# Introduction

Here is a list of all the new additions to the FAQ from (approximately) the beginning of February 1997. This should make it far easier for the return visitor to find out what has changed since the last visit.

Also it is worthwhile to explain how the version number of the FAQ changes. If we are including a new section (filling an incomplete section, for example) or including a new sub-section in an existing section (for example, adding A.2.20 to section A.2) then the version number is increased by one (from version 2.2 to version 3, for example). If we are updating an old section with new information or an improved argument, then the current version is increased by 0.1 (for example, from version 2.2 to 2.3).

As far as new anarchist and libertarian links are concerned, we will add them when we get enough to make an update worthwhile. These updates have no effect on the FAQ version number as we don't want to inflate it higher than the content deserves.

We hope that this makes it clear to visitors!

# What's New in the FAQ?

Version | Date | What's New
--- | --- | ---
10.0 | 18-MAR-04 | Section H Reorganisation of section H. Some sections have been moved around (for example, section H.5 on the Makhnovist movement is now section H.11 and section H.8 on vanguardism is now section H.5). In addition, sections from section H.6 (what was section H.4) have been added. Some changes have been made to other sections. For example the section on Kronstadt (now section H.7), the section on various Bolshevik Oppositions (section H.10) and the critique of Engels' essay on Authority is now a new section (section H.4) instead of being part of section H.1. The following subsections of section H.6 are now available: Section H.6 Introduction to section H.6 Section H.6.3 Surely the Russian Revolution proves that vanguard parties work? Section H.6.4 Was Lenin's "State and Revolution" applied after October? Section H.6.5 Did the Bolsheviks really aim for Soviet power? Section H.6.6 What happened to the soviets after October?
9.10 | 09-JAN-04 | Section H.9 New section on how Marxist and Leninist ideology helped cause the degeneration of the Russian Revolution. Why only rejecting the centralised, state capitalist Bolshevik vision can lead to real socialism. Section H.10 New section on the better know oppositions within Bolshevism: The "Left Communists" of 1918, the "Workers' Opposition" of 1920/1 and the "Left Opposition" of 1923-7. Explains why they were not real oppositions and what that says about the essence of Leninism. Talks about the little know "Workers' Group" (a real opposition as it argued for workers political and economic freedom) and what its repression by Lenin and Trotsky says about the essence of Bolshevism.
9.9 | 26-AUG-03 | Section H.7 New section on why the Russian Revolution failed. Covers most of the common Leninist explanations of why Bolshevism became authoritarian and shows why they are flawed. Includes replies to such classics as the "declassing" of the working class and lots more.
9.8 | 27-JAN-03 | Section H.5 Section H.5.4 Section H.5.5 Section H.5.6 Section H.5.8 Section H.5.10 Additions to various sub-sections to section H.5 ("What was the Kronstadt Rebellion?"). These additions are from recently published Soviet Archive documents. Section B.4 A slight addition on company towns to the section on How does capitalism affect liberty? Section H.2.2 Addition of an Emma Goldman quote to the section on "Do anarchists reject "class conflict" as "the motor of change" and "collective struggle" as the "means"?". This quote reiterates that Goldman, like all social anarchists, placed collective class struggle at the core of her politics. Section A.5.5 Slight change to the section on "Anarchists in the Italian Factory Occupations" to include a quote by Gramsci on the Communist's disgraceful position on the anti-fascist Arditi del Popolo organisation. Section G Section G.2 Section G.2.1 Section G.2.2 A few additions to clarify a few points on the ideas of individualist anarchism, its support of "free markets" and why it is anti-capitalist.
9.7 | 27-JUNE-02 | Section H.3 New section on the "myths of Marxism." Covers the contradictions in the Marxist and Leninist theories of the state, whether the state is simply an instrument of class rule and whether anarchists and Marxists want the same thing. In addition, covers whether Marxists seek to place power in the hands of workers' organisation and their position on "workers' control." Plus lots more. Section H.8 New section on why anarchists oppose Leninist vanguard parties. Discusses their anti-socialist and elitist tendencies and explains why they are "bureaucratic centralist" rather than "democratic centralist." Plus lots more.
