I got the idea with some friends to design and hand out some flyers with the intention to educate people about Anarchy. On the front would be A Large Circle A (to cath attention) and a paragraph or two on what Anarchy is in brief. Then on the back side there would be 5 or 6 websites people could go to for more information. Just wondering if anyone had any advice to give. So far, the websites I was thinking of are: www.anarchyfaq.org www.infoshop.org www.thoughtcrime.org www.anarchism.net http://theanarchistalternative.info/ www.spunk.org/
So far for the paragraph on the front, I've written: "Anarchism is a very misunderstood concept. As most would have you believe the opposite, Anarchy does not mean chaos, nihilism or any other term of the sort. It is in fact quite the contrary. Anarchism implies a society that is governed neither by rules or rulers, but rather by the people themselves who freely dictate their own living. Anarchy is an ideology fashioned upon the values of truth and solidarity. It is a doctrine centered on the community, where the individual gives what he can in return for what he needs. It is commonly believed by Anarchists that individuals are at their very best when living free of authority, or more specifically, free of hierarchy. The current system we live in is built on exactly the opposite. We are conditioned to alienate ourselves from the world and to serve our leaders blindly so that they may pursue their own conquest for wealth and power. It is time that the people wake up and fight back against the controlling elite, to organize and resist. But most importantly, we must educate ourselves over matters that are not taught in our schools." I also wrote "A Better World is Possible" at the bottom in bold. Just wondering if there's anything I can do (and I know there is) to improve the text, keeping in mind that this will be given out to mainly High Schoolers, 98% of whom I doubt have the slightest idea of what Anarchy is.
I like very much. It might not have a lot of affect on the majority (seasoned conservatives), but it will change some thinking and perhaps open the path for anarchy a little wider. Anyway, i think you should point out that one of the main arguments against anarchy is that "If there is no leader, who is going to stop people being selfish and tyrannical?"....the truth is inverse and is as follows, "In an ALREADY established hierarchy in which people already have ludicrous amounts of power over their subjects, who is going to stop THEM from being greedy, selfish and tyrannical?" Central governments make no sense. I think that is the first point to drive into people's minds. Everthing else should follow through....anarchism is such a universal value.
How about a opening with something like "Imagine a world without bosses and rulers" instead? Starting what Anarchy is not, just seems a bit dry.
So are you advocating the following Socialism > Communism > Anarchy or are you advocating Capitalism > Anarchy because if its the 2nd one.........
Ok here's an updated version of the main text. Tell me what you think and please let me know if you spot any grammar mistakes or if I'm not being politically correct. "Imagine a society governed neither by rules nor rulers, but rather by the people themselves, who freely dictate their own living. A society fashioned on the values of peace and solidarity, in other words, Anarchy. Anarchism is a very misunderstood concept. As most authoritarian institutions would have you believe otherwise, it does not mean chaos, nihilism or any other term of the sort. In fact, it is quite the contrary. Anarchism is a doctrine centered on the community, where the individual gives what he can in return for what he needs. Like many great ideas, it is a simple one. It is commonly believed by Anarchists that people are at their very best when living free of authority, or more specifically, free of hierarchy. The current system we live in is built on exactly the opposite. We are conditioned to alienate ourselves from the world and to serve our leaders blindly so that they may pursue their own conquest for wealth and power. Time and time again we have witnessed our governments stray from their assigned mission, serving their own ends instead. It is time for the people to wake up and fight back against the ruling elite, to organize, resist and seize control of our own destinies. But most importantly, we must educate ourselves over matters that are not taught in our schools. Knowledge is the key to our Freedom!"
No offence, but its a little "stereotypically left"...you know, what the average person will call "hippy shit". I think it needs to be more accessible to average joe. One cant assume that the person thinks about "authoritarianism" or "conditioning" or "elitism", they must be introduced to these concepts first. The basic rule of writing an essay. One must assume that the reader knows nothing about the subject.
