RE: Noam Chomsky and Cambodia

From: Lee Corbin (lcorbin@tsoft.com)
Date: Tue Dec 10 2002 - 21:10:59 MST


Ron asks

> Okay, you have me hooked. You have my interest caught. We have
> people right here on this list that treat Chomsky as if he were
> rational and highly intelligent. Worse yet he is considered by
> many to be well informed. How do you account for that?

What is wrong with trying at least a *little* to be precise
in the use of words? You do not think Noam Chomsky "rational"?
You do not think him "highly intelligent"?

It seems pretty obvious that when someone is sufficiently wrong
then it follows to a number of people on this list that they are
irrational and unintelligent. WERE OUR PROBLEMS ONLY THAT SIMPLE!

Mike replies:

> It's fairly simple. Such people, esp on this list, who are Chomsky fans
> I have also found to be highly anti-Israel, Pro-Arab, anti-capital,
> anti-libertarian, pro-collectivist, anti-science/technology,
> pro-luddite/green mysticism, anti-rationalist, pro-spiritualist.

Yes, you have spotted the relevant correlations! You have
described exactly the determinants or at least the (almost
always) inescapable signatures of belief, if there be
deeper causes. And yes, you have also accurately answered
Ron's question: "why is Chomsky considered by many to be
well-informed". In two words, ideological allegiance.

Let me construct the inverse, and show how it's exactly right
too (except for Ron's remarks about rationality and intelligence):

Anti-Ron writes

> Okay, you have me hooked. You have my interest caught. We have
> people right here on this list that treat Limbaugh as if he were
> rational and highly intelligent. Worse yet he is considered by
> many to be well informed. How do you account for that?

Anti-Mike answers

> It's fairly simple. Such people, esp on this list, who are Limbaugh fans
> I have also found to be highly pro-Israel, Anti-Arab, pro-capital,
> pro-libertarian, anti-collectivist, pro-science/technology,
> anti-luddite/green mysticism, pro-rationalist, anti-spiritualist.

(I confess my inversion fails here on "pro-libertarian",
"pro-science", and "anti-spiritualist". But you get the
point---if not Limbaugh, well, then, me.)

It is NOT a question of rationality or intelligence.

Lee



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