Anarchism 101 Lesson #3

In the third video lesson on anarchism we find "suggestions." If the previous videos have at all interested you, you're going to find reference to some wonderful books, pamphlets, and movies here.

If you've gotten to this point and you like a lot of what you've heard about anarchism but can't quite get your mind around that "chaotic" and "violent" term, I offer you wonderful synonyms that might work better for you: Libertarian Socialist, Left Marxist, Anarcho-Syndicalist, and Left Libertarian. Now I realize Left Marxist may be an even scarier term than Anarchism but I put it out there on the off chance you've realized that Marx was a pretty smart guy with some pretty good insights. Libertarian Socialist isn't half bad for most people, though the term socialism does have a pretty bad rap here. I would imagine if we were to market this as a product, Left Libertarian might be the best choice.

There's a lot of great material to be checked out in the video and much of it can be found for free on-line. Here are a list of some great anarchist web sites: Anarchy Archives, An Anarchist FAQ, International Workers of the World, Anarchism.net, The Emma Goldman Papers, Bakunin, libcom, A-Infos, anarcho-syndicalism 101 and anarkismo. And never be afraid to Google "anarchism." If you're looking for things in print, check out Freedom.(the picture above links to Chomsky's book on anarchism)

The purpose of this endeavor is not to proselytize. I'm simply trying to share with you a little bit about anarchism in the hopes that more and more people will realize their are alternatives. We largely live in a society where Maggie Thatcher's phrase TINA (There Is No Alternative) holds tremendous sway. Many people have no doubts that this system is seriously flawed but they think it's natural and that there isn't much to be done about it. I speak to carpenters on a daily basis who can't even fathom not working for a boss. Can you?

Imagine. Imagine a different world. Don't worry about whether it's anarchist or communist or whatever label might be applied to it. Understand that the system we live in is seriously flawed and that there are real alternatives. I hope the links above might help you see things in a different light.



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