In this exclusive interview, Noam Chomsky, one of the world’s greatest scholars and leading activists, shares his insights on the state of the world and the conundrum of activism and change, including the significance of the Black Lives Matter movement, the movement for Palestinian rights, the urgency of the climate crisis and the threat of nuclear weapons.
Minnesota is home to the headwaters of the three major North American watersheds that drain north to Hudson Bay, south down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, and east out the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River to the North Atlantic Ocean. Slicing across all three watersheds are two black Enbridge tar sands oil pipelines from North Dakota to Superior, Wisconsin. The southern pipeline is the new “replacement” Line 3 that would carry more than 31-million gallons of oil daily, with a huge dump of carbon emissions into the earth’s atmosphere.
"We should care because this is the planet that we have to live on, right? Like, we can’t actually all leave the planet. And it is interesting that you opened this segment by talking about the balance of coverage. We are simply not seeing very much climate coverage at all in the mainstream media."
Critics say [Governor] Noem is turning the National Guard into a private mercenary force targeting migrants, but the governor’s plans for the National Guard could encompass other activities. “This, to me, is an extension of the fight that’s happening all over Mother Earth, protecting the last beautiful places, protecting the sacred,” https://youtu.be/urIpqG4y8iA Resistance to More
"I mean, you know, the wins are such that it would be difficult to categorize them all. I mean, tax has to be the biggest one, right? The reduction of the corporate rate was — you know, it was probably worth billions to Exxon. So, yeah, I mean, there were a lot of wins."
"To all of the institutions currently failing us, trust me when I tell you that the time to divest is now. In another few years or perhaps, just another 365 days by the next Earth Day, the opportunity to divest while it still counts—for your morals and your money—may have already disappeared."
How the military sector impacts the environment, but also how the military sector itself prepares for a changed climate and also why climate movements do not focus on the role of the military in their activism.
The book offers a "people's program to prevent extinction," says Melanie Yazzie, assistant professor of Native American studies and American studies at the University of New Mexico and co-author of "The Red Deal." "The plan is really clear. The stakes are really clear," Yazzie says.
"Rise of virulent proto-fascist movement which is hardly limited to the United States."
What is the Minnesota Connection? "This isn’t a case of a few isolated billionaires backing one extremist politician. It’s a case of an entire industry filling the campaign coffers of politicians who’ve waged war on our democracy. In the 2020 election cycle alone, the oil and gas industries gave some $9.3 million to lawmakers who refused to certify the 2020 election results."
"There is a maxim that companies that treat the earth badly usually treat their workers the same way. There is another saying that all 'politics' is local, except that all 'politics' is economics."
Address the reality of the world in which you are trying to make a change managed in the best way possible. e.g., National Highway Administration: No regulations on automobile emissions via Trump. Egregious approach of deniers when careful constructive solutions must be demanded by large actions to demand change.
