Anarchist transitional period

[OI OI OI]

I was striked to see that most anarchists in this forum believe in a transitional period between capitalism and anarchism .
No anarchist I ve met ever talked about a transitional period so I would want to know, what the transitional period to anarchism consists of and how does it differ from the transitional period we communists talk about.
Also please don't compare anything to the USSR after its degeneration as it would be counter-productive and a waste of time.

[apathy maybe]

http://www.revleft.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1185212&postcount=62

Anarchists don't believe in a state. As to "transitional period", some anarchists use the word revolution to describe the entire period, and thus reject that there is a transitional period. That's just semantics.

There are a variety of possible transitions described by a variety of people. None of them include a state (by the anarchist definition, I'm not using the Marxist definition, so watch that). Indeed, anarchists say that you can't use authoritarian, coercive means to create a free society.

[The Feral Underclass]

I was striked to see that most anarchists in this forum believe in a transitional period between capitalism and anarchism .
No anarchist I ve met ever talked about a transitional period so I would want to know, what the transitional period to anarchism consists of and how does it differ from the transitional period we communists talk about.
Also please don't compare anything to the USSR after its degeneration as it would be counter-productive and a waste of time.

This whole thing is a bit of a red herring to be honest. Whether or not anarchists talk about a transition the fact of the matter is there will a process where we change society from a capitalist one into an anarchist/communist one so by defintion there will always be a transition.

Most of the anarchists you've spoken to probably don't really understand it. As much as being a vegan, living in a squat and playing in a punk band are good alternatives it doesn't make you an anarchist; even if you call yourself one.

[OI OI OI]

As much as being a vegan, living in a squat and playing in a punk band are good alternatives it doesn't make you an anarchist; even if you call yourself one.
Well I never said I talked to these kinds of "anarchists".
What I cannot concieve is how will the anarchist transitional period differ from that of socialism(democratic workers controlled, democraticaly planned economy, elected and recallable officials with rotatable tasks etc) .
Also I cannot recall anything written by Bakunin, Kropotkin or Bergman that talk about anarchist transitional period. Of course I have not read all their works but I never came across it.

[The Feral Underclass]

Well I never said I talked to these kinds of "anarchists".

True, but you certainly didn't talk to any anarchist communists.


What I cannot concieve is how will the anarchist transitional period differ from that of socialism(democratic workers controlled, democraticaly planned economy, elected and recallable officials with rotatable tasks etc).

I'm sure you can't conceive it. It would differ in the fact that political authority would be decentralised and federated outwards, military defence would organised on a militia basis and the needs of the economy determined by the workers in those industries themselves federated outwards.


Also I cannot recall anything written by Bakunin, Kropotkin or Bergman that talk about anarchist transitional period. Of course I have not read all their works but I never came across it.

Field, Factories And Workshops and Conquest Of Bread.

[Incendiarism]

Anarchists don't believe in a state. As to "transitional period", some anarchists use the word revolution to describe the entire period, and thus reject that there is a transitional period. That's just semantics.

I think this is where we are mixed up. I consider this transition merely a consequence of a revolution, but I don't consider it a phase.

[Decolonize The Left]

It is difficult to speak of a "transition period" when the 'end' of said period is anarchy. The reason for this is because an anarchist/communist society is never actually "reached" in the sense that it is an end goal. It is a method of living and relating to others which can be practiced at any time. Unfortunately, in our current time period, this way of life is extremely difficult to be practiced comfortably and with support from a larger culture.

Furthermore, it is important to note that all qualifications of societies exist on a continuum. There is no clean-cut-dry-capitalist society, or communist society, etc... Hence when we speak of "transition periods" we are generally using the term loosely to refer to an overall movement from one way of thinking and organizing to another. This makes it difficult to pinpoint and declare: "we have entered the period."

I believe that Anarachist Tension was correct when he said:

Whether or not anarchists talk about a transition the fact of the matter is there will a process where we change society from a capitalist one into an anarchist/communist one so by defintion there will always be a transition.

-- August