Pretty much all of the public intellectuals on the scene today — on the Right and the Left — who are lauded for their eloquence and insight, are, in fact, mediocrities who would not have been able to hold their own against the intellectuals of, say, 50 or 60 years ago. Every one of them would have vanished into obscurity.
At 92 years old, Noam Chomsky still effortlessly surpasses any “thought leader” on the public stage today. Nevermind his occasional excesses of rhetoric, and nevermind if you disagree with his politics; his monumental erudition across an impossible spectrum of disciplines is simply stunning.
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