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Chomsky began to think about
politics early in his life in response to United States policies
in Southeast Asia. Around the 60s, he divided his interests and
time between linguistics and writing about the function of the
media and academic communities in shaping the sanction of the
people for U.S. policies. He also took cognizance of the impact
of U.S. foreign policy and laid it on the intellectuals to show
some responsibility by disapproving of government policies that
they find depraved and to work out useful lines of attack on
such policies.
Engaged in
political activism, Chomsky has moved from the USA’s
involvement in Vietnam to East Timor, from Afghanistan to
various political and social issues. As Agio Pereira, the
executive director of the East Timor Relief Association writes:
"His range of influence transcends the boundaries of
campaigns for social justice and self-determination. But this is
not only lip service or armchair involvement."
Chomsky’s active
pursuit of freedom and fundamental justice is responsible for
bringing about change in international opinion that now realises
that America must transform its foreign policy and not show a
bias towards its client regimes such as Indonesia, or display an
unqualified support for Israel. For instance, the Pentagon runs
the government in Afghanistan. And what is amazing is that
America has failed to realise the deep-seated and wide
antagonism towards it. All it is concerned with is al-Qaeda
while the reconstruction of Afghanistan is not a priority. The
need to rebuild Afghanistan and also an independent media must
be essential motives of any country that is sincere in its
political intervention. Perceptions have to change and be
changed by the media in the region. Surrounding areas need to be
developed and peace introduced by the concerned bodies. Regional
countries have to be brought on a forum with the underpinnings
of a peace process. But that is what stands suspect, especially
with the media being clearly one-sided and the American networks
going out of their way to support a pro-American establishment.
Clearly, there is
a crisis of legitimacy in the world; lawful governments need to
fight terrorism and stand up for human rights. However, riddled
with corruption these regimes have alienated the world. There
are no rules of the game but exploitation and grabbing power by
prioritising an agenda that is self-promoting. Regimes in
Central Asia are totalitarian: this, and not terrorism, poses
the great danger. Central Asia will remain the epicentre of
chaos in the coming days if regimes do not change their
political dominance and America does not stop supporting them.
Aid is being lavished on them with scarcely any pressure to
amend their policies.
One man
dictatorships have to go as apparently they work against any
norm in keeping with human rights. As Bob Dylan would say:
"the times cry for the truth… and people want to hear the
truth." Rai, in this book, gives Chomsky’s truth with all
his arrogance, authority, "a giddy whirlwind of
exploration, bravery, dissonance and pain." One man alone
does not make a difference. Chomsky and his kind stand
unintimidated in the face of high-powered western hegemony which
ostensibly fights terrorism, but, as recent case studies in
different parts of the third world indicate, aid militant
terrorism. People long for peace in Afghanistan, in Bosnia, in
Kashmir and in the Middle East.
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MILAN
RAI, an activist in the international peace movement, worked with
Chomsky during the early 90s of the last century. In his
all-inclusive study of the politics of Chomsky, he investigates in
this book his ardent political intervention which has been of
immeasurable motivation to radicals all over the world to hold up
the flag of self-determination against the absolutism of the state.
The status quo is never shielded, and in Hegelian terms, the ‘rational
becomes the real’ for all supporters of a libertarian worldview.
What is ‘rational’ has a claim to becoming ‘real’; the
critic’s objective becomes a reasoned critique of all institutions
in order move towards the rational, and thus more real. Against
political supremacy, Chomsky calls for progress in freedom. With
this overriding view in his works, he has attained political
following as well as a furious bitterness from the powers that be.
The arena that he has provoked consists of open-minded socialists
versus corporate mafia of the media and the deceitful foreign policy
of the US. Rai examines the sub-text of American involvement in
world politics that unmistakably contradicts the bogus image of the
guardian of human rights and democracy. The book is valuable to
those who have of late come to Chomsky, as well as to scholars who
are familiar with his vast output but somewhat confused by his
outlook.
