Anarchist communism: Encyclopedia II - Anarchist communism - Criticisms

Anarchist communism - Criticisms

Some of the early individualist anarchists believed that elements of Anarchist Communism were inconsistent with anarchist principles. Benjamin Tucker calls communist-anarchism "pseudo-anarchism." [1] However, many individualists of that time, such as Tucker and E. Armand, felt they had much in common with anarchist communism, or worked to propagate its ideas along with their own. In modern times almost all individualist anarchists believe that anarchist communism is a legitimate form of anarchism, though most still reject collective economics.

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, whose philosophy had great influence on early anarcho-communists, nonetheless refused to use the term "communism" to describe his own views. At the time he wrote most of his works, the word "communism" was typically used to refer to the views of the utopian socialists, whom Proudhon accused of attempting to supply equality by sovereign decrees rather than believing in equality by nature and education. He also criticized them for allegedly "calling justice everything that seems to them to be love of one's neighbor, and incessantly confounding matters of reason with those of sentiment." Unlike anarcho-communists, Proudhon strongly supported private ownership of the product of labor and opposed the idea of collective ownership of the means of production. In opposition to the communist maxim, Proudhon said "To each according to his works, first; and if, on occasion, I am impelled to aid you, I will do it with a good grace; but I will not be constrained" (The Philosophy of Misery).

More recently, advocates of post-left anarchy have made accusations, such as in in works such as Bob Black's Anarchy After Leftism, that leftists are "moralistic" and have an attachment to generic moral standards which is incompatible with anarchism, and establish political forms, such as the platforism and direct democracy, which they argue amount to forms of state.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Criticisms", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki