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SirMichaelDonovan t1_j0zptr8 wrote

Reply to comment by rossimus in Anarchism at the End of the World: A defence of the instinct that won’t go away by Sventipluk

>A person is smart, rational. People are dumb panicky animals.

Yeah, as I was rereading the article, I kept thinking "But how exactly could anyone organize an educational system without a hierarchical (i.e. dominant) structure of some kind? I trust a doctor to give me medical care or to cut me open on the basis of the existing power structures within our educational system (which help ensure certain standards are met).

Like I said, I don't think a purely anarchistic society is feasible (and certainly not at the scale of an entire nation); but there are idealistic elements to it that I think we absolutely should focus on (including to the point of restructuring our existing societies to be more equitable and less dominating).

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Containedmultitudes t1_j0zuyk7 wrote

It’s funny you should mention education as it’s one of Noam Chomsky’s go to examples of a fairly anarchic power structure. Departmental leadership is regularly cycled while curricula are developed through consensus. Anarchism does not have to mean the complete absence of hierarchical power structures.

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alienvalentine t1_j103wqa wrote

The mistake is that many people consider anarchism as inherently anti hierarchical, as opposed to anti coercive.

I listen to my doctor's advice because he knows more than me, creating a natural hierarchy, but I wouldn't allow him to make decisions without my consent, as that would be coercive.

Hierarchical relationships are completely compatible with anarchy, so long as they are voluntary to both enter and leave.

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OffDutyWiiFitTrainer t1_j104enz wrote

There's actually two kinds of hierarchies (as defined by Graeber). There's the authority based hierarchies that anarchists argue against, and 'self-resolving' hierarchies, like Parent-Child, Teacher-Student, or Doctor-Patient that are inevitable and unproblematic. The difference is that the role of the parent is to raise the child, once the child is an adult the parent need not raise them more. They have become equals, and the hierarchy is dissolved. The student becomes educated and outgrows the teacher, the patient becomes well. These self-resolving hierarchies are fundamentally different than those based on continued authority and domination.

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