The Threat of Anarchy

It's not as scary as it looks.

This afternoon I watched a video clip on youtube of an old episode of Crossfire, a Sunday afternoon talk program. This clip was from the year 1986 and the subject was obscene rock music and whether or not the government should step in and impose standards of censorship to ensure that obscene materials do not fall into the hands of impressionable young listeners. Two of the four panelists were political commentator John Lofton and musical iconoclast Frank Zappa. During one point in the heated discussion (it was actually more of an interrupting contest than a discussion), Lofton asked Zappa if he’s some kind of anarchist. This was in response to Zappa’s unwavering viewpoint that the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is completely inviolate in all forms of media. Often when someone is openly advocating freedom over government control, it seems that there will always be someone else who sees exercising that freedom as anarchy. I myself have often been called an anarchist. At first I defended my pro-liberty viewpoint as not being anarchy but rather as a Constitutionally sound rational perspective. After closer examination of this however, I may be forced to describe my defense of individual liberty as anarchy.

Anarchy is a dirty word in political discussions. It often invokes images of a dystopian society gripped in crime, fear, and chaos where roving gangs of thugs roam the streets looking to rob, rape, and kill anyone unfortunate enough to cross their path. In other words, a bad post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie from the 1980′s. The only image the word anarchy invokes that is even more nightmarish than this is that of Sex Pistols front man Johnny Rotten. However, one has to ask if that is what anarchy would certainly look like. The fact of the matter is that those who describe anarchy in such negative terms are usually persons in the payed service of a government agency. It makes sense that they would view anarchy as a threat to society at large. If there were anarchy these individuals would be out of a job. That would clearly constitute a conflict of interest. It makes one begin to wonder if the specter of anarchy is truly the hobgoblin of chaos that those who hold the reins of state power claim it to be.

The truth is that we experience anarchy every day in very small ways. Thousands of interpersonal interactions occur between people every day without any supervision from the almighty government. Even in cases where there are laws in place, these laws are frequently violated by millions of people who suffer no consequence for doing so. Somehow society manages to not descend into total chaos and violence despite the fact that some people drive 5 mph faster than the posted speed limit. Despite it’s evil and corrupting influence millions of people illegally smoke marijuana and society hasn’t collapsed into utter chaos. It seems surprising given all the hysteria surrounding what would happen if law and order were to be ignored.

Advocates of government power will do whatever it takes to ensure that that power remains in place. It’s like a security blanket. It doesn’t actually provide any practical security in most cases, but those who put their faith in government cling to this blanket as though it were their only lifeline. Some would argue that government is necessary for providing police services, fire departments, and public education. However, oftentimes the police department is ineffectual when dealing with violent crime in any preventative capacity. Cops are largely bureaucrats with badges and paramilitary training. They usually show up long after crimes have already been committed. Although fire departments do fine work, most fire departments in rural areas are already staffed by volunteers which make a centralized state-run fire department unnecessary. Education has existed long before the establishment of public schools and the curriculum focused upon subjects of academic rigor as opposed to the politically motivated public education of today. It seems anarchy isn’t a word to describe chaos as much as it is a word to describe self-government. That is why anarchy is a dirty word to those whose interests lie with government power. After all, the last thing any politician or government bureaucrat wants is for it to be made known that they are not needed.