Yoshie Furuhashi wrote:
>
> How do anarchists respond politically and philosophically to the neoliberal
> agenda (less social investment by the government, less regulations of
> capitalists' freedoms, etc.)? Chomsky, a self-identified anarchist, said
> that anti-statism in the era of neoliberal attacks upon the past gains of
> workers is idiotic, I recall. What of other anarchists?
>
I was an anarchist for many years until I read Trotsky and Lenin, so I'm used to defending it. Anarchist theory is impoverished compared to Marx, Trotsky and Lenin. Most of the theory is ripped off from Marx. This impoverishment translates into impoverishment in action. Most anarchists criticise Marx for being bourgeoise and Trotsky and Lenin for being statists and authoritarians (statism and authoritarianism which saved the revolution of course.) Anarchism has its own pied pipers like "Prince" Kropotkin who supported WWI and opposed the Bolsheviks. Anyone who has read E.H. Carr's biography of Bakunin will know B nothing but a charlatan and a petty bourgeoise. Emma Goldman's autobio *Living My Life* reveals an intense egocentric personality. Anarchism is often just a rationalization of personal neuroses.
In my experience, anarchists would hold no truck with neo-liberalism and institutions like the WTO which seek to weaken the state where it acts so as to regulate the behaviour of capitalists but strengthen the repressive apparat of the state to oppress and curtail the freedom of the working class and the poor.
I don't read much about contemporary anarchists nor do I associate with them much anymore. People like Zerzen strike me not so much as anarchists but as nihilists same with the young people who follow him. They want to obliterate all authority as well as all social norms including science, philosophy, reason and rationality. Its terrible that the discontent of the youth is being funnelled into nihilistic movements.
I'm all for dialogue with anarchists and working with them where possible. Unfortunately, there isn't much to dialogue about.
Sam Pawlett