9.6 | 29-MAY-02 | Section H.5 A few additions to the section on the Kronstadt Rebellion, to include Fedotoff-White's book The Growth of the Red Army Appendix - The Symbols of Anarchy A few minor changes to the appendix on anarchist symbols.
9.5 | 5-FEB-02 | Section H.6 New section on the Makhnovist movement. The Makhnovist movement was an anarchist influenced peasant partisan army which fought in the Ukraine for working class freedom and autonomy against the tyrannts of the right and left. The Makhnovists show that there was a viable alternative to the authoritarianism of the Bolsheviks and that Bolshevik ideology played a key role in the degeneration of the revolution. This section summarises the military history of the movement, its constructive social ideas and its attempts to apply them. In addition it refutes common allegations against the Makhnovists (such as they were anti-Semitic, worked with the Whites, were Nationalists, anti-town and so on).
9.4 | 7-DEC-01 | Section H.2 New section on how Marxists have distorted anarchist ideas. Section I.3 Section I.4 Section I.5 Section I.8 Marxists and Spanish Anarchism Reply to errors and distortions in the SWP's "Marxism and Anarchism" Reply to errors and distortions in John Fisher's "Why we must further Marxism and not Anarchism" Minor updates of these sections and appendices to make the quotes Peirats' CNT in the Spanish Revolution and Christies' We, the Anarchists! consistent with the newly published book versions.
9.3 | 27-OCT-01 | Section H.1 New section on how anarchists have opposed state socialism (including Marxism) from the start. Indicates Stirner's and Proudhon's opposition to state socialism and gives a short summary of Bakunin's critique of Marxism. Discusses the key differences between anarchism and Marxism. Also indicates why Engels' infamous essay "On Authority" does not refute anarchism.
9.2 | 01-SEP-01 | Section A.5.4 Extensive revision and expansion of the section on "Anarchists in the Russian Revolution." More details on the Makhnovist movement as well as the degeneration of the revolution under the Bolshevik government. Section A.5.5 Expansion of the section on "Anarchists in the Italian Factory Occupations." Indicates the key role anarchists played in this movement. Section A.5.7 Slight revision to include a reference to the Situationists and their influence in the May, 1968 events in Paris. Section D.5 Extensive revision of "What causes imperialism?". Provides an anarchist analysis of what causes imperialism, how it has changed over time and how "globalisation" is just another, more modern, form of it. Did Trotsky keep alive Leninism's "democratic essence"? A new section to Reply to errors and distortions in David McNally's pamphlet "Socialism from Below". This section discusses Trotsky's support for party dictatorship during the 1920s and 1930s, so showing the inaccuracy of McNally's account of his ideas and putting in question his assertions about Leninism's democratic essence." Marxists and Spainish Anarchism Slight addition to section 6 on the Asturias uprising and the addition of Trotsky's suggestion that the CNT leaders take "dictatorship for themselves" to section 20.
9.1 | 27-JUN-01 | Anarchism and Marxism New reply to another (highly inaccurate) Trotskyist attack on anarchism. We show how the "New Youth" article "Why we must further Marxism and not Anarchism" is little more than a series of inventions and does not present an honest account of anarchist ideas. We also indicate the authoritarian nature of Trotskyist politics.
9.0 | 01-MAY-01 | Section I Massive revision and extension to section I ("What would an anarchist society look like?"). New sub-sections, new and improved arguments, ideas, facts and quotes. Find out about the kind of society anarchists want and fight for.
8.7 | 17-MAR-01 | Section H.5 New section on the Kronstadt Uprising against the Communists in 1921. It presents an indepth discussion and analysis of the rising and places it in the context of the revolution. It refutes Leninist claims that it was a White conspiracy, counter-revolutionary or expressed the exasperation of the peasants. It shows the continuity of the the revolutionary sailors and their politics in 1917 with the revolt of 1921 and discusses what the suppression of the revolt tells us about the politics of Leninism. Section H -- Introduction Slight change to include a quote by Lenin noting that the Council/Anti-Parliamentarian Communists were close to anarchism.
