I was five years old. I had a birthday party and it was amazing all all my friends. My parents their friends amazing celebration a few days later i'm cartoons on soviet tv. There was only one channel and announcement comes on out of nowhere pip and you see this lady singing sitting like behind the green screen.

And she's like yeah look. There was a little accident everything is okay. It's being taken care of don't worry everything is fine. It was so eerie that even the five year old me was freaked out to this day.

When i remember this i have shivers down my spine goosebumps. I'm 41 years old when i talk about it you can't see it i have goosebumps all over my skin. I'm just petrified by this because even then i somehow the five year old. Me figured out that this is much more horrific than it actually sounds and what actually ended up happening as some of you already guessed it this was 1986 april 28th.

And what ended up happening is this announcement was letting the citizens of russia know for the first time that a nuclear accident happened in chernobyl now chernobyl if you are not familiar with this was the most horrific nuclear accident of all time in human history. According to the unofficial death toll which is i think more accurate than the 12 people who died according to soviet authorities millions of people died immediately thereafter and you know with diseases therefore for the next few years 10 years whatever it doesn't really matter at this point. I mean there's millions of people who were affected. I think at least a million died directly indirectly.

But that's besides the point the sheer horrific nature of this accident was so horrible that it impacted not only russia. But europe and the entire world this radiation was basically all over the place. But the crazy part and why i'm telling. The story is because this thing was kept under wraps for two whole days for two days two consecutive days after the world's most horrific nuclear accident of all time nobody knew no news articles no tv shows no reporters nobody said a goddamn ward now it was only because some swedish worker actually tested for radiation that this whole thing actually even got uncovered by western media and then for you know russia actually had to admit it god knows how long they would have kept it under wraps without it now the reason.

I'm telling you this story is because look. I just watched noam chomsky and i respect the hell out of him. And i watched him interview with russell brand who i also like i know a lot of people have an issue with noam chomsky. I know a lot of people have issues with russell brand.

I actually like both and as somebody who grew up in a time where it was okay to disagree and still like people i find that a very important skill in 2022. I can completely disagree with somebody and like them i disagree with russell brand on a lot of the things. He's saying. I disagree with mr.

Chomsky. A lot of the things that he's saying. But it's okay for me to appreciate them for what they are and like them. I don't have to be binary one or zero.

That's kind of a skill that i talked about before that i think americans kind of lack in 2022. There's absolutely no room for liking somebody you disagree with and it's a shame now russell brand interviewed. Mr. Chomsky and in that interview they were talking about censorship.

Now. It's very easy to just categorize. Mr. Chomsky as this conspiracy theorist as this cook whatever right.

But i think we should listen to him even if we disagree and to actually test this theory beyond just saying. Ah. He's just a crazy old man let's listen to what he said official the us mainstream media census. More than soviet russia.

Who said that you're not going to believe it we can see this very clearly today very dramatically to take the united states today. It is living under a kind of totalitarian culture. Which has never existed in my lifetime and is much worse in many ways than the soviet union before gorbachev what he said was very interesting because he said and hear this is that the level of censorship in us. Media has gotten so bad in 2022.

He thinks it's literally worse than this soviet censorship in the pre gorbachev era. Which means before 1990. That's a very very harsh statement. Now as you just heard my story.

I don't know if it actually can withstand the reality test that comes from somebody who actually grew up in those times. Which is me now look i can tell you right now that the level of censorship in russia. Was beyond reprieve. You can't even imagine now for a kid who grew up in soviet union.

I don't remember my dad. Watching the news once in my entire lifetime. I can't remember my dad sitting on the sofa or the couch whatever that may be and watching the news at night never ever have i seen him do that now the reason why and i know this from talking to him years later is because he knew this was just pure. There was no information to be had an absolutely pointless waste of time now.

Watching us news. I don't think we're at that level. Yet. There's obviously a lot of misinformation.

There's obviously a lot of corporate censorship. There's obviously a lot of algorithmic chasing going on and i'll talk about in a second. But are we at the same level of russian level of censorship in the pre 90s look. I gotta explain to you what went on before 1990.

Like i have this story which i tell it quite often and people just get shocked by how insane that is i was basically you know cracking jokes in kindergarten. I don't remember how old i was five and i was basically laughing about you know how communists are all idiots and like how the government is a bunch of morons basically parroting. What my dad was saying to his friends. When you know they were just joking around in the closed environment.

That is our living room. That's how people usually you know they talked in russia. I mean people with intellect knew that this is all sham. They knew the government.

