On Tue, Oct 29, 2002 at 10:57:30PM -0800, Sean 'Shaleh' Perry wrote:
how could a group of people numbering around a thousand and at any one point in time having at least a hundred active members claim to be anarchist?
I don't know. How could such a group claim to be totalitarian?
Without rules to follow and some form of leadership we would be a lot worse off than people think we are now. Anarchy like dictatorship is an extreme and extremes do not work well with people.
However, anarchy doesn't imply a lack of rules or of leadership.
A big thing associated with anarchy is the notion that there is no property.
No property, yes. But lots of "personal possession". On a small scale, the difference is essentially nil. On a larger scale, the difference is quite dramatic. For instance, our ownership of our code, under the anarchist concept of possession, is exactly the same as the current concept of property. But if you start talking about possession of 100 acres of land, or a large factory, thats a whole 'nother kettle of fish. If not for personal possession, what would the anarchists be meaning when they say that people have the right to the product of their labor?
my head. I also like to think of this community like any other close nit community. Groups of people give to each other knowing that their gifts will be returned. Modern society has lost this to some degree but we see it all over the Internet.
Just so. Anarchism is keenly sensitive to the importance of community, and seeks to restore it where it can.
If anything I would say we are closer to Marx's idea of communism.
No... Marx was authoritarian. Are we?
Jonathan
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