Glad to see signal is still the top of the pops.

Can’t give away what you don’t have.

I find there is a lot of intellectualizing and circlejerking around what anarchism ‘is’ and ‘isnt’, which is super weird to be because its pretty much antithetical to the philosophy. I’ve always found it extremely off putting and pretty reminiscent of the kind of circle jerking that happens in online libertarian or online tankie circles. It seems to come from people with no lived experience whose entire perspective is based on the kinds of conditions set up by modern social media (identifying with, describing ones self as, talking and presenting rather than doing or being).

My experience of anarchism is that of free association. Its people doing for themselves and choosing to do so for those around them as well. Its the idea that we don’t need some intellectual, political, or authority to tell us how to form social systems or community. Community and society are emergent properties of the human species, not some a tautology described in some text-book or pamphlet. Its not an intellectual exercise, but a physical process. Its digging a garden with your friends to feed yourselves because you don’t want to be hungry and you don’t want them to be hungry either. Its free association. Its some one in your community learning to do small engine repair because if not the elephant grass is going to take over. Its making art because art is beautiful and amazing and it doesn’t need to have any other purpose than that. Its a recognition that for the moment, you are alive, and thats enough.

Anarchism is that idea that we are enough and that is plenty. I’m abhorent to the idea of intellectual anarchism. Its not the thing, but a copy of it. If you want to be anarchist, live it.

I think Le Guins Dispossessed is a good material description of what a lived anarchism ends up looking like. When you read it you know that Le Guin has lived parts of this as well. Its scraping the earth for some calories. Its often times not having much, but having enough. Its taking responsibility for yourself and those around you. Its doing the work yourself and not expecting others to do it for you. If you want to find out what anarchism is, go to the places where it is happening and grab a shovel and do your part to make it a reality.

I joined Reddit during the digg exodus. Before digg I was into fark and before fark, something awful.

It’s good that things die. it’s where new mediums come from. It also keeps the power with the user. It’s an important part of the internet life cycle.