A review of a Leninist book on the Labour Revolt in Britain before the First World War. While useful in its reporting on the strike wave, its analysis is flawed thanks to the prejudices of the author’s politics.
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Proudhon: “start by being right”
This article discusses various claims made against Proudhon by the likes of Engels, Schapiro, Draper and others. Some are correct (if usually exaggerated), most are false. It argues that any critique Proudhon should start by being accurate, something which should go without saying but all-too-often is ignored. It first appeared in Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 5, No. 1 (Spring 2025).
The new issue of Black Flag: Anarchist Review is now available:
Following on from our “Kropotkin special” to mark the 180th anniversary of his birth, this issue is a “Proudhon special” to mark the 160th anniversary of his death – and the 185th anniversary of his proclaiming “I am an anarchist” in What is Property? and so anarchism as a named socio-economic theory. His answer to his book’s title (“Property is theft”) is so memorable it even featured in the film Oppenheimer, where it was attributed to Marx (much to the annoyance of various internet Marxists)
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Lies, Damn Lies and Economics
A review of five works on economics and the economy published in the late 1990s. It was my first significant article for the magazine Black Flag, whose editorial committee I had just joined.
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1914: World War or Class War
An article attempting to explain Kropotkin’s decision to support the Allies in 1914. It shows how isolated he was within the anarchist movement as a result (the vast majority of anarchists taking a clear Internationalist position, unlike the Marxist movement). It also discusses how anarchists should approach wars between States. It first appeared in Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 4 No. 3 (Autumn 2024)
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The Dispossessed at 50
An article marking the 50th anniversary of the publication of Ursula Le Guin’s classic Science-Fiction novel, The Dispossessed. It discusses what anarchists can gain from it as well as defending it from critics (who seem not to have paid much attention to what it had to say). It first appeared in Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 4 No. 3 (Autumn 2024)
The new issue of Black Flag: Anarchist Review is now available:
The main focus is anarchism and war, using the example of Kropotkin’s support for the Allies in 1914 as its starting point. We indicate that in 1914 the anarchist movement rose to the challenge and remained overwhelming faithful to its Internationalist principles and show the flaws with Kropotkin’s position and why it failed to gather support in the movement.
An article on the life and ideas of André Léo, an early French feminist and (libertarian) socialist. A member of the First International and a leading participant in the Paris Commune. It first appeared in Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 4 No. 2 (Summer 2024).
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Review: The Altruism Equation
A review of a book on evolutionary theory and altruism which discusses Kropotkin. Unfortunately, as shown, the account of Kropotkin’s ideas is flawed and so both “mutual aid” and his contribution to science are obscured.
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Emma Goldman, class warrior
An article debunking a Leninist article on Emma Goldman. It shows the dishonesty of the original article and indicates Goldman’s class struggle anarchist-communist politics and life. It first appeared in Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 4 No. 2 (Summer 2024).