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A review by aldoojeda
On Anarchism by Noam Chomsky
informative
3.75
Good collection of musing on anarchism by Chomsky. You can really get an idea on his thinking. Namely, that any authority must be justified and if you can't do it —without falling into circular arguments like "we need a State because we need a State" that many socialists fall into—, then it should be dismantled. Chomsky also thinks that you should work with the current structures, even if you oppose to them, to help move society towards a place where more can be done. For example, the State should intervine to control capitalists. The thing is, I believe, if you give too much power to these structures, then it becomes harder and harder to remove them.
A fourth of the book was focused on the Spanish revolution. I undestand that many groups and societies created during this era are the best examples we have of anarchism. But the 56 pages that form make three could be synthesized into this line: "The great weakness of the revolution [...] was the fact that it was not carried through to completition. In part this was because of war; in part, a consequence of the policies of the central goverment". Instead, Chomsky spends a lot of time criticizing the words of Jackson's Spanish Republic and Civil War.
A fourth of the book was focused on the Spanish revolution. I undestand that many groups and societies created during this era are the best examples we have of anarchism. But the 56 pages that form make three could be synthesized into this line: "The great weakness of the revolution [...] was the fact that it was not carried through to completition. In part this was because of war; in part, a consequence of the policies of the central goverment". Instead, Chomsky spends a lot of time criticizing the words of Jackson's Spanish Republic and Civil War.