The nature of anarchism (Lefty Despair etc.)

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

>  > It's [gun control] been a serious question in nations such
>>  as Afghanistan, where all men seem to be well armed and
>>  modern states have failed to develop.
>
>And yet much less of a 'serious question' in places like Israel and
>Switzerland.  But seriously: you think that Afghanistan is unable to be
>a modern state because "all (many?) men" are armed?  What impact do you
>think there is from years of not letting women be armed?  Indeed, there
>are many fighters in Afghanistan (not all of whom are Afghan) but I keep
>seeing coverage of farmers, craftsmen, and traders who just want to get
>back to making a living and providing for their families; and plenty
>just want to get back to their poppy fields.  The numbers of armed men
>involved in even the Northern Alliance seemed quite low to me at the
>time of the fiercest fighting.
>
>/jordan

I didn't make myself clear.  The problem of the absence of a modern 
state and the presence of warlordism isn't caused by widespread 
possession of arms in itself, which is more an effect than a cause. 
There have not been politico-economic relations in the country that 
could give rise to an indigenous social force strong enough to unify 
it and hold off imperialists and sub-imperialists, mainly on their 
own.  Given the prevalence of armed actors, now including US and 
other foreign troops, any Afghan social force that may arise in the 
future and seek to unify the nation will be bound to have a very 
difficult time.
-- 
Yoshie

* Calendar of Events in Columbus: 
<http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html>
* Anti-War Activist Resources: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/activist.html>
* Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/>
* Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osu.edu/students/CJP/>