There's a bunch of liars. They couldn't say it in the open so they would gather in this little meetings and living rooms and talk about it. And i heard my dad and his friends and i just parroted them and of course the level of mayhem that ensued. These little jokes.

I made in kindergarten was insane. My parents literally almost went to prison. I'm not even kidding you the kindergarten teacher she reported to the local communist party supervisor. He reported somebody else there was a whole investigation.

My parents literally forget like get in trouble forget getting fired literally almost went to prison. Now that's some level of censorship that the us media is not even close to mr. Chomsky. I'm sorry.

It's just not now. That's just a kid in kindergarten. Remember that think about a journalist think about a politician think about a local operative. Some sort of public figure.

An actor that says the wrong thing what happens to this person they don't get. Blacklisted but which actually happens in the us. Quite a lot they get sent to prison that's the best case scenario to say iberia. Which is the almost worst case scenario or getting executed.

Which is the absolute worst scenario. Although in russia i'm not even sure. If that's the worst might be gulag in this in siberia might be even worse. So there's a reason.

Why you know there was never any russian media opposition to any russian governments. Because they literally kill these mother lovers they send them to prison. There's no black listing they send you ass to gulag or they'll send i mean horrific stuff they they send like very graphic. I don't want to go graphic.

But they send very strong messages to families of people who spoke up like boxes with stuff in it that i don't want to talk about so to say that you know the us is on par with that i think it's a very um. Very adventurous statement and i don't think it would stands the reality test because look corporate censorship in the us is a thing and it's a horrible thing. But mr. Chomsky that's been around since the 70s like people don't remember this because they're younger.

But corporate censorship and corporate narratives being adhered to by mainstream media. It's been a thing for 50 years for example like you can't go on tv. And say something against one of the sponsors of the network or the owners of the network. You immediately get shut down that's not nothing new and obviously that's horrible but corporate censorship was always a thing.

It's not anything that just developed in 2022. And it's part of the way you know the the way. The corporations have become too powerful in american western culture in general now the other thing is that what what's been added in 2022. A little bit is algorithm chasing and i talked about in the beginning of this video.

So as we move towards social media. And algorithms. That serves you video content and use and whatnot. There's this trend.

Developing where all we care about is the click right we want you to click on the video. We want you to watch as much as possible so we're trying to basically serve you the best piece of content for you. But what it actually involves with news is basically feeding you more and more of the things you agree with because you know it makes you feel good inside warm and fuzzy. You click on it and that's how social media.

Basically develops these eco chambers. Each echo chamber for each person to enjoy bias confirmation endlessly and what that causes is basically de facto kind of censorship. I agree to that so corporate censorship is a thing algorithmic censorship. You know economic censorship is a thing.

But unfortunately for mr. Chomsky. I think that any person that actually grew up in. Russia would not agree with the statement that right now us.

Media. Is being censored worse than soviet union back in the in the 80s. 70s what not so i don't think us. Is perfect.

But i don't think it's anywhere near that now look. He also talked a lot about other things like i i think he called it extreme capitalism or you know unchecked capitalism. There's there's a point to be made where you know when you completely deregulate the system and absolutely do not intervene you fail to you know actually fix market failures. Which do happen even in the free market.

No market is viable with zero regulation and the us has been moving away from regulation. You can look at the sec. Just now starting to wake up to this whole idea of regulating cryptocurrencies. I mean that is a thing about that he's right and so it's not like he completely said things that were 100 accurate.

But with respect to the censorship. I think he overstepped just because he was trying to make a point and i think the statement was not so accurate. So i have absolutely zero issues with russell brand doing his thing and noam chomsky is saying his thing and the whole idea why i think it's important to listen to guys like chomsky and brand is that's the whole point of democracy democracy is not supposed to protect speech you feel comfortable hearing it's supposed to defend and protect things you don't like to hear that make you feel uncomfortable. The protected speech is not things that you agree with it's the things that make you feel uncomfortable as long as they're legal.

Obviously not racism or sexism or stuff like that but as long as it's within the realms of legalities. It's supposed to protect things that you disagree with and that's important to listen to guys like chomsky and brand now as a bottom. Line i think that the things in the us. As far as censorship media are not great.

I think there's a lot of room for improvement. But i have to absolutely disagree with miss chomsky the distance between that and pre gorbachev area. Soviet union is that comparing a ferrari to a potato. There's absolutely no comparison.

I'm sorry it's just the way i see things and i grew up in those times and i actually live in these times. So i think i have a fairly good way to analyze this hey. It's okay if you disagree with me let me know below. If you agree or disagree.

With me. Let's have a discussion in the comment section. See you next video.