As we arrive into the autumn of a socially, politically and economically tumultuous year, who better to take the temperature of where we are than Father of Modern Linguistics, geopolitical guru and intellectual/philosophical titan Professor Noam Chomsky?
During a brief three day visit to Europe and overlooking his hard wired reluctance to engage fully with the mainstream media, Professor Chomsky agreed to an exclusive and pretty comprehensive interview for Huffington Post (UK) encompassing all topical matters, which you can watch below.
Viewers will see that he does not pull his punches. The "disease" David Cameron referred to in response to the summer of riots is acknowledged; according to Chomsky, "Cameron is committed to making that disease much worse" by merely making those who offended "poorer and more destitute".
The present lack of public faith in the UK national media is a "serious problem for your society" that calls into question the overall quality of our democracy, and the "hopelessly dysfunctional" models of western governance around our economies and healthcare provision are balanced with positive suggestions of how to build our way out of financial crisis.
Enjoy it. I did. (Overlooking the most violent coffee machine ever known next to us).