Serfs Up

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A post-left anarchist space for the sharing and discussion of ideas relevant to the abolition of work, dismantling capitalism, smashing the patriarchy, cultivating resilient communities and mutual aid.

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phthalocyanin

Capitalism vs Market Economies (self.serfs_up)

submitted 1 year ago by Action_Bastid to c/serfs_up

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Just wanted to check before I decided to hop into this space whether the anti-capitalism stance of the community extends to being anti-market economic system (as contrasted with a command economy) as well.

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[–] phthalocyanin 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

welcome

a market as an exchange of goods or services can exist in different forms. A command economy would require a central authority, which represents a heirarchy not compatible with our philosophy.

that said: "free market" is a popular 'libertarian' cloak hiding a capitalist dagger. I would like to make it clear that this is not a space for modern libertarians to promote replacing state heirarchy with a dictatorship of capital, as we promote the abolition of private ownership of the means of production.

in a society free of class, state, or money, individuals are free to autonomously engage in a mutual and collective exchange of goods and services.

see: library economy, gift economy, mutual aid

[–] Action_Bastid 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Nope, that all works and fits fine with me. I'm just generally a fan of markets for their ability to measure demand in a semi-decentralized style.

But that's a completely different matter than how generated resources and the like should be distributed.

As an example of my thought process: If everyone was given a monthly use it or lose it "resource credit". It couldn't be hoarded, but it could be used as a signaling device to show latent demand.

If I'm a farmer, even in a fully communal setting, it's still helpful info to know whether people generally want/need our commune to plant more carrots as opposed to radishes or vice versa.

Does that track and seem within the community's wheelhouse? If not, then I'd still like to thank you for your time and talking through this with me.

[–] phthalocyanin 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

sounds like we're in the same lane. no reason allocation/production can't be managed in such a manner as to reconcile the needs of the community with the individual's autonomy. anarchism simply advocates for a radically democratic, egalitarian, sustainable approach towards that organizing rather than top-down.