A linguist at MIT, Chomsky revolutionized the study of language with the idea that humans are born with a universal grammar. In parallel he became one of the most cited and most controversial political critics in the world, attacking the Vietnam War, US foreign policy and corporate media. He describes himself as an anarchist in the tradition of libertarian socialism.
Core ideas
The capacity for language is innate, part of our biological nature
Mass media in democracies filter news in ways that serve the powerful
Every authority must justify itself, and most cannot
The tradition: Libertarian socialist
Libertarian socialism combines the anarchist distrust of the state with the socialist critique of capitalism. Chomsky is its best known living defender, and a rationalist about the mind.
