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Title: On the “Anarchist Society” Author: No Wing Date: 24th November 2019 Language: en Topics: post-left, the future Source: Retrieved on 23rd December 2021 from https://medium.com/@NoWing/on-the-anarchist-society-312a0bf90f09
I’ve had the pleasure of talking to anarchists of many stripes and
colors. From anarcho-capitalists, to anarcho-communists…From
anarcho-primitivists to anarcho-transhumanists. While all of these
ideologies claim to be anarchist, I have always noticed something that
keeps me from really seeing them as anarchist. To me, these kinds of
ideologies seem to have more in common with something like communism,
socialism, or capitalism, than actual anarchy. Too many anarchists want
to prescribe solutions, and propose ways of living, rather than
voluntarily work with others to come up with an egalitarian way of
living.
Anarchy is a state of (or desire for) “no rulers” if one looks at the
root words. Whether these “rulers” are people, institutions, or ideas,
those looking to live in a state of anarchy should always be vigilant of
potential rulers. Ideally, as anarchists, we do not want to rule others,
and we do not want to be ruled by them. We want to make our own
decisions in life, based on our own desires. If this is the case, then
why do so many anarchists insist on adhering to blueprints, or
pretending that they know just how society should work? Is not coming up
with a system, and then expecting others to follow it a form of
rulership?
When an anarcho-communist says that we should all unionize our
workplaces and run them collectively, that is the opinion of one
person….not anarchism. When an anarcho-capitalist says we should abolish
the state but keep markets and currency in place, that is again, the
opinion of one person…not anarchism. People seem to have this need to
focus on an idea that they like, and then attempt to convince others of
it. Rather than working together to create a society without rulers,
anarchists constantly bicker about which form of anarchy is correct.
This is not anarchism, this is attempting to push ideologies onto
people.
If anarchists wished to be true to their name, we would realize that we
don’t individually have the answers. We would realize that our
blueprints are nothing but utopian fantasies. We would realize that
anarcho-anything isn’t anarchist at all. To be truly anarchist, would be
to be aware of your own desires, while realizing that you are probably
going to have to work alongside people who might not share those exact
same desires. Anarchy must be a voluntary system for all, and all people
will never share the same ideas as to what is to be done.
If we are to be truly anarchist, we should rid ourselves of any
preconceived plots or systems. Instead of looking into the vacuum of our
own mind, we should look to our neighbors and see the myriad desires all
around us. You or I may have what we perceive to be as the perfect
blueprint for anarchy in our heads, but all that is irrelevant once it
comes time to enact it in the physical world…once other people get
involved. Everyone around us is going to have different ideas and
different desires, and to attempt to force others into a particular way
of living would just end up ruling people as before.
We need to get rid of the rulers in our heads. We need to understand
that real anarchy isn’t going to be some preconceived system that just
gets put in place. It is going to be the voluntary work of us and those
around us. We need to realize that the core of anarchy is going to be
what we create with those around us…not the utopias we create in our
minds. We need to see capitalism, communism, etc. for the systems of
rule that they really are, and be willing to simply create anarchy with
those around us.