[Peace-discuss] what I like about the anarchists

[Robert Naiman]

You know what I like about the anarchists? The anarchists are
straightforward on the question of electoral politics. If you try to get
the anarchists interested in electoral politics, they're like: nope. Not
going to do that. Don't believe in that. Takes five seconds. They're not
deceitful about it at all. They don't pretend to be interested in stuff
that they're not interested in. So they don't waste your time, and you
don't waste theirs.

No reasonable leftist, sitting with an anarchist in a bar or a coffee shop,
is bringing up the electoral politics thing, because everybody knows
exactly where the conversation is going to go. Nowhere.

On the other hand, the anarchists are smart and creative and hardworking
and have great ideas and are skilled at carrying them out. And, as long as
you don't ask them to do stuff that they don't wanna do, they're very good
at cooperation.

Occupy Wall Street was an anarchist idea, initially implemented by
anarchists, using the anarchist toolbox. Without anarchists, Occupy Wall
Street is never happening, never spreading all over the country.

I think that nationally, the reformists and the anarchists should be having
very serious conversations right now about how to cooperate in the coming
period without tripping over each other ideologically.

I think that if that happens, lots of wonderful and useful projects will be
possible.

===

Robert Naiman
Policy Director
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org
(202) 448-2898 x1
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