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                                Introduction

    "Proletarians of the world, look into the depths of your own beings,
   seek out the truth and realise it yourselves: you will find it nowhere
                                    else"
                              - Peter Arshinov
                   The History of the Makhnovist Movement

                       Welcome to our FAQ on anarchism

   This FAQ was written by anarchists across the world in an attempt to
   present anarchist ideas and theory to those interested in it. It is a
   co-operative effort, produced by a (virtual) working group and it
   exists to present a useful organising tool for anarchists on-line and,
   hopefully, in the real world. It desires to present arguments on why
   you should be an anarchist as well as refuting common arguments against
   anarchism and other proposed solutions to the social problems we face.

   As anarchist ideas seem so at odds with "common-sense" (such as "of
   course we need a state and capitalism") we need to indicate why
   anarchists think like we do. Unlike many political theories, anarchism
   rejects flip answers and instead bases its ideas and ideals in an
   in-depth analysis of society and humanity. In order to do both
   anarchism and the reader justice we have summarised our arguments as
   much as possible without making them simplistic. We know that it is a
   lengthy document and may put off the casual observer but its length is
   unavoidable.

   Readers may consider our use of extensive quoting as being an example
   of a "quotation [being] a handy thing to have about, saving one the
   trouble of thinking for oneself." (A.A. Milne) This is not the case of
   course. We have included extensive quotations by many anarchist figures
   for three reasons. Firstly, to indicate that we are not making up our
   claims of what certain anarchists thought or argued for. Secondly, and
   most importantly, it allows us to link the past voices of anarchism
   with its present adherents. And lastly, the quotes are used for their
   ability to convey ideas succinctly rather than as an appeal to
   "authority."

   In addition, many quotes are used in order to allow readers to
   investigate the ideas of those quoted and to summarise facts and so
   save space. For example, a quote by Noam Chomsky on the development of
   capitalism by state protection ensures that we base our arguments on
   facts without having to present all the evidence and references Chomsky
   uses. Similarly, we quote experts on certain subjects (such as
   economics, for example) to support and bolster our analysis and claims.

   We should also indicate the history of this FAQ. It was started in 1995
   when a group of anarchists got together in order to write an FAQ
   refuting the claims of certain "libertarian" capitalists to being
   anarchists. Those who were involved in this project had spent many an
   hour on-line refuting claims by these people that capitalism and
   anarchism could go together. Finally, a group of net-activists decided
   the best thing was to produce an FAQ explaining why anarchism hates
   capitalism and why "anarcho" capitalists are not anarchists. However,
   after the suggestion of Mike Huben (who maintains the "Critiques of
   Libertarianism" web-page) it was decided that a pro-Anarchist FAQ would
   be a better idea than an anti-"anarcho"-capitalist one. So the
   Anarchist FAQ was born. It still bears some of the signs of its
   past-history. For example it gives the likes of Ayn Rand, Murray
   Rothbard, and so on, far too much space outside of Section F -- they
   really are not that important. However, as they present extreme
   examples of everyday capitalist ideology and assumptions, they do have
   their uses -- they state clearly the authoritarian implications of
   capitalist ideology which its more moderate supporters try to hide or
   minimise.

   We think that we have produced a useful on-line resource for anarchists
   and other anti-capitalists to use. Perhaps, in light of this, we should
   dedicate this anarchist FAQ to the many on-line "libertarian"
   capitalists who, because of their inane arguments, prompted us to start
   this work. Then again, that would give them too much credit. Outside
   the net they are irrelevant and on the net they are just annoying. As
   you may guess, sections F and G contain the bulk of this early
   anti-Libertarian FAQ and are included purely to refute the claim that
   an anarchist can be a supporter of capitalism that is relatively common
   on the net (in the real world this would not be required as almost all
   anarchists think that "anarcho"-capitalism is an oxymoron and that its
   supporters are not part of the anarchist movement).

   So, while coming from a very specific reason, the FAQ has expanded into
   more than we originally imagined. It has become a general introduction
   about anarchism, its ideas and history. Because anarchism recognises
   that there are no easy answers and that freedom must be based on
   individual responsibility the FAQ is quite in-depth. As it also
   challenges a lot of assumptions, we have had to cover a lot of ground.
   We also admit that some of the "frequently asked questions" we have
   included are more frequently asked than others. This is due to the need
   to include relevant arguments and facts which otherwise may not have
   been included.