8.6 | 14-DEC-00 | The Symbols of Anarchy Slight revision on the histories of the Black and Red-and-Black Flags. Includes Louise Michels comments on both the Black and Red flags and why the Black Flag ("the flag of strikes") may have become an anarchist symbol. Also shows that anarchists used the red-and-black flag in Mexico in the 1870s. Anarchism and Marxism Slight revisions to two parts of this appendix. Now quotes from the Paris Commune's "Declaration to the French People" in our discussion of Why is Marxist "class analysis" of anarchism contradictory? This makes clearer the anarchistic nature of the Commune. In addition, the comment by Marx that revolution "from below" was "nonsense" has been added to the section on why SWP/ISO use of the expression "Socialism from below" is dishonest. Also a discussion of the Bolshevik hostility towards workers' councils in the 1905 Russian Revolution as another example of the ineffectiveness of the "vanguard" parties like the SWP.
8.5 | 27-OCT-00 | Anarchism and Marxism Slight revisions of each of the existing appendices to fix minor typing errors. Plus a reply to the recent British SWP article on "Marxism and Anarchism" in which we discuss the errors in the article and indicate that the disgraceful behaviour of the SWP in the recent "Battle of Prague" shows that the SWP are hypocrites as well as why such behaviour flows naturally from their authoritarian politics.
8.4 | 19-JUL-00 | Section B.4.5 Expansion on why capitalism cannot "leave you alone". Includes information on self-management schemes and why they management stop them and what this implies for capitalism. Plus it discusses the ambiguity of the slogan "leave me alone" in a hierarchical society. Section J.5.12 Expansion on why capitalism selects against workers' self-management even though it is usually more productive and efficient than wage labour. The hierarchical nature of the company ensures that such experiments do not grow and expand. Section F.1 Slight expansion of "Are 'anarcho'-capitalists really anarchists?" Adds the point we make elsewhere that they cannot be considered as anarchists because capitalist property, like the state, is hierarchical. Anarchism and Marxism Two new additions to this appendix. The first one is on Marxists and Spanish Anarchism in which we discuss various claims made by Marxists (particularly Trotskyists) about the history and politics of the Spanish anarchist movement. The second is a reply to a Marxist diatribe against the various "direct action" and anti-globalisation events and organisations, particularly Reclaim the Streets in London. In addition, section 12 of the appendix on the pamphlet "Socialism from Below" has been expanded to include more details about anarchist involvement during the Russian Revolution and their links with the masses as well as details of the politics of Parisian workers of the 1860s.
8.3 | 13-APR-00 | Section B.2 Expansion and revision on the section "Why are anarchists against the state?". Indicates that the state bureaucracy has its own interests and so the state is not only the tool of the economically dominant class. Also indicates the role of the state as protector of the system as a whole and how it does this. Section J.1 Revision of the section on "Are Anarchists involved in social struggles?". Section D.1 Section D.2 Section D.11 Slight expanision of each of these sections. Anarchism and Marxism Revision to fix various minor typos.
8.2 | 18-MAR-00 | Anarchism and Marxism New appendix for replies to on-line anti-anarchist webpages and works. Currently contains an indepth reply to the SWP/ISO pamphlet "Socialism from Below." We expose their "The Myth of Anarchist Libertarianism" to be a mish-mash of lies, half-truths and nonsense and indicate why Marxism is not Socialism from Below and why anarchism is. Section C.1 Revision and expansion of our critique of marginalism and general equilibrium theory. Section J.2.10 Slight expansion on why the claim that anarchism is apolitical because it rejects electioneering is false. Section J.3.7 Slight expansion on Bakunin's ideas on the tactics of anarchist groups and why Marxist accounts of them are false. Section J.7.2 Slight change to the end of the section on Is social revolution possible? Stresses that people change themselves when they change the world and that libertarian characteristics are generated by struggle and so co-operative/libertarian tendencies are a product of struggle, not idealised notions with little basis in reality. Section E.7 Slight expansion on why Green Consumerism cannot stop ecological destruction. Expands on the use of PR firms, "greenwashing" and how apparently "green" firms may not be. Section F.1.3 Section F.2.2 Slight revision of these sections.
