Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
Yes
But I don't think the shock at this case is based in a good model of who Bannon and Chomsky are. Bannon has always been, or had pretensions of being, a real serious intellectual, who reads widely within academic texts, which means reading a lot of leftists any time since, what, Aquinas? Steve Bannon has definitely read and admires Noam Chomsky's work. Bannon has expressed his admiration and desire to imitate Lenin, you think he'd draw the line at Chomsky?
Chomsky and Bannon share a lot of analytical agreements about the nature of the political establishment, and about American foreign policy over the past hundred years. Their disagreements are actually a lot more minor than the disagreements between either and other Epstein buddies like Larry Summers or Bill Gates. If the guest list at that party was Bannon, Chomsky, Summers, Gates, Clinton, and Epstein; it's pretty obvious that Chomsky and Bannon would get along better together than with anyone else at the party.
Rather I think twitter turbolibs who are surprised about Chomsky and Bannon getting along are shocked because they haven't read Chomsky and just think of him as a harmless mascot of the generic academic left, not the hardened anti-establishment freak that he is; and they haven't read Bannon and assume he's just a MTG or Boebert style airhead, not the hardened anti-establishment freak that he is.
I'm shocked because I think of Bannon as a Christian nationalist and Chomsky as an anti-fascist and that they should kill each other like ants from rival colonies put in a glass jar.
I recognize they would have populism in common but that's not the only dimension that matters.
Anyway, I'm showing my low pedigree by thinking such things.
Why? Why would it matter to them?
In my mind what Bannon and Chomsky have in common ideologically is that they are both, by the old Matrix-derived definition, Red Pilled. Both are prone to smugly asking the reader if they think that is air they are breathing.
Their enemies are more in the Blob than in each other, at least until the Blob is defeated.
A couple years back, my patriot news type conspiracy theorist trailer park carpenter helped me take a delivery of a large load of drywall. The delivery driver was a black guy from Chester, who was a black Muslim type conspiracy theorist. They got along famously. Each was telling the other about conspiracy theories they had NEVER HEARD BEFORE. They were loving it. Did you know that they opened the oldest vault and all the saints were black? Did YOU know that Joe Biden is only a fake president, and that really the military took full presidential powers before Trump left office? No shit! Did you know that they're importing immigrants to drive black people, who are the real jews, out of the cities? No way I didn't know that man!
That sounds like the most amazing conversation I've ever heard. There should be a show that just puts BHI and Q-types in the same room with some snacks and drinks and films the conversation.
More options
Context Copy link
I hope you got a picture of them hugging it out.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link