Noam Chomsky - The Relevance of Anarcho-syndicalism, Part 2

An interview by Peter Jay (25th July 1976). Transcript: http://www.chomsky.info/interviews/19760725.htm

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[darktiduss]

Thanks so very much for putting this up.

[Forward44X]

Excellent.

[ekiroto9]

I feel at this point because of mismanaged capitalism and mismanaged resources anarcho-syndicalism is inevitable. Mind you this is very similar to the bottom up type of democracy that was exhibited by the native americans in the northeast in pre- USA america. We may see this system sort of arise in a stair step fashion. On a local level it makes sense. Capitalism only makes sense for the non local part of our system.

[agapeiron]

@qwertypoiu4321 A right winger calling anarchists (true libertarians) "reactionary" is pretty amusing. Soon enough, you free market nutjobs will be calling libertarian socialists of all kinds bourgeois! Because you need to adopt terms from truly emancipatory traditions to disguise your extremely narrow, conservative, money-driven politics.

[agapeiron]

@selfrealizedexile It is irrelevant.

[selfrealizedexile]

@agapeiron

Oh, but I have. If anarchism is the absence of tyranny, you think Capitalism has no place because you believe Capital is exploitative. This is false and I addressed it. You then go on to call it irrelevant.

[agapeiron]

@selfrealizedexile By all means, let it all out, express yourself. Anything to avoid confronting the reason I replied to your pro-market wankery in the first place. Unless you want to advance an argument on how "anarcho-capitalism" is a kind of anarchism (rather than running away and attacking other issues), then I'm going to treat your comments with the same disregard with which you have treated mine.

[selfrealizedexile]

@agapeiron

Dancing around Interest Theory or Böhm-Bawerk's refutation of Marx does not qualify as enlightenment, nor does pretending to have successfully refuted Capitalism while not having done so.

It's comical to hear someone regard Capital as exploitation when it is the very causal link to a higher standard of living.

[agapeiron]

@selfrealizedexile You just ignored everything I said. I don't blame you; you probably think of it as expressing self-interest. Anarchism and capitalism cannot be reconciled; "anarcho-capitalism" is an oxymoron. That was the point; you missed it.

Of course reading the "hardcore capitalists" can offer a kind of amusement, but it is a dry and nihilistic amusement, and I could equally enjoy the argument constructions of fascists who rationalize exploitation from the state instead of capital.

[selfrealizedexile]

@agapeiron

If I understand your sleight on Capitalism correctly, you're mistaken; Capitalism is nothing but the human action concerning capital: wealth used to increase wealth. I would love to get into a debate with a marxist / anti-capitalist who's actually read the economic texts of the hardcore capitalists, but, alas, almost every single one I run into has not and, conveniently, use that ignorance to blindly condemn Capitalism (freedom).

[selfrealizedexile]

@agapeiron

I personally think that, if Anarcho-Capitalism materialized itself, it would be so dramatically effective at dealing with aggressive violence and the deterrence of it, that you would effectively have a pacifist society. There are a lot of reinforcing variables involved with freedom--Freedom teaches responsibility, builds character, and smooths out immature gaps in people's personalities, all of which go on to harmonize a society.