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+2 votes
Goes hand in hand with "dollar voting". Is it useful in any way for anarchists and/or the dispossessed? Or is it liberal "life-stylist" bullshit? (Please ignore the dichotomy, context and extent are always important)
by

1 Answer

+1 vote
Is any sort of consumerism helpful toward anarchist goals? If an anarchist goal is the abolition of capitalism, then selective consumerism is not helpful toward that goal. Selective consumerism helps to define and refine a particular consumer demographic. That is helpful for niche capitalism.

There's no such thing as "lifestylist" anarchism.
by (570 points)
a less satisfying answer is that
a) it depends on what anarchist goals are and
b) who knows.

if the goal is a living situation where capitalism doesn't exist, not just in obvious ways, but also in subtle ones, then perhaps one could argue that by increasing the factors that people attend to (the effect of our actions on the rest of the world), people become acculturated to a different set of criteria for what is important.
but of course the counter argument (which is also true, and i would have to argue *more* true) is that capitalism is remarkable for its capacity to fold any solution into itself. which is what green consumerism (or any consumerism) does. the idea that we can solve the problems created by this system, *within* this system, is counter to my understanding of the depth of the problem/s.

that said though, i don't think anyone knows how to get from here to there. so to say anything is "in any way helpful"...
who knows what will change people's minds/actions. or if anything will.
You said it, dot.
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