Chomsky Hits U.S. Secrecy, Suppression

A. Noam Chomsky, Ward professor of linguistics at MIT and a noted critic of American involvement in S.E. Asia, yesterday called the high officials who attempted to supress the publication of the Pentagon Papers "wolves who have imposed secrecy to enslave American citizens."

In a speech sponsored by the Cambridge Forum, Chomsky said that the U.S. system of centralized government has "insulated itself from public scrutiny," and barraged the public with "intense indoctrination that has rendered the public inert."

Chomsky called on the press to take an "adversary role"--to examine and challenge government activities. He said "This is necessary for the protection of the individuals against the state. Information is the essential element of a citizen's protection."

Defending the public's right to information on U.S. involvement in Vietnam, Chomsky said the prosecution of Daniel Ellsberg '52, showed the stupidity of the federal government.

"Any indictment that comes out of the Pentagon Papers represents a government effort to punish those who publish its crimes," Chomsky said.

Chomsky charged the Johnson administration with breaking the "supreme law of the land which commits the U.S. to avoid force in international affairs and to use negotiations to settle disputes."

The Pentagon Papers reveal, he said that the administration did not encourage "premature negotiations with North Vietnam in 1964 because it feared that a peaceful settlement would destroy the U.S. position in S.E. Asia."

Chomsky called for "the disentanglement of motive from myth" in foreign policy. He charged that government officials sought to disguise U.S. imperialism in the rhetoric of anti-communism. Chomsky said their actual motive was the preservation of U.S. leadership of the global economy.

"In the case of the U.S., anti-communism is only a device for fooling the population," Chomsky said.

In addition, Arnold Tobel, editor of Beacon Press, gave a short review of the history of the Pentagon Papers. Tobel is the man responsible for Beacon Press's publication of Senator Mike Gravel's (D-Alaska) edition of the Papers.

Tobel told the audience that the Federal government subpoenaed the bank records of Beacon Press after they announced that they were publishing Gravel's papers