Two Cheers for Anarchism
Six Easy Pieces on Autonomy, Dignity, and Meaningful Work and Play
by James C. Scott · first published 2012
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Two Cheers for Anarchism: Six Easy Pieces on Autonomy, Dignity, and Meaningful Work and Play is a 2012 book-length defense of the anarchist perspective, written by anthropologist James C. Scott and published by Princeton University Press.
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Well, if you want some really odd stuff, the anarchist texts "Desert" and "Against His-Tory, Against Leviathan" both point... in a way. James Scott will, by contrast, sound a bit more moderate. "Two Cheers for Anarchism" and "Seeing Like a State" are interesting (to me) texts. But really, I'd suggest more direct volunteering. I am gonna go do the 10:30p-2:30a shift at my local warming shelter tonight. Food Not Bombs…
on “Ask HN: Good articles or books to understand the current zeitgeist?” ↗There's an excellent author named James C Scott who in (IIRC) "Two Cheers for Anarchism" explores the idea that people who are speaking to crowds understand that fundamentally they aren't "in charge" and must respond to what the crowd will accept. So he looks at how folks like MLK (in a…
on “White House Insists Trump Is 'Joking' About Canceling Midterm Elections” ↗I recommend: Two Cheers for Anarchism (Scott) and Why Things Fail (Ormerod)
on “Peter Thiel - You are Not a Lottery Ticket [video]” ↗I started reading two cheers for anarchism, and it's wonderfully written. Just wanted to say thanks for the recommendation.
on “Navalny Found in Arctic Prison After 3-Week Disappearance” ↗Two Cheers For Anarchism was a book that challenged my priors: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Cheers_for_Anarchism I'm not an anarchist, but it's a wonderful read and includes a quote that has shaped my life ever since:…
on “James C. Scott, author of Seeing Like a State, has died” ↗…knees by what was once called “Irish Democracy”—the silent, dogged resistance, withdrawal, and truculence of millions of ordinary people—than by revolutionary vanguards or rioting mobs." James Scott - Two Cheers for Anarchism
on “How can you know what news is real?” ↗I just read the book Two Cheers for Anarchism, where James Scott describes his experiences of "anarchist calisthenics". He suggests, slightly tongue-in-cheek, that practicing occasionally disobeying laws in minor ways like jaywalking could help…
on “Ars tests Internet surveillance by spying on an NPR reporter” ↗…their raw courage and equanimity, but that doesn’t mean that you have to have that to make some difference, society is upheld by people making small brave decisions every day; James C. Scott remarks in Two Cheers for Anarchism an exercise he calls “anarchist calisthenics” wherein you break small, insignificant rules so that you’re ready when you need to make the big decision in the name of humanity. Arendt’s term the “banality…
on “Navalny Found in Arctic Prison After 3-Week Disappearance” ↗…fan of "Desert" by anonymous, but "A Utopia of Rules" by David Graeber is not a bad thing to read and probably closer to a popular line. Or the CIA-Coded Yale academic James Scott has a lot to say, "Two Cheers for Anarchism" and "Seeing Like a State" both seem to have influenced a lot of people. Historically "right libertarians" (the US Libertarian political party, for instance) have been, uh, "less consistent" in their…
on “E2E encrypted messaging on Instagram will no longer be supported after 8 May” ↗