There is no plausible theory under which the record of the Pentagon Papers can be interpreted as relating to the national defense.
Noam ChomskyRead
I did used to have nightmares about the idea that when I die, there is a spark of consciousness which basically creates the world. 'Is the world going to disappear if this spark of consciousness disappears? And how do I know it won't? How do I know there's anything there except what I'm conscious of?'
Interpretation
The quote explores the relationship between consciousness and reality, questioning whether the world exists independently of our perception.
In this quote, Noam Chomsky reflects on the unsettling idea that our consciousness might be the very fabric of reality. By contemplating the possibility that the world could vanish when we die, he questions the nature of existence and whether anything exists beyond our perception. This introspection reveals deep philosophical concerns about the existence of an objective reality if it is solely defined by individual consciousness.
In practice
In a philosophy class, discussing the nature of reality.
There is no plausible theory under which the record of the Pentagon Papers can be interpreted as relating to the national defense.
The 'free-floating intellectual' may occupy himself with problems because of their inherent interest and importance, perhaps to little effect.
If you're teaching today what you were teaching five years ago, either the field is dead or you are.
There are very few people who are going to look into the mirror and say, 'That person I see is a savage monster;' instead, they make up some construction that justifies what they do.
The Republican Party has become overwhelmingly so extreme that it's hardly a traditional political party anymore.
There is still much debate about whether torture has been effective in eliciting information - the assumption being, apparently, that if it is effective, then it may be justified.
Consumer: A person who is capable of choosing a president but incapable of choosing a bicycle without help from a government agency.
To the indefinite, uncertain mind of the American radical the most contradictory ideas and methods are possible. The result is a sad chaos in the radical movement, a sort of intellectual hash, which has neither taste nor character.
Sometimes when we are labeled, when we are branded our brand becomes our calling.
If thou suffer injustice, console thyself; the true unhappiness is in doing it.
A civilization is a heritage of beliefs, customs, and knowledge slowly accumulated in the course of centuries, elements difficult at times to justify by logic, but justifying themselves as paths when they lead somewhere, since they open up for man his inner distance.
True freedom means freeing oneself from the dictates of the ego and its accompanying emotions.
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