8.1 | 19-JAN-00 | Section A.2.9 Expansion on the section on "What sort of society do anarchists want?" Clarifies the important difference between delegates and representatives. The former is the basis for eliminating government, the latter is a form of government. Section A.5 Slight expansion to introduction of this sub-section to hight that anarchists aim for a revolution from below and that our examples of Anarchy in Action are expressions of this. Section A.5.1 Expansion of the section on "The Paris Commune" to include more information on its anarchistic elements and to provide more anarchist analysis of it. Section A.5.2 Expansion of the section on the "Haymarket Martyrs" to include more of the history of the event, details of the "Chicago Idea" which inspired them as well as why anarchists still consider it important. Section J.5 Slight modification to "What alternative social organisations do anarchists create?" Appendix 1 Slight changes to the appendix on "Anarchism and 'Anarcho'-capitalism"
8.0 | 14-DEC-99 | Section G Revision and expansion of section G which is on the Individualist Anarchists. In addition to new arguments in existing sections on why they were libertarian socialists and not fore-fathers of "anarcho"-capitalism, there are three new sub-sections: G.1.1 Why is the social context important in evaluating Individualist Anarchism? G.2.1 What about their support of the free market?; G.2.2 What about their support of "private property"?; Section C.2.6 Section C.2.7 Addition of a couple of Proudhon quotes on why interest is exploitative and unjustifiable. Section H -- Introduction New section. Introduction to the section on why Anarchists are opposed to Marxism and other forms of state socialism. Also refutes some of the silly anti-anarchist assertions by Marxists. Section J.7 New section on What do anarchists mean by social revolution?. Find out what anarchists mean when they talk about social revolution, what it would involve and why most anarchists think it is required (and also why some anarchists reject it).
7.8 | 11-NOV-99 | Section A.1.4 Slight change to the section on Are anarchists socialists? Section A.1.5 Expansion of the section on Where does anarchism come from?. While still stressing that anarchism is a product of working class struggle against the modern state and capitalism (and for freedom and equality), it also notes that anarchistic tendencies have existed in society before anarchism existed as a specific political theory. Section A.2.7 Expansion to the section on Why do anarchists argue for self-liberation? in order to stress that it is the process of rebellion, of self-liberation, that holds the key to a free society. Section A.2.9 Addition of Kropotkin quote to the section on What sort of society do anarchists want? Section A.2.14 Revision to the section on Why is voluntarism not enough? to include a few quotes and to clarify a few things. Section A.2.19 Very slight addition to the section on What ethical views do anarchists hold? to include how inequality erodes ethical behaviour. Section B.7.1 Inclusion of more information on classes to the section on But do classes actually exist?. International comparisions show that the US has more poverty and the smallest middle class compared to social democratic states in Europe. Not surprisingly, as its more free market based. Section B.7.3 Slight expansion of the section on What do anarchists mean by "class consciousness"? Section C.2 Slight expansion of the section on Where do profits come from? Section D.10 Expansion of the section on How does capitalism affect technology?. In a hierarchical society, technology cannot be truly neutral -- as anarchists have been aware of since Proudhon -- and will be used to enchance the power and profit of the bosses. Section F.5 Expansion of the section on why privatising everything will not increase freedom. Discover why a right-libertarian society implies the end of freedom of travel and the end of other civil liberties such as freedom of speach. Section J.2 Expansion of the section on What is Direct Action?. Find out why anarchists support direct action, why we are against voting and what our alternative is to electioneering. An Anarchist FAQ Bibilography The bibliography for the books we reference in the FAQ has been considerably added to.
7.7 | 14-JUL-99 | Section J.4 New section on What trends in society aid anarchist activity? This section includes discussion of the importance of social struggle and the myth that its counter-production. In addition, it discusses anarchist use of the Internet, popular discontent with the state and big business as well as economic crisis. Appendix - Anarchism and "anarcho"-capitalism Revision and expansion on our reply and critique to Bryan Caplan's "Anarchist Theory FAQ." Explains why "anarcho"-capitalism is not anarchist and not part of the anarchist tradition. An Anarchist FAQ Bibilography Incomplete bibliography for the books we reference in the FAQ. It will be added to as time permits. Section A.1.1 Slight revision to the section on What does "anarchy" mean? to stress that anarchy means far more than just "no government." Section A.3.1 Section A.3.2 Expansion to the discussion on the differences between social and individualist anarchists, as well as between different kinds of social anarchist. Section A.5.5 Expansion of the section on Anarchists in the Italian Factory Occupations. Includes more details of the Anarchist struggle against fascism and refutes claims that Italian Fascism was somehow related to anarcho-syndicalism. Section A.2.18 Expansion and revision of the infamous "propaganda by the deed" period of anarchist history. Section F.8 Slight changes to the section on the role of the state in creating capitalism in the first place. Section A Minor changes in section A. Section B Minor changes in section B.
