Title of the Article: CNN Debate on “Terrorism”- Chomsky v. Bennett
Text source:
http://www.counterpunch.org/chomsky0530.html
Brief summary
The article from website “counterpunch” was actually the transcript of a “tit for tat” debate on terrorism. The two counterparts are both authors of best-selling books on terrorism, while holding totally different opinions of course. Enjoy an excellent reputation in linguistic study and as the author of the book “9-11”, Noam Chomsky, who accuses the United States of being a terrorist state. His opponent of this spar, Bill Bennett, the author of the book “Why We Fight”, said the war on terror is morally just as well as that democracy and human rights are America’s noblest exports.
Quotation
* Nothing can justify crimes such as those of September 11, but we can think of the United States as an innocent victim only if we adopt the convenient path of ignoring the record of its actions and those of its allies. -Chomsky
* We rebuilt Europe twice in this century, after two world wars. We liberated Europe from Nazi tyranny. We have liberated Eastern Europe in the last few years from communist tyranny, and now we are engaged in a battle against something else. -Bennett
* …We can ignore it if we like, and therefore lead to further terrorist attacks, or we can try to understand. -Chomsky
* …If we are not total hypocrites, in the sense of the gospels, we will pay attention to our own crimes…because that’s elementary morality…. -Chomsky
Reflection
I can’t help but think that what would a man like Noam Chomsky be criticized if similar debates around Taiwan? I am not saying that I am totally for his aggressive political criticism, but this is a respectable man who has courage to follow his own heart, neither shows compromised and sacrifices his genuine belief, nor being deterred by allegation from patriotism.
Nevertheless, Bill Bennett accused the same figure as “a man who has made a career out of hating America and out of trashing the record of this country.” You may refuse to believe what Bennett said about “democracy and human rights are American’s noblest exports”, but you can not deny that United States is a great country for their great tolerance of political dissent.
