Considering it’s being contrasted to anarchism, the comparison of ‘Life could be worse’ with ‘Life can be better’ is accurate. Democrats are generally liberals who want to refine the system, not tear it down and build a better one. “Representative market capitalist social democracy is the best and most stable we’ve found, so let’s not fuck it unnecessarily.” Whereas anarchists are generally in favor of tearing down current extant institutions to be replaced with other systems of economic and social organization. “The current system is cruel and you cannot refine it. It has to go for life to meaningfully improve.”
And, of course, Republicans seeking to tear everything down and build an intentionally worse system in its place.
I’m always interested in the comparison with programmers who want to start from scratch to make it better, only to make it just as bad as before, but after spending a lot of efforts.
It’s always an interesting question to explore. I have some anarchist sympathies, though I wouldn’t count myself in their ranks. I definitely get their criticisms of the current structures of society, and anarchism isn’t nonviable. But at the same time, I don’t know that it’s the way forward.
All I know is that capitalism has outstayed its welcome.
But at the same time, I don’t know that it’s the way forward.
As an anarchist, amusingly I fully agree with this statement. I don’t even think that a society in line with my ideals is currently possible (humanity needs to socially evolve) but more of a guiding light to aspire to and try to affect lasting change around me that can align with it after I’m gone.
All I know is that capitalism has outstayed its welcome.
One of the darkly humorous things that I find with the current state of things is that capitalism is a system that punishes stagnation but, those in power are desperate to maintain stagnation in the economic system or even regress towards earlier incarnations while preventing the system from evolving in any way that could better serve humanity. Those at the reins are, ironically, opposed to foundational parts of their own ideologizes economic system.
I think pure anarchism relies too much on people being good and working things out. Historically that just doesn’t pan out. So there does need to be some greater structure for organizing things, but I have no idea what it would look like.
Syndicalism offers some ideas for organizing into loose groups and interrelations between those syndicates but I haven’t dug deeply into the mechanics of it. I think ultimately humanity has to organize into groups of about 1000 individuals, related by common interests and mutual aid, with some grander scheme for global distribution of reaources. Soviets? Universal suffrage and democracy? Republicanism? Maybe each syndicate chooses for itself and somehow global anarchy between them “just works” (but I doubt it)?
Anyway, a fun problem to debate and armchair strategize about, since presumably none of us have the money and power to overthrow the current world order.
It’s starting to feel like “capitalism” is for the left what “communism” is for the right.
I thought anarchists wanted no system at all. Without being anar, the current system has to be replaced with a better one, because we’re on track to our demise wirh climate change and limited resources to fix the problems (limited copper, which needs clear water, or sand. Check out limits to growth). We’ll see the consequences in a few years…
edit: onkyo is right.
I thought anarchists wanted no system at all.
Tell me you know nothing about anarchism without telling me you know nothing about anarchism
please enlighten me 🙂
edit: quick read on wikipedia, yeah I know nothing, thanks for the heads up 🙂
Isn’t anarchy all about there being no government and everybody just cooperates?
If you say that this is from the Anarchist’s perspective, then it is disingenuous or completely blind to reality, and I’m not sure which is worse. Truth and perspective aren’t mutually exclusive. Painting democrats as they have been in the comic isn’t an accurate depiction, and instead of trying to find an ally it seeks to further divide and aggravate. I say the same thing to Anarchists that I do to Libertarians. If your ideas are so great, why doesn’t everyone follow them? A political party shouldn’t need a hard sell, because that means that there can be no compromise, and like it or not, without compromise, you’ll die on the vine.
