There is no plausible theory under which the record of the Pentagon Papers can be interpreted as relating to the national defense. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
The Great Seal was an early proclamation of ‘humanitarian intervention,’ to use the currently fashionable phrase. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
In November 2004, U.S. occupation forces launched their second major attack on the city of Falluja. The press reported major war crimes instantly, with approval. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Qatar-based ‘Al-Jazeera,’ the most important news channel in the Arab world, was harshly criticized by high U.S. officials for having ’emphasized civilian casualties’ during the destruction of Falluja. The problem of independent media was later resolved when the channel was kicked out of Iraq in preparation for free elections. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Spaniards were condemned for appeasing terrorism by voting for withdrawing troops from Iraq in the absence of U.N. authorization – that is, for taking a stand rather like that of 70 percent of Americans, who called for the U.N. to take the leading role in Iraq. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Violence can succeed, as Americans know well from the conquest of the national territory. But at terrible cost. It can also provoke violence in response, and often does. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
As Bromberger observed, rules are understood to be elements of the computational systems that determine the sound and meaning of the infinite array of expressions of a language; the information so derived is accessed by other systems in language use. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Even the most cynical can hardly be surprised by the antics of Nixon and his accomplices as they are gradually revealed. It matters little, at this point, where the exact truth lies in the maze of perjury, evasion, and of contempt for the normal – hardly inspiring – standards of political conduct. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Reviewing the record of American intervention in Indochina in the Pentagon Papers, one cannot fail to be struck by the continuity of basic assumptions from one administration to the next. Never has there been the slightest deviation from the principle that a noncommunist regime must be imposed and defended, regardless of popular sentiment. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
Occasionally the conflict between ‘what we stand for’ and ‘what we do’ has been forthrightly addressed. Noam Chomsky Page 8 Read Quote
