Monday, February 20, 2006

There is no such thing as anarcho-syndicalism

I am not keen to write against other positions, simply because I think it is unproductive in general. However, some ignorant "anarcho-syndicalists" have been taking pot shots at what I've been saying, and I thought I would clear out the issue once and for all.

There is no such thing as anarcho-syndicalism. Stop pretending that such a system is logical in any way. It is a "beautiful fiction", that's all. A-Sists claim that once the state is eliminated, human nature will somehow suspend itself and people will follow their syndicalist system slavishly. To put it mildly, this is a refusal to see reality. The only way that such a system could be implemented is through the state. The most eloquent proof of this is that unions have only grown to their coercive, parasitic role in democracies because of the state.

Let me make this clear : I have nothing against the concept of uncoercive unions, or people being concerned about their wages, or anything of the sort. A-S is the opposite of that - it is the belief that, in the absence of the state, people should enslave each other in democratic labour systems. All that A-Sists want is a statist structure reproduced millions of times, a power structure in each factory and office, with its own oppressive ruling class. Insofar as it basically imposes a monopoly of force in each workplace, anarcho-syndicalism is in fact not anarchist at all.

Market anarchy is the only form of anarchy that is not a construct of fantasy, because it does not require people to abandon human nature - in fact it is wholly based on human nature. That is why it is such a great system. People naturally want better live for themselves, and will cooperate to achieve it. People will not sacrifice their freedom and standard of life in the name of "labour", "the working class" or "the abolition of wages". That is just as evil as sacrificing them for the state. Ultimately, for this fiction to subsist, a state would be needed, because only a state (or a religion) controls enough of any given society to repress human nature.

Being that in an anarchy human nature would prevail and anarcho-syndicalism is the very opposite of it, anarcho-syndicalism is not an intellectually viable position. It is an intellectual joke. And that's the last thing I'll ever say about it.