Individualism and Inequality

Economics: A Means or an End for Anarchists?

 All anarchists seek a world free of government and every other coercive institution. This is what makes them libertarians. But this is often the only thing on which they can agree among themselves.

Different anarchists have all sorts of priorities and visions for the future society. Their ideas about what goals are most important to achieve in an anarchist world influence their thoughts about how economic exchanges, decision-making, and social relations would take place in a libertarian setting. For instance, many anarchists seem to consider economic equality as their primary aim, and a libertarian social order organized on some sort of collective or communal basis as the way to achieve it. They seek anarchy because they believe it is the best method of attaining economic parity. Continue reading

Chomsky’s Statism: An Anarchism for the Next Millennium?

            Noam Chomsky is seen by many as one of the more prominent anarchists in the united states.  But, many times in the last several years he has come out publicly in favor of strengthening the federal government.  Moreover, he argues that there is no contradiction between this stance and his advocacy of a stateless future.  Such a position is in direct conflict with the traditional anarchist insight that means inevitably influence (and frequently corrupt or totally derail) intended ends, and deserves examination and rebuttal. Continue reading