Although there were, and are differences between the anarchists and the marxists,
nevertheless the libertarian marxists believe that the possible, anticipated future they
both desire and demand will be an anarchist future, not an authoritarian future. The
hope that the state will wither away is a marxist hope, and the will to abolish the
state is an anarchist will.




Did the marxists arrogate the language of the anarchists, or did the marxists find some
of what they believed and advocated in the ideas and ideals of the anarchists? Is it covert
or cryptic arrogation of anarchist language, of anarchist rhetoric, if the marxists made as
clear as they possibly could the differences between their two philosophical proposals
and practical projects?




The Bolshevik party betrayed marxism. The authoritarian Bolsheviks broke faith with the
libertarian sentiments of the marxists.




Anarchism is the morally best proposal. However, anarchists can make mistakes in what
they do in order bring anarchism about.




We must be very clear about the differences between anarchism and marxism.  We must
also be very clear about the differences within anarchism, and within marxism.  There are
unconscious, instinctive authoritarians in every organized political party, and even in every
libertarian party. There are secret authoritarians positioned and stationed in every
established anarchist association, in every institutional anarchist movement.

There are authoritarian marxists, and there are libertarian marxists. Because, today, we
are all born and raised within an authoritarian life-context it is always an inevitable and
distinct possibility that some of our anarchist comrades will capitulate and succumb to
the seductive and persuasive temptations of the authoritarian mentality, the statist outlook.
Each one of us must recognize this authoritarian tendency within each and every one of
us. Self-criticism is as important as the criticism of others.





Oil companies can and do cut refining capacity in order to increase oil prices, in order to
increase oil profits. This is an example of the law of supply and demand. This is an
example of the reality of artificially reduced supplies meeting and answering demand.
This law can be easily controlled and managed by the proprietors. The law of supply and
demand can always be organized and regulated by the profiteers, and for the good of the
profiteers.





Marxism espouses a program that replaces the modern liberal-capitalist state with a
post-revolutionary socialist-democratic state, and it is this socialist-democratic state
which will wither away. A socialist-democratic state is a natural, reasonable and logical
state for withering away. If by the withering away of the socialist-democratic state is meant
the eventual anarchization of society, then the marxists believe that this withering away of
the state is a spontaneous, natural and organic advancement from statism to anarchism.
The marxists believe that the existence of the modern authoritarian state constrains the
transformation of society from existing statism to a future anarchism.  It is because of the
existence of the modern state that the marxists believe that only an alternative social-
democratic state can be strong enough overthrow the liberal-capitalist state. Themarxists
have always doubted the ability of people to overthrow the existing state without a
revolutionary state to replace it, an emergency state to serve as a transitional mechanism
between capitalism and communism. In other words, the capitalist state does not wither
away; but, the marxists believe that a transitional state can and will wither away.





"Force has no place where there is need of skill."
-- Herodotus