7.6 | 23-APR-99 | Section J.3 New section on What kinds of organisation do anarchists build?. This section discusses the different kinds of organisations anarchists create and what role they play in anarchist theory, as part of society and in the class struggle. Anarcho-syndicalism is also discussed, as is why many anarchists are not anarcho-syndicalists. Also covered is Bakunin's ideas on the role of revolutionary organisations. Appendix - The Symbols of Anarchy New appendix on the history of the common anarchist symbols: the black flag, the red-and-black flag and the circled-A
7.5 | 15-MAR-99 | Section C.8 Expansion of section on the role of credit and state control of money in the business cycle. Discusses Monetarism and free banking and why they fail to stop the business cycle. Section C.11 Slight revision and expansion on the section which discusses why Chile shows that free-market capitalism does not benefit everyone and that it was no "economic miracle". Section A.2.2 Slight modification to the section on "Why do anarchists emphasise liberty?". Section A.2.5 Extension on "why anarchists are in favour of equality?" to clarify a few points. Section A.2.8 More arguments explaining why it is impossible to be an anarchist without opposing hierarchy, including the hierarchy associated with private property. Introduction Slight up-date of the introduction.
7.4 | 17/12/98 | Section C.7 Expansion, revision and reorganisation of section on "What causes the capitalist business cycle?". Includes new facts and figures and expands on original arguments. Why boom and bust is inherent in capitalism and the role of class struggle, investment and the price mechanism in it. Section C.9 Expansion, revision and reorganisation of section on Would laissez-faire policies reduce unemployment, as "free market" capitalists claim?. Reorganisation includes new subsections on empirical evidence that suggests high wages are associated with low unemployment and why "flexible" labour markets do not seem to be the solution to unemployment. Section C.3 Revision on What determines the distribution between profits and wages within companies?, stressing the importance of organisation and collective struggle in increasing wages by increasing bargaining power and indicating that rising productivity can be associated with lower wages, in contradiction to the claims of capitalist economics.
7.3 | 08/12/98 | Section A.3.3 Revision and expansion of "What types of Green anarchism are there?", indicating the links between ecological and anarchist thought, the different types of green anarchism there are and where they agree and disagree. Section A.3.4 Revision and expansion of "Is anarchism pacifistic?" in which we discuss why many anarchists are pacifists and why anarchism has close links with pacifist ideas. It also indicates why most anarchists are not pacifists. Section A.1.4 Revision of the section on "Are Anarchists Socialists? to clarify a couple of points and provide a few more quotes from Individualist anarchists. Section B.4.3 Revision of the section on "No one forces you to work for them" which indicates that this refrain of supporters of capitalism misses the point. Section G.6 Slight expansion on "What are the ideas of Max Stirner? in relation to his Union of Egoists and why it implies self-management, not hierarchy. Section C.5.1 Inclusion of a few quotes by Peter Kropotkin on how Big Business gets more profits. Big isn't beautiful, but it helps you make more profits!
7.2 | 22/05/98 | Section C.1 Section C.2 Revision and expansion of the anarchist critique of capitalist economics and why exploitation (unpaid labour) is the root source of profits, interest and rent. Section C.10 Expansion of the section on why "free market" capitalism will not benefit all, especially the poor. Section C Introduction Section C.9 Slight changes to these two sub-sections of section C.
7.1 | 27/03/98 | Section A.3.5 Revision and expansion of "What is Anarcha-Feminism?". Includes a few more quotes and a discussion on why anarchists and anarcha-feminism are critical of mainstream feminism. Section A.2.11 Expansion of the section explaining why most anarchists support direct democracy and consider it as the complement to free association and individual freedom. Section A.2.13 Slight expansion on the section explaining why anarchists reject "individualism" and "collectivism" as two sides of the same (capitalist) coin. Section A.1 Section A.2.2 Section A.2.12 Section A.5.2 Slight revisions to all the above sections. Section J.5 Slight revisions for grammar.
