People's Definitions

Question

Hi there,

I've asked around in 3 different places, & NO ONE will answer my simple question.

What are the definitions for these 3 terms?

1. Anarcho-Communism -
2. Anarcho-Capitalism -
3. Capitalism -

And is the capitalism term defined differently in the anarchy circles than what is in the dictionary?

Thanks

Comments

i don't define or use those three terms in my writing or conversations....i usually refer to "the money system" in my criticisms....and i don't combine any words with anarchy in reference to what i desire...

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1. anarcho-communism: to me this seems to be a vague combination of anarchism and communism, the desire to do away with the state and have wishes and hopes of "equality for all" and "the greater good". This seems to me to be the most common form of anarchism.

2. Anarcho-capitalism: this is a desire to have capitalism without a state based on "volunteerism"(the -ism of non-force). Part of the problem with understand what this is is the fact that instituting a money system without any form of force leaves a lot of questions about how it would happen in the first place, and whether we already have an anarcho-capitalist system.

3. Capitalism- a system of currency and private property, and the ideological ideas that stem from that (like the belief in the morality of work ect.)

FWIW

Answer 1

maybe people aren't defining some of those terms for you because they're defined on wikipedia? i think anarcho-capitalism and anarcho-communism are fairly repped on wikipedia, at any rate. if you don't like the definitions provided there, then to get the kind of answer you want, it would be helpful to know what is dissatisfying about what is already easily available.

capitalism is a different kettle of fish. because as you allude, dictionary definitions of capitalism are almost entirely economic, and there has been a LOT of theory that expands on that simplistic understanding of what capitalism is (or more accurately, the work has been done on how capitalism works, how it maintains itself in the face of so much opposition, etc).

here are some similar (or exactly the same) questions already on this site:

http://anarchy101.org/7916/what-is-capitalism?show=7916#q7916

http://anarchy101.org/12600/is-the-state-necessary-for-modern-capitalism?show=12600#q12600

http://anarchy101.org/25/why-does-capitalism-rely-on-the-state?show=25#q25

(if you search for capitalist and/or capitalism, you will find more.)

i look forward to your thoughts on those threads, or your clarifying comments here. :)

Comments

Hi there,

So sorry for the delay. I only remembered this site b/c every time I reboot, Chrome saves this window.

I didn't search on Wikipedia, first b/c I wanted anarchists to answer the questions, not a statist, & frankly, the more I hear about Wikipedia, the less I trust it as a good source.

For things that don't matter like TV shows, ok, yes, it's a good source, but last week I was listening to one of Peter Joseph's vids & he was talking about how religious fanatics who hate him go onto his Wikipedia page & post BS to harm him.

I first started hearing about inaccurate Wikipedia is via the great TV show called, "The Newsroom."

I also wanted short concise definitions, but I'll try to find something in the links you gave me.

Thanks everyone for your help :  )

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thanks for explaining your reasoning. sure, wikipedia isn't good for everything, but as i said, i think it's decent for the first two terms you asked about.

if you still want short answers after reading the links, you can always revisit this thread. there are probably a few of us here who might address this, after knowing more what you're looking for.