   We are sure that many anarchists will not agree 100% with what we have
   written in the FAQ. That is to be expected in a movement based upon
   individual freedom and critical thought. However, we are sure that most
   anarchists will agree with most of what we present and respect those
   parts with which they do disagree with as genuine expressions of
   anarchist ideas and ideals. The anarchist movement is marked by
   wide-spread disagreement and argument about various aspects of
   anarchist ideas and how to apply them (but also, we must add, a
   wide-spread tolerance of differing viewpoints and a willingness to work
   together in spite of minor disagreements). We have attempted to reflect
   this in the FAQ and hope we have done a good job in presenting the
   ideas of all the anarchist tendencies we discuss.

   We have no desire to write in stone what anarchism is and is not.
   Instead the FAQ is a starting point for people to read and learn for
   themselves about anarchism and translate that learning into direct
   action and self-activity. By so doing, we make anarchism a living
   theory, a product of individual and social self-activity. Only by
   applying our ideas in practice can we find their strengths and
   limitations and so develop anarchist theory in new directions and in
   light of new experiences. We hope that the FAQ both reflects and aids
   this process of self-activity and self-education.

   We are sure that there are many issues that the FAQ does not address.
   If you think of anything we could add or feel you have a question and
   answer which should be included, get in contact with us. The FAQ is not
   our "property" but belongs to the whole anarchist movement and so aims
   to be an organic, living creation. We desire to see it grow and expand
   with new ideas and inputs from as many people as possible. If you want
   to get involved with the FAQ then contact us. Similarly, if others
   (particularly anarchists) want to distribute all or part of it then
   feel free. It is a resource for the movement. For this reason we have
   "copylefted" An Anarchist FAQ (see
   [1]http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/copyleft.html for details). By so doing
   we ensure that the FAQ remains a free product, available for use by
   all.

   One last point. Language has changed a lot over the years and this
   applies to anarchist thinkers too. The use of the term "man" to refer
   to humanity is one such change. Needless to say, in today's world such
   usage is inappropriate as it effectively ignores half the human race.
   For this reason the FAQ has tried to be gender neutral. However, this
   awareness is relatively recent and many anarchists (even the female
   ones like Emma Goldman) used the term "man" to refer to humanity as a
   whole. When we are quoting past comrades who use "man" in this way, it
   obviously means humanity as a whole rather than the male sex. Where
   possible, we add "woman", "women", "her" and so on but if this would
   result in making the quote unreadable, we have left it as it stands. We
   hope this makes our position clear.

   So we hope that this FAQ entertains you and makes you think. Hopefully
   it will produce a few more anarchists and speed up the creation of an
   anarchist society. If all else fails, we have enjoyed ourselves
   creating the FAQ and have shown anarchism to be a viable, coherent
   political idea.

    We dedicate this work to the millions of anarchists, living and dead,
   who tried and are trying to create a better world. An Anarchist FAQ was
   officially released on July 19th, 1996 for that reason -- to celebrate
   the Spanish Revolution of 1936 and the heroism of the Spanish anarchist
      movement. We hope that our work here helps make the world a freer
                                   place.

   The following self-proclaimed anarchists are (mostly) responsible for
   this FAQ:
   Iain McKay (main contributor and editor)
       Gary Elkin
       Dave Neal
       Ed Boraas

   We would like to thank the following for their contributions and
   feedback:
   Andrew Flood
       Mike Ballard
       Francois Coquet
       Jamal Hannah
       Mike Huben
       Greg Alt
       Chuck Munson
       Pauline McCormack
       Nestor McNab
       Kevin Carson
       Shawn Wilber
       and our comrades on the anarchy, oneunion and organise! mailing
       lists.

   "An Anarchist FAQ", Version 13.3
   Copyright (C) 1995-2009 The Anarchist FAQ Editorial Collective:
   Iain McKay, Gary Elkin, Dave Neal, Ed Boraas

   Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
   under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
   any later version published by the Free Software Foundation, and/or the
   terms of the GNU General Public License, Version 2.0 or any later
   version published by the Free Software Foundation.

   See the Licenses page at [2]http://www.gnu.org/ for more details.

References

   1. http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/copyleft.html
   2. http://www.gnu.org/
