Noam Chomsky: Capitalism is basically a system where everything is for sale, and the more money you have, the more you can get. And, in particular, that's true of freedom. It is not unrealistic to regard freedom as analogous to a commodity under capitalist democracy. In principle, it is not in short supply, but one has as much as he can purchase. It is no wonder that the privileged often are numbered among the defenders of civil liberties, of which they are the primary beneficiaries. The right to free expression of ideas and free access to information is a basic human right, and in principle it is available to all, though in practice only to the extent that one has the special privilege, power, training and facilities to exercise these rights in a meaningful way. For the mass of the population, escape from the system of indoctrination is difficult. The same is true in practice with regard to legal rights. Elaborate machinery is available under the law for protection of the individual against the abuse of State or private power. The study of criminal justice reveals, however, that here too, to a very considerable extent, one has the rights that one is in a position to purchase.