First of thank you so much for taking the time to write this deep thoughtful response.
> I think that Revolutionary Catalonia and the Free Territory in Ukraine did a better job for the short while they lasted.
See that's the problem. Regardless of social policy or how it's organized unless a certain threshold of violence can be produced. The social formation is inevitably consumed by social formations which can produce violence in subsequent quantity and quality.
>I do agree that when the power of capital is threatened - even if peacefully - that the capitalists wont hesitate to use violence to protect their power
I agree whole heartedly here.
Rather than dwelling on our differences I would like to pivot to a more positive direction.
Are you familiar with Freudo Marxism? Judging from your substack this is something I belive you would really enjoy.
Pirate this on LibGen like a true Anarcho-Communist 😊
Perhaps you are right, maybe I'm not willing to entertain a certain level of violence beyond what I consider a reasonable defensive threshold, because I think some human costs are too high, and their outcomes are too uncertain, too immoral, and too unlikely to produce the results I'd like to see. But it seems we both agree that violence will come from those who oppose their power being challenged either way.
I have a little awareness of Lacan (and Fanon, Fromm, and Žižek, who I've read and seemed to have some association with Freudo-Marxism.) I'll add that book to my reading list, but I'm afraid it may be a little while before I get to it.
I'll take the compliment, even if I'm not sure I deserve it. What are you looking to read and learn more about?
The fundamental philosophical underpinnings of Anarcho-Communism were well enough described in the Works of Kropotkin and Malatesta, although their use of language may seem a little dated.
I've read many Anarchist treatments and rebuttals of Marxist works, and especially Leninist ones from Bakunin to the present, but they still rely on beginning with fundamentally different assumptions. The Anarchist Library has many such examples.
As for the practical nature of Anarchism you could do worse than reading 'Anarchy Works' or 'Worshipping Power' by Peter Gelderoos (and his work in favour of Anarchist violence, 'How Nonviolence Protects the State'), 'Anarchy In Action' by Colin Ward, and 'The Dawn Of Everything' by David Graeber.
First of thank you so much for taking the time to write this deep thoughtful response.
> I think that Revolutionary Catalonia and the Free Territory in Ukraine did a better job for the short while they lasted.
See that's the problem. Regardless of social policy or how it's organized unless a certain threshold of violence can be produced. The social formation is inevitably consumed by social formations which can produce violence in subsequent quantity and quality.
>I do agree that when the power of capital is threatened - even if peacefully - that the capitalists wont hesitate to use violence to protect their power
I agree whole heartedly here.
Rather than dwelling on our differences I would like to pivot to a more positive direction.
Are you familiar with Freudo Marxism? Judging from your substack this is something I belive you would really enjoy.
Pirate this on LibGen like a true Anarcho-Communist 😊
https://www.routledge.com/The-Marx-Through-Lacan-Vocabulary-A-Compass-for-Libidinal-and-Political-Economies/SotovanderPlas-MiguelJuarez-Salazar-GomezCamarena-Pavon-Cuellar/p/book/9781032079295?srsltid=AfmBOorjggtj4Z45CnnKY3hNCq_q5mUrI1iGIWRJ-xVIu5TubnIsSyBo
Perhaps you are right, maybe I'm not willing to entertain a certain level of violence beyond what I consider a reasonable defensive threshold, because I think some human costs are too high, and their outcomes are too uncertain, too immoral, and too unlikely to produce the results I'd like to see. But it seems we both agree that violence will come from those who oppose their power being challenged either way.
I have a little awareness of Lacan (and Fanon, Fromm, and Žižek, who I've read and seemed to have some association with Freudo-Marxism.) I'll add that book to my reading list, but I'm afraid it may be a little while before I get to it.
Since you are clearly incredibly intelligent which books would you recommend for me?
I'll take the compliment, even if I'm not sure I deserve it. What are you looking to read and learn more about?
The fundamental philosophical underpinnings of Anarcho-Communism were well enough described in the Works of Kropotkin and Malatesta, although their use of language may seem a little dated.
I've read many Anarchist treatments and rebuttals of Marxist works, and especially Leninist ones from Bakunin to the present, but they still rely on beginning with fundamentally different assumptions. The Anarchist Library has many such examples.
As for the practical nature of Anarchism you could do worse than reading 'Anarchy Works' or 'Worshipping Power' by Peter Gelderoos (and his work in favour of Anarchist violence, 'How Nonviolence Protects the State'), 'Anarchy In Action' by Colin Ward, and 'The Dawn Of Everything' by David Graeber.