Kudos to the Guardian for not soft-pedalling this:
Chomsky had deeper ties with Epstein than previously known, documents reveal
The philosopher and the sex trafficker were in contact long after Epstein was convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor, documents reveal
The prominent linguist and philosopher Noam Chomsky called it a “most valuable experience” to have maintained “regular contact” with Jeffrey Epstein, who by then had long been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor, according to emails released earlier in November by US lawmakers.
Such comments from Chomsky, or attributed to him, suggest his association with Epstein – who officials concluded killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges – went deeper than the occasional political and academic discussions the former had previously claimed to have with the latter.
Chomsky, 96, had also reportedly acknowledged receiving about $270,000 from an account linked to Epstein while sorting the disbursement of common funds relating to the first of his two marriages, though the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor has insisted not “one penny” came directly from the infamous financier.
That is not much of a defence. Money is fungible.
Later, the article quotes from a letter written by Chomsky praising Epstein:
“The impact of Jeffrey’s limitless curiosity, extensive knowledge, penetrating insights and thoughtful appraisals is only heightened by his easy informality, without a trace of pretentiousness. He quickly became a highly valued friend and regular source of intellectual exchange and stimulation.”
In fairness, all that stuff about penetrating insights and thoughtful appraisals was probably true. Epstein would not have been able to rise as high – or sink as low – as he did without being able to read people. Epstein’s forte was befriending famous people, introducing them to each other, being at the centre of the networks of the global elite. My guess is that of the pleasures this position brought him, the status ranked higher in his mind than the money or the sex.
Jeffrey’ll fix it.
FWIW, I find it a bit disturbing that mere association with this loathsome man (Epstein that is) that somehow convicts the associate. The whole thing has a bit of a “Salem witch trials” feel to me. Of course if you are engaged in some of the terrible acts you should probably be hanging by your balls in a public square, but let’s be clear, a mere accusation, never mind some small circumstantial evidence, is nowhere near enough to allow us to initial that punishment. If people have done wrong let them be convicted by a jury of their peers. Not by the mob baying for blood, even less the ghouls in Washington whose private lives are hidden scandals, but would willingly throw some of these child victims to a pack of hungry dogs if they thought it would gain them one point in their approval ratings.
It might show bad judgement to associate with him post conviction, but the implication that men were doing the terrible things Epstein seems to have done just because they associated with him, is a very disturbing development. There is a lot of weirdness around the whole thing, and I agree it would be much better were it all out in the open, but even with regards to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Virginia Giuffre, as far as I can tell she was 17 when they allegedly engaged in sex which, certainly in New York where the conduct is alleged, is perfectly legal, even is pretty gross.
And I think especially the endless attempts to associate Trump with this heinous behavior is politics at its very worst. Especially so since Guiffre has public stated several times that she never saw Trump participate at all, and the three supposedly terrible emails seem utterly benign to me. I guess one can see what one wants in these kinds of thing.