By anarchist spirit I mean that deeply human

sentiment, which aims at the good of all, freedom

and justice for all, solidarity and love among people;
which is not an exclusive characteristic only of selfdeclared anarchists, but inspires all people who have
a generous heart and an open mind.
Enrico Malatesta, Umanita Nova
April 13, 1922

ISSUE 1 AUGUST 2016

The Paris Climate

Agreement is Bullshit
Heres why

At the same time mainstream science is concluding that even a 2-degree rise
in global temperature carries a huge risk of catastrophic sea level rise, and
runaway carbon release events, our politicians reached consensus that
2 degrees is a safe upper limit.
IGNORING THE SCIENCE WITH DEADLY CONSEQUENCES: While politicians agreed
that we must create reductions in fossil fuel emissions sufficient to hold global warming
below the 2 degree mark, the agreement they signed in Paris, even if followed to the letter,
will lock us in to a temperature rise of between 2.7 and 3.5 degrees. And historically, such
agreements to cut back have never been followed but always exceeded.
ACCOUNTING METHODS THAT LIE: The accounting method for a countrys carbon
footprint is completely bogus. It does not count the carbon emissions embedded in imported
goods. So when we get all our crap made in China, for example - offloading the ecological
and social costs of production onto the ecosystems and the people there - we are richly
rewarded. Not only does China absorb the most devastating impacts of our consumption, the
emissions that produce our goods go on Chinas ledger. This leaves us more room to expand
our already-unsustainable carbon footprint at home through hugely polluting projects like
the Alberta tar sands.
LETS ONLY COUNT SOME EMISSIONS: In other spheres of their influence, our
politicians have agreed on moving to an even more globalized economy, requiring vast
increases in the already huge amounts of fossil fuel used to transport goods around the
world. At a time when we must reduce our fossil fuel emissions or face life-threatening
consequences, this is counter-productive to say the least. Our politicians answer? Since the
carbon emissions from shipping dont occur in any particular nation, they cant be attributed
to one. And if they cant be attributed to any nation, there is no place for them on the ledger.
So we just dont count them.
INCORPORATING TECHNOLOGY THAT DOESNT EXIST: At the conference, the
International Panel on Climate Change, the body that decides what science, or lack thereof,
to convey to participants, advised policy makers on the global temperature rise their carbon
emission pathways would lead to. But in every scenario created by the IPCC, these
temperature estimates were artificially low. Thats because they subtracted large amounts of
carbon emissions from the burden actually being produced: all scenarios assumed large-scale
industrial extraction of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to be occurring. Not only is this
not happening, the technology to do it does not even exist. And attempts to produce it are
hobbled by lack of funding and resources, and bureaucratic roadblocks to co-operation. So,
the people to whom we have given the power to decide how much carbon will continue to be
pumped into our atmosphere--a matter of life and death for all of us--are basing their
decisions on fantasy.
THE PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT IS BULLSHIT: Our world leaders are leading us off
the edge of a cliff. Why are we following them? n
Rosalind Adams
For more on this topic: http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/cop21paris-deal-far-too-weak-to-prevent-devastating-climate-change-academics-warn-a6803096.

How free are you?

We may feel were free, but how truly free are
we under hierarchy and authority?
The organizational power structures of hierarchy and authority are inextricably linked. The
amount of authority one wields over another generally increases in direct relation to that
persons hierarchical position. This inevitably divides us into rulers and the ruled, depriving
the latter of the right to self-determination and realization of their full human potential with
society starved of the same. Moreover, under the coercive powers of hierarchy and authority,
full and equal participation for everyone in society is impossible despite what we are told.
To be clear, were referring to authority that has power over others and not authority that is
based on the competence of someone whose advice we might seek out. Nor are we referring
to legitimate authority that, for example, would have someone prevent a child from doing
something dangerous.

One of the challenges in struggling against coercive controls created by

hierarchy and authority, maybe surprisingly, is our view of ourselves.

Often we dont believe that we are being oppressed or ruled. This is especially true if we
benefit from being higher up on the hierarchical ladder, but it can also be that we simply
share the belief of the dominant class, that is, that people need to be ruled. Or we may
just have learned to accept that thats just the way it is. We may never had given a second
thought to our right to full autonomy or the possibility that we should question authority
This is somewhat understandable since accepting the status quo - including patriarchy, class
position, meritocracy, and other social dominance relations - has been ingrained in us from
very early on follows us everyday in the world.

