of Ralph Nader’s run for the presidency this year?

Noam Chomsky: I have a lot of respect for Ralph Nader, but I do criticize him for not having spent the last three years building a real grassroots alternative party. It is not impossible—look at what happened in Brazil. And there the opposition was working under much more difficult conditions than we are here in the US.

MWU!: Sounds like you will be voting for John Kerry.

Noam Chomsky: I will be voting against Bush. The choice we have here is between two wealthy candidates who went to the same elite Ivy League university, and who were members of the same elite secret society there. And we are supposed to believe that this is a real democratic choice. Nevertheless, there are enough practical differences there between them that will have a big impact on the lives of people.

MWU!: What’s your view of the Muslim American community and their role in ethnic and identity politics?

Noam Chomsky: I don’t think people should vote according to their ethnic or religious background. Wealthy business interests will tend to support people based on their perceived economic interests, no matter what their ethnic or religious identification.

MWU!: As a Jew who has also lived on a kibbutz in Palestine, have your views changed at all over the years regarding the Israeli-Palestinian issue?

Noam Chomsky: My views have not changed. The only thing that has changed is that my views back in the 1940’s were labeled Zionist, and today they are labeled anti-Zionist. Although my views back then did not represent the majority of Zionist Jews, the idea of forming a democratic state for both Jews and Arabs in Palestine was still considered within the mainstream of debate. Now, any talk of a democratic secular state is considered anti-Zionist.

MWU!: Many supporters of Israel demand from others that they recognize the right of the State of Israel to exist before engaging in any further discussions. What’s your view on this?

Noam Chomsky: The whole question of recognizing the right of a state to exist was invented solely for Israel. People, on the other hand, have a right to exist. So the people who live on the land—Israelis and Palestinians—have a right to live in security and peace.

MWU!: The New York Times published an op-ed piece that you wrote earlier this year opposing the Wall Israel is building in the Occupied Territories. Were you surprised that they agreed to print it?

Noam Chomsky: Yes, this was the first article of mine they agreed to publish since the 1970’s. I think what we’re seeing is that even the powerful interests in places like the New York Times are beginning to worry about the policies of the Bush administration. They want to protect their investments around the world, and many are beginning to feel that their investments are in jeopardy because of the extreme policies of this administration.

MWU!: What do you think of our Hug a Jew feature?

Noam Chomsky: I think any attempts to go beyond religious and ethnic boundaries are very important. Look, all human beings have similar interests, so whatever ways there are of showing that are positive.

MWU!: What are your favorite children’s books that you like to read to your grandkids?

Noam Chomsky: My grandchildren are between six and thirteen, so they are the ones who tell me what they want me to read, not the other way around. These days it is mostly Harry Potter.