Yeah I agree, considering some of the people in my school. I made a few changes to the last paragraph: The current system we live in is built on exactly the opposite. We are brought up to believe that humans are greedy, self-serving brutes that must be supervised by some form of authority. If we really are all greedy and selfish, why do we trust others to rule over us? Time and time again we have witnessed our governments stray from their assigned mission, serving their own ends instead. It is time for the people to wake up and fight back against our so called “leaders”, to organize, resist and seize control of our own destinies. But most importantly, we must educate ourselves over matters that are not taught in our schools. Knowledge is the key to our Freedom!
Think about it, do you really think people are going to follow an unwritten set of rules? We won't be able to punish murderers, rapists, terrorists. Yea, sounds like a utopia to me.
Interesting question. Let me answer by asking one of my own. Do you stop yourself from murdering, raping ect because it's against the law, or for another reason. In other words, if there were no laws against rape would you rape? Who won't be able to? Why not? I don't believe anyone said it would be. It's just a better way to go. Perfection, utopia, heaven, paradise... These things don't exist and are not the aim of anarchists. This is the aim for anarchists: http://infoshop.org/faq/secA2.html#seca29 Anarchism is against centralized power, not against organization.
I'm not saying I'm personally going to rape anyone, but those people who are rapists, if there is no government to stop them, then they will. Anarchism is against power, yes, therefore, you can't make laws against anything, you can't make punishments for any crime,
If it's a flyer you need to make it short, simple and eye catching. Make sure there are lots of graphics. Long sentences will make people disinterested. Maybe a "Myth" and "Fact" list. Big bold print is a must. If it's long, people won't read it...if after the "myth" and "fact" section, they are still interested in learning more, they can go to those websites to find out more.... I do lots of flyers...and short and to the point always goes over much better.
I've said this a million times.... Ask yourself this question: Where people are already given positions of power, and where those underneath are partially or fully poweless to influence their decisions...then who is going to stop those in power commiting crimes against humanity? A hierarchichal society is the most utopian of all. By the way, do you think its natural for a nation's jails to be overfilled with humans? What a cynical and cheap view of humanity.
Maybe "no rules" is a bit extreme, especially for people who've never heard of Anarchy. What I really mean is that in an Anarchist society, there is really just one universal law: Do whatever you want as long as you don't affect somebody else's ability to do so. This is really just common sense. The reason it's not seen very much in our society is because we are taught that with enough power and money, you can get away with anything. This isn't anything new, many religions have been teaching this concept for 1000s of years: Treat others as you yourself want to be treated. The purpose of Anarchy isn't to end murder and rape, therefore, Anarchy isn't a utopian concept. The purpose of Anarchy is to "maximize the values of Freedom, Equality and Solidarity". There will always be rape and murder in any society, it's just the statistics that change, and with Anarchy, you can count on lower statistics for those aspects.
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You don't understand what i'm saying. Government doesnt stop rapists, it just punishes them. If a man is going to rape he isn't going to be deterred by a law. Not only that but most laws are not about murder, rape or theft. They are seatbelt laws, drug prohibition, alcohol firearm and tobacco laws , property and corporate law... No Laws does not equal No Punishment. I don't know about you, but if someone were to hurt one of my kids i wouldn't be relying on the legal system to punish the offender. Like I said, Anarchism is antistate not antiorganization. A.2.4 Are anarchists in favour of "absolute" liberty? No. Anarchists do not believe that everyone should be able to "do whatever they like," because some actions invariably involve the denial of the liberty of others. For example, anarchists do not support the "freedom" to rape, to exploit, or to coerce others. Neither do we tolerate authority. On the contrary, since authority is a threat to liberty, equality, and solidarity (not to mention human dignity), anarchists recognise the need to resist and overthrow it. The exercise of authority is not freedom. No one has a "right" to rule others. As Malatesta points out, anarchism supports "freedom for everybody . . . with the only limit of the equal freedom for others; which does not mean . . . that we recognise, and wish to respect, the 'freedom' to exploit, to oppress, to command, which is oppression and certainly not freedom." [Errico Malatesta: His Life and Ideas, p. 53] In a capitalist society, resistance to all forms of hierarchical authority is the mark of a free person -- be it private (the boss) or public (the state). As Henry David Thoreau pointed out in his essay on "Civil Disobedience" (1847) "Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves." http://infoshop.org/faq/secA2.html#seca24
