[protomyth]

I've seen the effects of "rational social planning" by the enlightened and would rather go with the flawed individual freedom crowd.

[steveklabnik]

You do understand that he's not speaking of a centrally planned government, right? Chomsky specifically advocates as close to direct democracy as possible.

[protomyth]

I didn't get that from the above quote, but I haven't read Chomsky. I just have quite a bit of problems with people believing that the group is always right compared to the individual, and I got the group vibe from the above. I admit my interpretation could be in error.

[steveklabnik]

No worries, I haven't read as much Chomsky as I should either.

His views are obviously nuanced, but he's most often described as an anarcho-syndiclist: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho_syndicalism

The main problem with your interpretation is not that the group is better than the individual, but that then the group _imposes_ that view upon the individual. There's a big difference between cooperative decision making and a dictatorship by an 'enlightened few.'

[waqf]

> I haven't read as much Chomsky as I should either. [emphasis added]

See?! Now they've convinced you that to be fulfilled you have to read Chomsky!

[steveklabnik]

I should. I should read lots of things. Reading more is good for you.

However, in this case, what I meant was, "I really should read more Chomsky before attempting to claim that I am fully and accurately representing his viewpoint in an argument."

[borism]

but have you seen the effects of "rational social planning" by the unenlightened?

[protomyth]

They said they were enlightened, but I admit to having my doubts.

[hessenwolf]

I grew up in a socially-planned town. The problem is in the practicalities of the execution of a large project, by people who just consider it a day job, competing against the corrupting influence of local personal interest. The product of the planning wasn't exactly a macbook pro.