The term Anarchy has been used since the French Revolution to describe a society with no government. This is the most basic definition of Anarchy. The word, however, is much misunderstood, as most individuals seem to equate it with violence and chaos. Real Anarchists (not the kind you see in movies, but the ones that exist in the real world) are actually opposed to violence and chaos. This, in fact, is where their resistance to the state actually stems from, as they believe that governments are amongst the worst perpetuators of violence, oppression, and chaos in the world.
One specific place that Anarchists often see fault in government is through their oppression of the people they rule over. In fact, the Declaration of Independence of the United States declares that, “…to secure these rights, government are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Anarchists, however, will argue that there is never true consent of the governed. In any form of government there will always be a percentage of the population, no matter how small, that disagrees with the actions of the government, and those individuals will always be oppressed.
Individualist Anarchists also believe in the absolute sovereignty of the individual. This means that every person should have complete and unlimited control over his or her own self. If a person wants to use a drug, they should be allowed to. If a person wants to speak their mind, then they should be allowed to. The individual is king over himself. Anarchists believe that any restraint on this sovereignty is evil, but if a government places that restraint, then it is an absolute evil. This is because governments can act under the veil of legitimacy. This line of thinking leads Anarchists to the conclusion that individualism and the state are utterly irreconcilable.
Anarchists also favor economic freedom meaning that the state should not have any influence in the economy. This is because they see political power and wealth as inseparable. When a government is formed, much of the countries wealth is funneled to the political elite and their direct supporters and influences. Anarchists believe that when there is a state apparatus in place a majority of the people, likely the middle-class and lower-class, are exploited. There is also a minority of people that both exploit and are exploited. There is, however, one class of people that are the rich political elites that do nothing but exploit the rest of the population. The elite status and the wealth were obtained through politics and the government, which therefore makes the state evil in their inherent oppression of the majority of the population.
Anarchists are not inherently violent individuals, despite their reputation, and they do not aim to bring chaos to the world. The end goal of Anarchism is the abolishment of the state, but supporters of the philosophy do not believe that this will lead to chaos. On the contrary, they believe that governments all over the world create violence, oppression, exploitation, and chaos everywhere they are formed. This, according to Anarchists, is achieved through wars, taxes, suppression of personal freedoms, suppression of economic freedoms, and many other immoral acts of the state. Therefore, a society without the influence of governing bodies that have a “legal monopoly over the use force,” as Anarcho-Capitalist Murray Rothbard puts it, could not have a worse outcome than what already exists.
This is why.
http://www.rottingnation.com/2008/12/18/why-anarchists-hate-the-state/
Why Anarchists Hate the State
The term Anarchy has been used since the French Revolution to describe a society with no government. This is the most basic definition of Anarchy. The word, however, is much misunderstood, as most individuals seem to equate it with violence and chaos. Real Anarchists (not the kind you see in movies, but the ones that exist in the real world) are actually opposed to violence and chaos. This, in fact, is where their resistance to the state actually stems from, as they believe that governments are amongst the worst perpetuators of violence, oppression, and chaos in the world.
One specific place that Anarchists often see fault in government is through their oppression of the people they rule over. In fact, the Declaration of Independence of the United States declares that, “…to secure these rights, government are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Anarchists, however, will argue that there is never true consent of the governed. In any form of government there will always be a percentage of the population, no matter how small, that disagrees with the actions of the government, and those individuals will always be oppressed.
Individualist Anarchists also believe in the absolute sovereignty of the individual. This means that every person should have complete and unlimited control over his or her own self. If a person wants to use a drug, they should be allowed to. If a person wants to speak their mind, then they should be allowed to. The individual is king over himself. Anarchists believe that any restraint on this sovereignty is evil, but if a government places that restraint, then it is an absolute evil. This is because governments can act under the veil of legitimacy. This line of thinking leads Anarchists to the conclusion that individualism and the state are utterly irreconcilable.
Anarchists also favor economic freedom meaning that the state should not have any influence in the economy. This is because they see political power and wealth as inseparable. When a government is formed, much of the countries wealth is funneled to the political elite and their direct supporters and influences. Anarchists believe that when there is a state apparatus in place a majority of the people, likely the middle-class and lower-class, are exploited. There is also a minority of people that both exploit and are exploited. There is, however, one class of people that are the rich political elites that do nothing but exploit the rest of the population. The elite status and the wealth were obtained through politics and the government, which therefore makes the state evil in their inherent oppression of the majority of the population.
Anarchists are not inherently violent individuals, despite their reputation, and they do not aim to bring chaos to the world. The end goal of Anarchism is the abolishment of the state, but supporters of the philosophy do not believe that this will lead to chaos. On the contrary, they believe that governments all over the world create violence, oppression, exploitation, and chaos everywhere they are formed. This, according to Anarchists, is achieved through wars, taxes, suppression of personal freedoms, suppression of economic freedoms, and many other immoral acts of the state. Therefore, a society without the influence of governing bodies that have a “legal monopoly over the use force,” as Anarcho-Capitalist Murray Rothbard puts it, could not have a worse outcome than what already exists.
Reflections From A Rotting Nation