The abuse of power and the assault on democracy

I finally finished reading Noam Chomsky’s book: The abuse of power and the assault on democracy.

I would like to quote some text from his book in my blog:

One commonly hears that carping critics complain about what is wrong, but do not present solutions. There is an accurate translation for that charge: “They present solutions, but I don’t like them.” In addition to the proposals that should be familiar about dealing with the crises that reach to the level of survival, a few simple suggestions for the United States have already been mentioned:

  • accept the jurisdiction of of the International Criminal Court and the world Court;
  • sign and carry forward the Kyoto protocols;
  • let the UN take the lead in international crises;
  • relay on diplomatic and economic measures rather than military ones in confronting terror;
  • keep to the traditional interpretation of the UN Charter;
  • give up the Security Council veto and have “a decent respect for the opinion of mankind,” as the Declaration of Independence advises, even if power centers disagree;
  • cut back sharply on military spending and sharply increase social spending.

For people who believe in democracy, these are very conservative suggestions: they appear to be the opinions of the majority of the US population, in most cases the overwhelming majority. They are radical in opposition to public policy.