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Challenging Authority: A Forgotten Role of Thinkers
Dr.Vijayalakshmi Aluri, Winner of World Bank’s Projects competition, Author, Health Educator, Social worker and Gynecologist, Sri Sri Holistic Multi specialty Hospitals, Hyderabad.
In 1967, a young Noam Chomsky stood before a crowd at a teach-in against the Vietnam War. A quiet academic with a background in linguistics, he could have stayed in his university office, scribbling theories and perfecting grammar trees.
But he chose to speak out. “It is the responsibility of intellectuals,” he said, “to speak the truth and to expose lies.”
It wasn’t a new idea. It’s just that we had started forgetting it.
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The Comfortable Silence
In today’s fast-moving, hyper-connected world, intellectuals are everywhere — on panels, podcasts, in journals, and on social media. Many are well-respected and highly paid. Some are advisors to governments, CEOs, and institutions. They appear informed, articulate, and polished.
Yet something feels off.
