An Anarchist FAQ

by Iain McKay and others

1. Introduction
1. What is anarchism?
1. What does anarchism stand for?
2. What types of anarchism are there?
3. Who are the major anarchist thinkers?
4. What are some examples of 'Anarchy in Action'?
2. Why do anarchists oppose the current system?
1. Why are anarchists against authority and hierarchy?
2. Why are anarchists against the state?
3. Why are anarchists against private property?
4. How does capitalism affect liberty?
5. Is capitalism empowering and based on human action?
6. But will not the decisions made by intelligent individuals with their own financial success or failure on the line be better most of the time?
7. What classes exist within modern society?
3. What are the myths of capitalist economics?
1. What is wrong with economics?
2. Why is capitalism exploitative?
3. What determines the distribution between labour and capital?
4. Why does the market become dominated by Big Business?
5. Why does Big Business get a bigger slice of profits?
6. Can market dominance by Big Business change?
7. What causes the capitalist business cycle?
8. Is state control of money the cause of the business cycle?
9. Could laissez-faire policies reduce unemployment, as supporters of "free market" capitalism claim?
10. Is "free market" capitalism the best way to reduce poverty?
11. Doesn't neo-liberalism in Chile prove that the free market benefits everyone?
12. Doesn't Hong Kong show the potentials of "free market" capitalism?
4. How do statism and capitalism affect society?
1. Why does state intervention occur?
2. What influence does wealth have over politics?
3. How does wealth influence the mass media?
4. What is the relationship between capitalism and the ecological crisis?
5. What causes imperialism?
6. Are anarchists against Nationalism?
7. Are anarchists opposed to National Liberation struggles?
8. What causes militarism and what are its effects?
9. Why does political power become concentrated under capitalism?
10. How does capitalism affect technology?
11. Can politics and economics be separated from each other?
5. What do anarchists think causes ecological problems?
1. What are the root causes of our ecological problems?
2. What do eco-anarchists propose instead of capitalism?
3. Can private property rights protect the environment?
4. Can laissez-faire capitalism protect the environment?
5. Can ethical consumerism stop the ecological crisis?
6. What is the population myth?
6. Is "anarcho"-capitalism a type of anarchism?
1. Are "anarcho"-capitalists really anarchists?
2. What do "anarcho"-capitalists mean by freedom?
3. Why do "anarcho"-capitalists generally place no value on equality?
4. What is the right-"libertarian" position on private property?
5. Will privatising "the commons" increase liberty?
6. Is "anarcho" capitalism against the state?
7. How does the history of "anarcho"-capitalism show that it is not anarchist?
8. What role did the state take in the creation of capitalism?
7. Is individualist anarchism capitalistic?
1. Are individualist anarchists anti-capitalist?
2. Why do individualist anarchists reject social anarchism?
3. Is "anarcho"-capitalism a new form of individualist anarchism?
4. Why do social anarchists reject individualist anarchism?
5. Benjamin Tucker: capitalist or anarchist?
6. What are the ideas of Max Stirner?
7. Lysander Spooner: right-"libertarian" or libertarian socialist?
8. Why do anarchists oppose state socialism?
1. Have anarchists always opposed state socialism?
2. What parts of anarchism do Marxists particularly misrepresent?
3. What are the myths of state socialism?
4. Didn't Engels refute anarchism in "On Authority"?
5. What is vanguardism and why do anarchists reject it?
9. What would an anarchist society look like?
1. Isn't libertarian socialism an oxymoron?
2. Is this a blueprint for an anarchist society?
3. What could the economic structure of an anarchist society look like?
4. How would an anarchist economy function?
5. What would the social structure of anarchy look like?
6. What about the "Tragedy of the Commons" and all that? Surely communal ownership will lead to overuse and environmental destruction?
7. Won't Libertarian Socialism destroy individuality?
8. Does revolutionary Spain show that libertarian socialism can work in practice?
10. What do anarchists do?
1. Are anarchists involved in social struggles?
2. What is direct action?
3. What forms of organisation do anarchists build?
4. What trends in society aid anarchist activity?
5. What alternative social organisations do anarchists create?
6. What methods of child rearing do anarchists advocate?
7. What do anarchists mean by "social revolution"?

Appendix

1. Anarchism and "Anarcho"-capitalism
2. The Symbols of Anarchy
3. Anarchism and Marxism
4. The Russian Revolution
5. Bibliography