Everyday Anarchism

Shawn from the SRSLY Wrong podcast joins me in a crossover episode to discuss what everyday anarchism and library socialism have in common. (Hint: It's David Graeber).Along the way we discuss breadtube, Kropotkin, basic income vs. jobs guarantee, Cory Doctorow, political identification, utilitarianism, and more. Plus you get to hear me do comedy sketches, exactly like you never wanted.

This podcast prequel introduces David Graeber's criticisms of economics and money, setting the stage for a deep dive into his book 'Debt'. It discusses the role of banks in money creation, the complexities of assets and debt, and the impact of inflation. The episode challenges traditional economic beliefs and invites listeners to join a book club exploring Graeber's work.

James Fallows returns to the show to discuss what left neoliberalism was and its place in the late New Deal era.Anyone who has ever enjoyed a craft beer has benefitted from left neoliberalism and its dreaded "deregulation." Anyone alive in the 21st century has suffered under the corporatist excesses of right neoliberalism. Did they have anything in common? And where do Jimmy Carter and Ralph Nader fit into the picture(besides the fact that James wrote for both of them)?Here's my very brief podcast explanation of the different uses of the word neoliberal: NeoliberalismJames also provided a few articles for context:The original manifesto for neoliberalism from the left by Charlie Peters: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/1982/09/05/a-neo-liberals-manifesto/21cf41ca-e60e-404e-9a66-124592c9f70d/A recent look back at Peters' neoliberalism: https://washingtonmonthly.com/2017/07/17/we-need-to-stop-arguing-about-neoliberalism/A 1993 article by James Fallows criticizing right-wing neoliberalism (aka corporatism or laissez-faire capitalism or "Anglo-sphere economic orthodoxy"): https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1993/12/how-the-world-works/305854/

This episode is a crossover with Good in Theory, a political theory podcast by Clif Mark. I highly recommend Clif's podcast; in addition to interviews and one-off episodes, Clif did a series in which he adapts and explains Plato's Republic - the entire thing! Almost every topic in political theory is addressed in The Republic - and Clif guides you through the foundations of all the arguments we are still having today. Although from an anarchist perspective Plato is wrong about everything.In this episode, Clif and I discuss ancient Athenian democracy and the extent to which does and doesn't resonate with democratic ideas today. From there I try out my idea (borrowed from David Graeber, as usual) that a truly democratic system would be compatible with anarchism, and Clif offers some constructive criticism to that idea.If you enjoyed this episode, you should check out Clif's 3-part series on ancient Greek government:The PolisSparta: Killer BeehiveAthens: Ahoi Polloi!

Last year I recorded this interview with Cyril Schäublin, the director of the new film Unrest. Unrest is a masterpiece. The film tells the story of unrest and labor organizing among the anarchist watchmakers of the Swiss Canton of Jura. Also, the tiny part at the center of a mechanical watch? It's also called an "unrest."Cyril and I talk about decentering Kropotkin in the film (sometimes literally), his family connection to Swiss watchmaking, the seductive power of paternalism, and the way corporations have taken over our sense of time.The film is premiering in the United States this week; it may already be available where you live. I truly recommend it.

In this episode, following up on my conversation about Byzantium with Anthony Kaldellis and leading to my conversation about democratic Athens with Clif Mark, I talk to James Corke-Webster and Lisa Eberle about their work on Roman governance. In contrast to images of Rome as a centralized and bureaucratic monolith, James and Lisa explain how Rome functioned as a network of cities, linked more by soft power than by military might - although the soldiers showed up if the wealth stopped flowing to the imperial city. You can also hear why so many Roman buildings became ruins before they were even finished, about the Roman tradition of mass protest, and how enlightenment thinkers influenced our view of the empire.

In this discussion episode of Anarchism 101, Leonard Williams and I discuss the American anarchist Voltairine de Cleyre and her work "Anarchism and American Traditions." For more from Leonard, checkout our discussion of his book of anarchist crossword puzzles.

In this episode of Anarchism 101, I read Voltairine de Cleyre's 1909 essay "Anarchism and American Traditions." Later this month, I'll publish my conversation with Leonard Williams about this essay as well as de Cleyre's life, activism, and ideas.

In this episode I'm joined by my most frequent guest: Ruth Kinna. Ruth and I continue our conversation about William Morris by discussing his science fictional work News from Nowhere. Ruth and I discuss how this work differs from Edward Bellamy's more famous fantasy of state socialism, Looking Backward, and how Morris could produce this anarchist utopia without declaring himself an anarchism.Please note that we do discuss sensitive topics in this episode, such as child abuse, as we talk about how the people in Morris' society would handle them

In this episode I'm joined by Richard McCarthy, a longtime activist around food issues, most especially the creation of farmers markets. In addition to his work with the New Orleans Crescent City Farmers Market, we spend most of our time talking about Richard's new book Kuni. Co-authored with Tsuyoshi Sekihara, the book explores Sekihara's efforts to revitalize and reorganize a rural area in Japan without relying on either national government subsidies or municipal governments. It's a fascinating idea, one which has uniquely Japanese elements but also many lessons for anyone looking to revisit our relationship to food, farming, and the environment.