Up until very recently, Noam Chomsky was what one might describe as a classical liberal. He was a public intellectual who had previously dabbled in anarchism, was given the title “the father of modern linguistics”, and was a vocal critic of US foreign policy, particularly during the Vietnam War. Like any good activist in the Vietnam era he was arrested on a couple occasions, but also managed to go the extra mile and get on Richard Nixon’s list of political opponents.
His criticisms of capitalism always seemed a bit too communist for my tastes, but I respected many of his stances, simply because they seem rooted in deeply held, and deeply contemplated personal philosophies centered on individual autonomy. He claimed to be a free speech absolutist.
I differed with him on many topics, especially as a young man with neoconservative views. As I my story permitted me to experience US Foreign policy first-hand, as it was happening, I came to agree with some of his critiques of the US empire. I grew to respect him for his seemingly consistent moral convictions, the ones that got him arrested … Well, at least up until COVID reared its ugly head and we were exposed to the hypocrisy of the liberal elite.
Even the intellectuals we assumed had moral conviction at the heart of their arguments, are probably not what we originally imagined. It is no wonder ACLU and every other don’t-trust-the-government activist rolled over and showed their bellies. They were cowards hiding their cowardice in claimed moral superiority.
There are real classic liberals out there, but they are extraordinarily hard to find.
Noam Chomsky Is A Fraud.