7.0 | 10/03/98 | Section A.3.7 New sub-section on Are there religious anarchists? Includes information on various forms of religious anarchism with particular reference to Tolstoy. Section A.3.8 New sub-section on What is "anarchism without adjectives"?. Gives the history of this form of anarchism, what it is and why it came about. Section A.4 Slight revision of this section on Who are the major anarchist thinkers to include information on religious anarchism. Section C.11 Slight arrangement of sections C.11 and C.12 on the "free market" capitalist experiment in Pinochet's Chile. C.12 is now included as a subsection of C.11. Section C.12 New section C.12 on Hong Kong and why it does not show the benefits of laissez-faire capitalism as is often claimed. Section F Extensive revision of section F on why "anarcho"-capitalism is not a form of anarchism. Expanded, revised and spell checked. Replies to the FAQ New appendix which will list webpages that reply to the FAQ. Currently it includes a reply to reply on section F.1 done by an "anarcho"-capitalist.
6.8 | 07/01/98 | Section J.5 New sub-section on "What alternative social organisations do anarchists create?. Includes information about community organising, industrial unionism and networking, mutual/co-operative credit systems, producer co-operatives (and why capitalism is inefficient), libertarian education and schools, a discussion on Libertarian Municipalism and anarchist views on state and private welfare and self-managed alternatives to both. Essential reading if you are interested in anarchy in action Section A.1 Slightly revised sub-section on "What is Anarchism?". Section B.1.4 Slight revision on the section on racism, sexism and homophobia and why they exist to include a summary of a study into the effects of racism in the USA. The study indicates that racism makes all working people worse off, including the "white" workers who are often said to benefit from it.
6.7 | 18/12/97 | Section G.6 Slight revision to the section on Max Stirner and his ideas. Sections J introduction, J.1, J.2 and J.6 Minor revision on these sections of J for spelling and grammar
6.6 | 15/12/97 | Section B.7 Slight revision to include more details on the concentration of wealth within the ruling class. Sections C.4, C.5 and C.6 Major revision on the sections on Big Business and oligopoly. Why it develops, its impact on society and why and how it enriches the few at the expense of the many. Section D Revised, expanded and spell checked section D on How does capitalism and statism effect society. Even more arguments and facts against capitalism and statism.
6.5 | 28/10/97 | Slight corrections to sections A, B and C
6.4 | 03/09/97 | Section J.6 Anarchist ideas on and methods for bringing up children. Section B Revised, expanded and spell checked section B on Why do anarchists oppose the current system. Even more arguments and facts against capitalism and statism. Section C Introduction, C.2, C.6, C.7.2 and C.9 Slightly revised and expended sections on capitalist economics. Sections F and G have been moved to another geocities address for space reasons.
6.3 | 17/07/97 | Section C Revised, expanded and spell checked section C on The Myths of Capitalist Economics. Even more quotes from your favourite anarchists and libertarians!. Even more arguments and facts against capitalism! Section E Revised and spell checked section e on What do anarchists think causes ecological problems?. Section G Renamed, improved, expanded, revised and spell checked section G on Is individualist anarchism capitalistic? - the short answer being "no"! Indicates how and why individualist anarchism was opposed to capitalism plus why social anarchists are critical of the theory.
6.2 | 23/05/97 | Section J.1 Newly completed sub-section. Find out why social struggle is important to anarchists and how anarchists take part in it. For anarchists, social struggle is the key from getting from capitalism to anarchy. Section A Revised section A on What is Anarchism?. Improved and updated arguments and evidence, plus spell checked, and so on! Section J - introduction and J.2 Spell checked and slightly revised.
