The right organisational structure for a hypothetical Anarchist future.

Anarchy as an idea has a bad rep.

Partly due to Italian terrorists and its appropriation within punk-rock.

So It hasn’t been federating a lot of in the past. And that’s a pity, for It is so misunderstood and so unexplored.

Anarchy simply means absence of hierarchy. That’s it.

But all too often It is mistaken for a sort of chaos where anyone does whatever they please.

That is anarchism turned sour.

Because If anyone enforces their own agendas over some else’s, then It no longer is anarchy. It is an other form of hierarchy.

The lack of hierarchical structure does not mean the lack of organisation.

In fact I would argue that what’s missing as a complement to the ideals of Anarchism is the discovery of the right rules that can make it work at scale.

In the seminal literature on anarchism by both Proudhon and Bakounine, It has been put forth that this would be the most equalitarian ideal as It implies that no one is above anyone in intrinsic value.

So in those views, one could say It is akin to communism, yet It derives greatly from it by rejecting all forms of power and coercion, for communism in its practical applications is often leading to corruption and abuses of power, but would need individuals to hold the highest morals so that they do not do to their fellow men what they would not wish to be done upon themselves.

So how can we organise a society where no one is above anyone?

One could say that the internet is already anarchical.

There are no central authority that controls the whole thing. And that’s good. The internet really is what happens when one let freedom of thought occurs. So It is a little bit chaotic for sure. But It is because it hasn’t reached equilibrium yet.

“In-between” periods always are chaotic.

And we’re in one of them. Disruptive innovations in all kinds of manners not just technological (but also memetic) are destabilising older power structures.

Companies fall and rises at a faster pace than ever before.

Until when will governments be able to hold?

The thing about Anarchism is that It has often failed to gain momentum. Because It remains usually small experimentally. Communes are a typical example of that. They often start with good sentiments and a great sense of freedom, yet falters every time because of people’s egoic impulses.

And that’s the issue with Anarchism, It often falls apart due to individuals emotional issues and moral divergences. Less rules requires more wisdom.

Having partaken in a few anarchic efforts, I think what’s missing is actually good rules arising from good willing individuals.

It is an organisational issue for sure because those rules have to account for all kinds of ways of being, needs and wants, but they help bring more harmony to a group who seeks it beyond any other agenda. the best rules arise as a byproduct of something deeper, of a good set of values and virtues that all members within a group would agree upon not just in words but in actions and in heart.

For instance, during a gathering in the woods, what happened after 2/3 weeks is that the same people would taken on the burden of daily chores while many would remain idled. And so resentment stacked up. Some individuals would leave trash in places.New individuals would shit in unwelcome place and so on…

But As soon as we got into a council and addressed those issues and created a playful system to get shit done, things resolved.

And so, when good willing individuals with common intentions of making it work let it happen, great rules emerge (If great insights can be gathered and agreed upon too!), but those great rules are only a byproduct of the quality of the shared values and people that would let them.

That’s why I believe actually, no leadership or hierarchy works as long as you have a shaman who can heal individual shadows, and be a great ‘orchestrator of hearts and minds’ to sync the heart of the whole to the same beat, so that the base is always ‘healthy’. So It’s not about enforcement, it’s about aligning people’s heart.

Really what fucks up anarchy is people’s wounds from the past that resurfaces and subconscious desires for control and moral superiority sentiments. Especially if you consider that narcissism is the consequence of unresolved trauma. Once you help dealing with those and find a tool to solve disagreements and heal hearts, It’s like rules becomes ‘natural’ and ‘obvious’ and intentions align when individuals feels integral part of the collective. So it’s like creating a new ‘tree’ where the main seed is firmly established so things grow on their own.

That being said, what I have seen arising on its own is something akin to a role playing game. And in a way that makes sense. Role playing game is what happen when a group of people agree on some sets of rules to do menial things yet have fun doing it.

So that’s why I strongly believe that the organization of the future will be more akin to a MMORPG but O will stand for Offline or an MMRRPG Massively multiplayer Real Role playing game. But instead of a hierarchy, you’d get an honour system with badges and ranks based on competence and efforts furnished. There’s no coercion within an MMORPG, and yet It is able to get people perform hours of meaningless actions. So It could in theory help folks performs meaningful ones. All that we need is a small shift in perspective and good game designers ;-)

That’s why I believe what the politicians were to the old game, game designers will be to the new one. Who will come up with the best rules?