Noam Chomsky

First round games in the NCAA Men's basketball tournament are the most interesting, and from that point forward the games become less so exponentially, unless you have a team that hasn't yet been defeated.

The New York Times is on-hand next morning to confirm that the scores of the games were exactly what you thought them to be--that nothing's changed, there were no miracles or come-from-behind victories you missed while going to the bathroom.

Meantime, world news stacks up on the little table beside the TV. Despite John Kerry's heroic and noble efforts to bring peace to the Middle East, there's no deal yet with Iran and Bibi Netanyahu has secured another election in Israel.

Between games, semi-bored, having seen the same commercials two or three times, the rest of yesterday's and today's newspapers wait to be consumed. It seems that the Times has renamed the Arts section and that it's now named Rap, and that this must have happened when you weren't looking.

Chomsky's basically saying that we're (USA) claiming the world by claiming we're trying to make it safe, but that we're really building, and claiming, an empire.