6.1 | 01/05/97 | Section J.2 Newly completed sub-section. Find out all about direct action, why anarchists support it, why we reject electioneering as a means of change and why we do not vote. Minor update of section B.3 to include a couple of nice Proudhon quotes on how "property is despotism." Minor updates of sections C.2 and F.2.1 to make the quotes from Proudhon's What is Property consistent in terms of edition. All quotes now from B.R. Tucker's translation, Bellamy Library edition, London. Minor updates to sections I.3, I.3.1, I.3.4 , I.3.5, I.4.4 and I.4.13 in order to make the possible nature and workings of an anarchist "economy" clearer. Minor update to section I.8.7 on the Aragon rural collectives and how they were the product of the radicalisation of the population during the 1930s.
6.0 | 26/03/97 | Section B.3.4 New sub-section. Analysis of the claims that private property, particularly in land, can be justified in terms of self-ownership. Also indicates the authoritarian nature of private property and the way Robert Nozick ignores the liberty of the dispossessed in his attempts to justify appropriation of land. If land ownership cannot be justified, then capitalism is based upon stolen goods. Section B.7.1 This section on classes is slightly expanded to give details of income mobility within capitalism. Argues that even high income mobility cannot justify a class system and presents evidence that income mobility is moderate at best. Section F.2.2 New sub-section. Short discussion on why we should reject the right-Libertarian "entitlement theory of justice." The means do not justify the ends, and if the ends involve authoritarian social relationships, inequalities in liberty, wealth and power, even "civilised" slavery, then the theory stinks. Appendix New appendix on Anarchism and "anarcho"-capitalism. As well as including the old section F.10, this appendix contains new work - a reply to the claim that the Individualist Anarchists were not part of the socialist movement, a discussion on What socialism actually stands for, analysis on whether Proudhon and Tucker were socialists or capitalists, a reply to claims that "anarcho"capitalism is a form of anarchism and a discussion on why anarchism cannot be defined using dictionaries.
5.1 | 10/03/97 | Minor updates to sections C.11 and C.12 on the Chilean "economic miracle." Why did it require mass murder, dictatorship and state terror to create "free market" capitalism in Chile and what was its actual results?
5.0 | 28/02/97 | Section D.5 A slight update expanding upon the anarchist analysis of imperialism and how it has developed over time. Section C.7 An updated analysis of the capitalist business cycle. Argues that the class struggle both outside and inside the workplace has an impact in creating the business cycle. Old version ignored social struggle outside the workplace and put too much emphasis on technological innovation by big business. This has been corrected. Sections C.8.1,C.8.2 and C.8.3 Anarchist analysis of the rise of social Keynesianism and its fall into a combination of free markets and Pentagon-style Keynesianism. Even reformed capitalist is not immune to the struggle for freedom against hierarchy and the objective limits of capitalism. Section F.1 Expanded arguments on why "anarcho"-capitalism is not anarchist. Contains an excellent quote by Noam Chomsky on what he considers would happen if it was tried in practice. Also contains the new sub-sections F.1.2 and F.1.3 on how libertarian right-libertarian theory is (not very!) and how most right-Libertarians reject the scientific method in favour of dogma, respectively. Section G.5 An updated analysis of the ideas of Individualist Anarchist Benjamin Tucker. More quotes from Tucker on the socialistic nature of his ideas and his support for labour struggle. Section I.7.4 Expanded analysis on why capitalism does not protect individuality and why competition puts out the flame of individuality and rebellion. Section J - Introduction Introduction to the section on "What do Anarchists do?". Gives a short overview of the anarchist approach to social struggles and why its so important for creating an anarchist future. Plus updated contents page - what to look forward to in the near future!
4.1 | 14/02/97 | Minor updates to sections A.1.5, A.2.9, I.5.8 and I.6.1. |
4.0 | 10/02/97 | Introduction At long last an introduction to the FAQ and its history. Also names the guilty parties. What's New? This "What's New" page will be a welcome addition to regular visitors to the FAQ. Section F.2.1 Do Libertarian-capitalists support slavery? Yes is the answer and find out why this indicates that right-libertarians are not libertarians at all. Section F.9 Update with new evidence of the nature of Medieval Iceland and why it indicates that private property produces statism. More reasons why Medieval Iceland demonstrates how "anarcho-"capitalism will not work in practice.
3.3 | 06/02/97 | Section F.6 New analysis on how the "anarcho"-capitalist system of private states will become a public state. Builds on and extends original argument.