90 lines
4.9 KiB
Plaintext
90 lines
4.9 KiB
Plaintext
|
|
Anarchism, Anachronisms and Social Ecology -by Darryl Eyle
|
|
------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
There are two reasons why I still consider myself an
|
|
anarchist.Firstly I believe that the critique mounted around the
|
|
question of hierarchy by anarchists throughout the last two
|
|
centuries is still not only correct but seems more relevant than
|
|
ever when the assaults on our personal liberty take more insidious
|
|
forms withthe passing of time. Secondly, anarchism deals with
|
|
freedom.Despite the current fad to promote the noxious anything
|
|
goes typecharacterisation that the state and the private media
|
|
love togobble up, anarchism has always championed the rights of
|
|
theindividual within the group be it the work place, the family,
|
|
orthe whole of society. These two positions place
|
|
anarchism squarely on the radical platform with incredible
|
|
potential forsocial emancipation and revolution.
|
|
|
|
Sadly with the advent of the new world order has come the adoption
|
|
of the new "natural" order. Hierarchal power structures today are
|
|
accepted by groups as seemingly diverse as the headsof
|
|
international state bureaucracies to the managerial
|
|
socialconstructionists in private and state run business right
|
|
throughto what used to be called the more "progressive " of the
|
|
socialmovements such as the peace or environment movements.
|
|
Systemstheories have been created in everything from economy to
|
|
ecologythat refuse to allow spontaneous or evolutionary processes
|
|
anyplace to exist. Some so called ecologists even promote
|
|
hierarchyas the "natural" order. The left is no better. It's
|
|
academicshave skulked off into the institutions to create
|
|
post)moderndystopias. The inevitable outcome of these
|
|
untouchable, anti- rational, intellectual cess)pits is the
|
|
systematic destructionof history and the creation of ethical and
|
|
moral voids. In suchan environment it becomes impossible to
|
|
ground oneself and findcoherence. Often the very attempt to do so
|
|
is seen asintellectually oppressive! The vacuum thus created is
|
|
presentlybeing rapidly filled by the right. The individualism
|
|
championedby post-modernists and some anarchisms these days could
|
|
just aseasily come from those that sit in the boardrooms of
|
|
Westinghouseor General Electric. With such a ruthless and
|
|
thorough incorporation of the ideals of the left into this
|
|
consumerist culture, we are staring at the total disintegration of
|
|
meaning!
|
|
|
|
Similarly, discussions about freedom and the concept of a
|
|
freesociety (Utopia) are tragically absent from what passes
|
|
forradical debate. The only freedom it seems ever discussed
|
|
thesedays is personal freedom. Placed within a social framework
|
|
suchdebate can have real meaning when talking about the role of
|
|
thechurch/ state/ police/ military and its impact on the
|
|
individual.However it can just as easily degenerate into freedom
|
|
from socialresponsibility and narcissistic, yuppie like neurotic
|
|
obsessionwith personal desire. The left seems bereft of
|
|
thinkers/dreamerswho can perceive of another reality. It has
|
|
continually demandeda state of slavery/tyranny for it to even
|
|
conceptualise itsabsence! The right talks about freedom far more
|
|
eloquently andconvincingly than the left and has developed an
|
|
integrated visionbased firmly on peoples fear of the unknown
|
|
(god) and fear ofeach other (social darwinism) to articulate the
|
|
brave, competitive new future. As anarchists we should be
|
|
describingother realities, other possibilities.
|
|
|
|
The emergence of coherent and radical philosophies like
|
|
socialecology help me to remain optimistic. Its roots lie in
|
|
anarchismand the ecology movement. At the core of this work is
|
|
theunderstanding that ecological problems are first and
|
|
foremostsocial problems. Its major proponent, Murray Bookchin,
|
|
drawsheavily on organic traditions in western philosophy from
|
|
thinkerssuch as Hegel. He talks about human freedom within the
|
|
frameworkof social responsibility. Particularly illuminating is
|
|
hisanalysis of the emergence of hierarchal power from
|
|
tribalcultures to the present degree of sophistication seen in
|
|
westerncapitalism. He parallels the unfolding of organic
|
|
potential inthe natural world towards more and more complexity
|
|
with thedevelopment of complexity in culture
|
|
|
|
As agents for social change what we need, is a more
|
|
sophisticatedunderstanding of the political and social systems
|
|
that allowunbridled rapacious capitalism to plough us under in
|
|
its wake?Along with alternative social systems we need to create
|
|
differenteconomic systems that not only dual power the state but
|
|
givemeaning to work
|
|
|
|
In a time where history is rapidly becoming irrelevant and
|
|
themost important thing in the world becomes our own egos,
|
|
thecoherence provided by ideas like social ecology can not
|
|
beunderestimated
|
|
|
|
|