> Public education is under attack around the world, and in response, student protests have recently been held in Britain, Canada, Chile, Taiwan and elsewhere.
What protests are you referring to? When?
> The Los Angeles Times reports...
Link please.
> Similar defunding is under way nationwide.
Since when? I'm not saying he's wrong, but in what year did the federal government last provide what you feel was an appropriate level of funding, and what legislation or federal budget was the beginning of what you consider "defunding"?
>... which was recently dealt yet another crushing blow by the collapse of the housing bubble that was ignored on doctrinal grounds, triggering the current financial crisis.
... The financial crisis that ended in ~2012? That one? This article appears to be from 2014, how was it a "current" crisis?
> Justifications are offered on economic grounds, but are singularly unconvincing. In countries rich to poor, including Mexico next-door, tuition remains free or nominal.
This to me was the only interesting line in the article, in that it gave me something new to think about.
> One illustration is the decision of state colleges to eliminate programs in nursing, engineering and computer science, because they are costly – and happen to be the professions where there is a labor shortage...
Source please?? That's a very bold statement, but a very interesting one if it's true! However without a source I'm inclined to disregard it.
The whole thing reads like it was written by someone wearing a tinfoil hat, and though there are a couple interesting points, it seems like this essay will do more harm than good for his agenda. And just because Chomsky is famous that doesn't make him so authoritative that he's excused from citing his sources.