I’m sure most people reading this would be aware of Participatory Economics (Parecon, for short). Put forward by Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel in various forms for a while now, it has its fair share of supporters (including some anarchists). Personally, I think it is deeply flawed. I’ll discuss why here.
Archives: Blog entry
A <em>blog entry</em> is a single post to an online journal, or <em>blog</em>.
Three speakers talk about the pro-choice struggles in Ireland they were involved in over the last three decades. These include the 1983 anti-referendum campaign, the Womens’ Information Network, the SPUC v students case, Dublin Abortion Information Campaign, X-Case, Repeal 8th Amendment, 1992 Referendum, Dublin Abortion Rights Group, Alliance for a No Vote, 1998 referendum, Choice Ireland and the D-Case.
An Anarchist FAQ spends some time explaining, probably in far too much detail given their small size and corresponding importance, why "anarcho"-capitalism is not a form of anarchism. Ironically, its founder Murray Rothbard once agreed!
Great picture from Iceland, found via Paul Krugman’s blog (Trickle-Down Economics). Photographs of bankers who left Iceland after the financial crisis have a new use in the restroom of a bar in Reykjavik:
Oh, and Steve Keen has an interesting blog entry too.
Last night I caught the end of a meeting on the ‘Iranian Revolution – the hidden history’ organised by Hands off the People of Iran (HOPI). The speaker was Torab Saleh who took part in the movement of 1979 and whose talk concentrates on the anti-capitalist mass movement that overthrew the Shah’s regime. He also talks about how it was that the religious opposition came to dominate the movement.
Torab Saleh on the Iranian revolution of 1979 – HOPI meeting in Dublin by Andrew Flood on Mixcloud
Last night I gave a talk as part of a panel on pro-choice struggles in Ireland in NUI Maynooth. The venue was a good measure of the huge changes around that issue over the last 20 years, it would have been impossible to imagine a pro-choice meeting in what is the catholic priest training college back in the 1980’s never mind one without even an anti-choice picket in sight. Later on someone told me that the Sociology building itself had once been used to house nuns.
We had the Workers Solidarity Movement national conference over the weekend in Dublin which meant hours spent inside while the sun was out debating and voting on motions and then hours spent outside when it was dark downing pint after pint of the black stuff. Which makes for the sort of weekend that come Monday you need a weekend to recover.
Over the years, it is fair to say I’ve read more than my fair share of propertarian nonsense — I had to, in part to refute claims that "anarcho"-capitalism is a form of anarchism, in part to critique their defences of capitalism.
First, some good news! My suggestion of a A Pierre-Joseph Proudhon Reader has been agreed to by AK Press. So, if you want to see an anthology of Proudhon published in 2010 then please get in touch — even if it is only to recommend bits of Proudhon you like best. If you fancy translating material from French, I would be interested in hearing from you — Proudhon’s writings on the 1848 revolution really need to be in English (for example). Contact details as in the Proudhon blog post linked to above.
I already briefly blogged the 2009 Dublin anarchist bookfair but here is the complete set of audio files I recorded and that I’ve edited and uploaded to indymedia over the last couple of weeks. There is about seven hours worth in total. Also the video of Ashanti Alston speaking at the bookfair.