Fortunately, the ruling class hasnt been successful in convincing all of us to

be passive, or accept that this is just how it is. Resistance exists.
Key in the growth of our freedom is to, as Noam Chomsky writes, seek out and identify
structures of authority, hierarchy, and domination in every aspect of life, and to challenge
them; unless a justification for them can be given, they are illegitimate, and should be
dismantled, to increase the scope of human freedom.

Achieving this means looking at the world through a different lens, one that
critically assesses who has power, how it is used, and to what ends.

This includes confronting the illegitimate authority of, as Chomsky further explains,
political power, ownership and management, relations among men and women, parents and
children, our control over the fate of future generations (the basic moral imperative behind
the environmental movement. . .), and much else. Naturally this means a challenge to the
huge institutions of coercion and control: the state, the unaccountable private tyrannies that
control most of the domestic and international economy [i.e. capitalist corporations and
companies], and so on. But not only these.
Only through confronting these power structures can we win the battle to run our own lives
and build a world of self-governing people free to better organize societies - a society that
enables all of its members to meet collective and individual needs and desires through full
and equal participation. n
Christine Renaud
For more on this and many related topics, visit: theanarchistlibrary.org

Do you have Anarchistic Tendencies?

Anarchism has its roots in historical revolutions and writings dating back to ancient Greece. Just as with many movements, it has evolved with the times and
yet remained timeless and essential. I am new to understanding these theories that at times can be complex, but yet be so simple and grassroots.
I can identify with the need for freedom, to exist without imposing powers and the belief in humanity that it is good and that society can organize itself. In an effort to
illustrate some core beliefs, ask yourself:
Am I an anarchist?
While driving do you slow down when seeing children near the edge of the road? Do you slow down because you may get a hefty ticket from the police and in trouble with the law or do
you use caution because you wouldnt want anyone to get hurt or worse. Or do you drive carefully not to hit a frog, squirrel, or turtle on the road? If you avoid hurting people or animals
unnecessarily than you may be an anarchist.
When its election time, no matter whether it be municipal, provincial or federal, do you find yourself feeling like youre forced to vote for the lesser of evils or questioning whether to vote
at all? Do you have minimal trust of those in power? If so, then you may be an anarchist.
Have you ever volunteered your time for a cause that rewards you with contentment and no financial gain? Have you helped a friend move, built a fence, or held the door open for a person
struggling? If you have, then you may be an anarchist.
Do you place your unyielding trust in large corporations? Do you trust in Canada Post, Bell Canada, Hydro One or Microsoft? Do you believe that your letter will always get there, that you
will never be overbilled and your computer will never fail because How could Bill Gates let that happen to you? If you said yes to any of the above you are probably not an anarchist!
So what does Anarchism mean then? Anarchism perhaps could be best described as one of the most misunderstood political philosophies. What it is not is society descending into chaos,
violence and mayhem. Alexander Berkman, a leading writer and anarchist movement in the early 20th century, wrote, I must tell you, first of all, what anarchism is not. It is not bombs,
disorder, or chaos. It is not robbery or murder. It is not a war of each against all. It is not a return to barbarianism or to the wild state of man. Anarchism is the very opposite of all that.
What Anarchism was and remains is a fundamental belief in humanity and freedom to make choices, and that the world can function without capitalism, governments, religions and
domination. Berkman wrote, Anarchism means you should be free; that no one should enslave you, boss you, rob you, or impose upon you. It means you should be free to do the things you
want to do; and that you should not be compelled to do what you do not want to do. n
Erin Johnston
Sources: http://www.spunk.org/texts/intro/sp001633.html and http://theanarchistlibrary.org//the-anarchist-faq

I am truly free only when all human beings, men

and women, are equally free. The freedom of other
men, far from negating or limiting my freedom, is,
on the contrary, its necessary premise and
confirmation. - Mikhail Bakunin
It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to
a profoundly sick society - Jiddu Krishnamurti

