If you guys put your hands over your ears real tightly, you can continue with your politics without hearing any contrarian views.
> What Chuck Munson supports is his own deal, and for his own reasons. He
> can only ascribe it to an anarchist tradition if he ... forgets the
> tradition and its analysis.
Brian represents a minority trend in anarchism these days. He's correct about the historical interest that anarchists had in unions, but that is simply history. Contemporary anarchism has many different opinions about unionism as either reformism or a strategy toward a revolutionary program. Many more anarchists are hostile toward unions as a revolutionary strategy than they were a century ago.
Having said that, I, Chuck Munson, have not repudiated unions. Again, words are being put in my mouth. Unions are indeed useful for many working people, as they provide much-needed basic services in an era of of privatization and cuts in social spending. This isn't what we're arguing about. Like many anarchists, I'm very hostile towards big unions, for solid pragmatic and political reasons.
Beside my arguments against the big unions, my main point is that those who favor union organizing as a *revolutionary* strategy need to think outside of the box.
For example: How can we better organize wildcat strikes via email?
Now, is there something inherent in that example that repudiates unions?
Which anarchist is Albert? Don't know that one. Albert Parsons?
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"...ironically, perhaps, the best organised dissenters in the world today are anarchists, who are busily undermining capitalism while the rest of the left is still trying to form committees."
-- Jeremy Hardy, The Guardian (UK)