January 27, 2011
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Tom Blanton on Anarchism
Current mood:
ecstaticI know this may seem anti-intellectual and very simplistic, but I often wonder why so many folks who embrace the concept of self-rule and massive decentralization spend so much time and energy constructing systems, rules, and theories regarding widespread social organization.
How a stateless society would look is limited only be the imagination and in reality, would probably look much different than anyone can imagine as it would be created by much smaller groups of individuals with various needs and desires than any groups currently defined by government imposed political jurisdictions.
As for the real world of anarchist activism in Richmond, all I can say is that whenever two or more people gather to engage in victimless illegal conduct, a successful anarchist meeting has occurred. This could be three guitar players splitting a bag of weed, a homeowner hiring a couple of unlicensed contractors to build a deck (conspiring to do so without a building permit) for cash, or having a mechanic with no business license fix your car at his shop that has no certificate of occupancy due to improper zoning.
Fortunately, this type of agorist activity that circumvents the state is common, but Rand and Rothbard are never mentioned. The word anarchist isn’t used to describe the meetings. This is basic survival in the city for many low-income people and quite a few middle-income people who are clinging to a lifestyle that is increasingly becoming more and more elusive, thanks to the state in large part. Here we have an actual living and breathing free market – hindered only by the state. This isn’t a political theory in action – it is a state of mind that informs actions based on survival and self-determination.
– Tom Blanton, commenting on The Thin Black Line
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