ISSUE 1 AUGUST 2016

Anarcha-feminism
Alongside the class and anti-authority struggles of anarchism, there is the struggle
against the patriarchy; anarcha-feminism holds that this is a necessary part of the
struggle against the state.
In society as a whole, male voices and opinions frequently drown out female perspectives, due in part to male control
over media, corporations and government. While the goal of anarchist struggles is to overturn these oppressive systems,
male voices in the anarchist community can often mirror those in mainstream society; they often speak louder and more
often than female voices. A rejection of oppression must include a rejection of all oppression, including the patriarchy.
This includes the rejection of traditional family structure and gender roles.
Interestingly, this rejection can be seen in Rojava, also known as Western or Syrian Kurdistan, a de facto autonomous
region originating in three self-governing cantons in northern Syria. There, women bear arms to protect themselves
and their cantons and decisions affecting the cantons cannot be made without at least 40% of gatherings comprised of
women. (For more information on Rojava, check out Paul Z Simons).
Historically, male anarchist writers and thinkers have been somewhat divided on this issue. Some such as Pierre-Joseph
Proudhon, (one of the first declared anarchists, 15 January 1809 19 January 1865) held that the traditional, patriarchal
family unit should be the basis for society. Others, such as Emma Goldman and Mikhail Bakunin completely disagreed;
Bakunin argued that the cause of womens liberation was indissolubly tied to the common cause of all the exploited
workers men and women (Bakunin on Anarchism). Goldman, in The Tragedy of Womans Emancipation, goes
further to encourage women not just to reject external attempts to limit womens freedoms, but also internal: Time and
again it has been conclusively proved that the old matrimonial relation restricted woman to the function of a mans servant and the bearer of his children. And yet we find many emancipated women who prefer marriage, with all its deficiencies, to the narrowness of an unmarried life, narrow and unendurable because of the chains of moral and social prejudice
that cramp and bind her nature Until woman has learned to defy them all, to stand firmly on her own ground and to
insist upon her own unrestricted freedom She cannot call herself emancipated. n
Bethany MacInnes
For further reading on Anarcha-Feminism: Quiet Rumours: An Anarcha-Feminist Reader. Texts by Dark Star, published
by AK Press.
Anarchism and Other Essays by Emma Goldman
The Anarchist Library theanarchistlibrary.org is a vast resource for all things anarchist
For further information on Rojava: search online for Paul Z. Simons

Book Review
Sasha and Emma: The Anarchist Odyssey
of Alexander Berkman and Emma
Goldman by Paul Avrich and Karen Avrich.
Paul Avrich was a notable
historian of anarchism who
wrote numerous books.
He began the work of
exhaustively researching
and writing this book and,
after his death in 2006, his
daughter Karen continued
it. More than just a biography of two remarkable
people, this book covers
the history of the anarchist
struggle in the United
States and elsewhere in the 19th and 20th centuries.
It includes pictures of events and people, references
newspaper articles and personal correspondence,
but does not become bogged down in minutiae;
rather, the meticulous research is woven in narrative
that makes the book read like a novel. n
Reviewed by Bethany MacInnes
Available through interlibrary loan at your local
public library.

3 Myths about
Anarchism
Myth #1 Its chaos Anarchism is actually about
organization built on full participation of free
individuals in society who are responsible for their
actions. In fact, the Circle A is said to represent PierreJoseph Proudhons maxim that Anarchy is Order.

Myth #2 Its violent There is no violence greater than

that created by governments and capitalism. These
combined not only send us to kill other people around
the world, but create the violence that is poverty, keeping
people hungry,
without shelter, and access to health care. It exploits
peoples labor for profit. State sanctioned violence upheld
by capitalism permeates society. Its only called violence
when we fight back.
Myth #3 Its utopian. Anarchism is actually anti-utopian. It recognizes that a perfect world does not exist and
that to believe perfection is possible in human beings
is to move away from a free and authentic world where
people are genuine and struggling together for a better
life for everyone. As one anarchist posted online, Were
certainly not more utopian than those who think that
giving some people god-like levels of hierarchical power
will not lead to disaster. And another posted what many
anarchist would agree with, and that is: Id rather be
utopian than be complicit in my own entrapment. n