> Whatever happened to the days when progressives called for an end to the
> Pentagon? Given the amount of misery that the U.S. causes around the
> world through its military, nothing less than a 100% reduction in
No, I don't remember the time when leftists making completely ridiculous, unrealistic demands on the state was a golden age for "progressives". Rather, I think the beneficial times were when revolutionaries demanded realistic reforms and, in the course of struggle for those (such as the anarchists who pushed for the 8 hour day) presented a radical anti-capitalist framework for learning and understanding how the society works and why mass movements were even required to push for such reforms which should have been "common sense". Further, this revolutionary framework provided for a final analysis that eventually, reforms couldn't solve all all the problems.
> military spending is called for. And Sam want to throw the savings at
> more failed liberal social programs? What we need is an end to schools
> and "education." Teach people to learn and think, not how to sit through
> school so they can fit as some cog in the capitalist hierarchy?
Ah, another stream of vitriol from Chucky. Amazing.
Now, I have a pretty developed critique of the educational system - it's really fucked up in a lot of ways. But it does some things right - like teaching literacy, mathematics, and some other skills to most people. To advocate abolishing it altogether is absurd. For many impoverished residents of the US the problem is that schooling is already so underfunded they are at a serious disadvantage to wealthier residents allowed to attend better-maintained schools.
Besides, after any sort of revolutionary situation, you think that all the teachers are just going to stop teaching, and there will be no schools? Even if such a revolution took place in the near future, and even if the educational system were overhauled over the course of that revolution, I think most teachers would still wind up... you guessed it... teachers in the new society.
> Medicare and social welfare? Sure, that might be a good choice for the
> next year or two, but how about demolishing capitalism and ending the
> need for Medicare?
Huh? How does abolishing capitalism alleviate the need for medicare? Do you really believe that abolishing schools and now, medicare, is a realistic goal for the course of your life time? Or anyone's life time? As far as I know, no anarchists have ever abolished schools or medicare - in fact I think both education and medical care was increased in zones of revolutionary Spain the CNT-FAI had the strongest influence in.
Tell me about why this is only good "for a year or two"? Wouldn't you be dead without social welfare that lasted more than a "year or two" if you're unemployed? Please chuck, not everyone can chose to live at their parent's house at the tender age of 39. The social welfare system is there because people need it and demanded it, and for the auxilary reason that capitalism requires the surplus labour pool to drive down the price of wages and play off workers against one another.
> Training and employment? Fuck work.
I'm not even sure if you're serious at this point. "Fuck work"? Sounds like the rallying call of the upper class - "Fuck work! let the proles do it". It's ironic you would rail against "liberal" social programs when what you're spouting is liberalism.
So tell me, how exactly is a society going to function without people working? People are just going to play all day, forage, and be happy, even when they have no medicare or literacy? I don't quite get the proposals you are putting forward because they don't seem to form any kind of realistic vision.
Yesterday and today is the anniversary of the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, probably the greatest instance of anarchists exercising revolutionary authority and demonstrating the importance of our ideas and practice.
The Worker's Solidarity Movement in Ireland has a website with a substantial amount of articles and information on the revolution posted. It can be found at this address:
http://www.struggle.ws/spaindx.html
I suggest you take a look.
- paul