|
The United States A "Leading Terrorist State”, Says Chomsky
 |
|
Chomsky dissects the
root causes of the September 11 incident.
|
NEW
YORK, May 24 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - With more than
125,000 copies sold in 22 countries and translated into 19 foreign
languages, Noam Chomsky’s latest book entitled 9-11 is another
international bestseller.
Prominent
left-wing Jewish American academic Noam Chomsky offers a realistic
perspective of the events of September 11 in this book 9-11 which
includes a collection of transcripts of interviews Chomsky gave to
journalists from various countries following the attacks.
In
9-11, Noam Chomsky dissects the root causes of the September 11
incident, the historical precedents for it, and the possible outcomes
as the United States responds with its "new war on
terrorism."
Chomsky
told Agence France-Persse (AFP) that his book alarmed many Americans,
who started to question the causes behind the attack on America in
particular and to pay attention to what’s happening around them in
the world.
For
Chomsky, the atrocities of 9-11 “are something quite new in world
affairs,” marking the first time since 1812 that the U.S. mainland
was attacked.
Noam
Chomsky, an internationally respected political analyst, linguist and
radical intellectual, makes some bold statements condemning the United
States, its politicians and policies, as he refers to the United
States as a "leading terrorist state," using as an example
the Reagan administration's invasion of Nicaragua in the 1980s and the
subsequent "devastating economic war" in that country.
Though
the invasion was condemned by the World Court, the United States
responded by ignoring the ruling and escalating its attack on the
country, killing thousands of people in the process.
Chomsky
believes that the attacks have been harmful in ways that extend far
beyond the initial death toll and ongoing national emergency. For
example, he believes they represent “a devastating blow” to
Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.
He
also discussed in detail the Clinton administration's bombing of the
Al-Shifa pharmaceutical plant in Sudan in August 1988, which destroyed
much of Sudan's medical-supply capabilities and denied necessary and
affordable pharmaceutical products to the Sudanese people, resulting
in large numbers of deaths from easily treatable diseases.
In
his book, he explains that such examples could be considered acts of
terrorism if viewed from the side of the victims. If the United States
were subjected to an act resulting in the starvation of a large number
of U.S. citizens, it would be difficult to imagine that act being
regarded as anything other than terrorism.
But
that is essentially what happened in Afghanistan after the United
States demanded that Pakistan seal its borders with the country and
cut off food aid to the Afghan people before the start of the U.S.
bombing campaign, he said.
Chomsky
argues for an international rule of law; existing bodies such as the
U.N. and World Court must be given credence and then relied upon.
“React with extreme violence,” he writes, “and expect to
escalate the cycle of violence, leading to still further atrocities
such as the one that is inciting the call for revenge.”
But
if the goal is to reduce the probability of further atrocities, then
rather follow lawful procedure, presenting the evidence and letting
independent world bodies direct the appropriate response.
As
for why the attack happened, Chomsky writes that “this question is
rarely raised in a serious way.” And he adds: “To refuse to face
this question is to choose to increase significantly the probability
of further crimes of this kind.”
 |
| 9-11:
an international bestseller
|
Noam
Chomsky was born December 7, 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His
undergraduate and graduate years were spent at the University of
Pennsylvania where he received his PhD in linguistics in 1955. During
the years 1951-1955, Chomsky was a Junior Fellow of the Harvard
University Society of Fellows. While a Junior Fellow, he completed his
doctoral dissertation entitled, "Transformational Analysis."
Professor
Chomsky has received honorary degrees from many worldwide
universities. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences and the National Academy of Science. In addition, he is a
member of other professional and learned societies in the United
States and abroad.
Chomsky
has written and lectured widely on linguistics, philosophy,
intellectual history, contemporary issues, international affairs and
U.S. foreign policy.
Although
has latest book contains several repetitive responses to similar
questions, Chomsky told the book's editor: "These facts have been
completely removed from history. One has to practically scream them
from the rooftops."
|
