Do "Left" Anarchists hate Capitalism or the government more?

[hugolp]

First, it’s ok to use capitalism to mean free markets, but when you’re reading outside of your circle, you have to understand that the readily-understood meaning is different. To most on the left, ‘capitalism’ means, as it did for Marx, corporatism. It doesn’t mean free markets; it means something like what we have in this country. Second, a left-anarchist is likely to favor, say, state-provided healthcare because it’s a stop-gap measure until we address corporatism. The government creates economic inequality and high costs for, say, medicine, so severe that a large portion of the population is left without access to healthcare. The left-anarchist believes it is a form of redistributive justice for those who got rich through subisides and privilege to have money taken from them to provide healthcare to the victims of these policies. Ultimately, they’d like access to be made possible by the end of the state, hence of privilege and subdization. Until then, they advocate correcting the situation.

Dont you think this is a dangerous position? I mean, I agree with the analysis, but allowing for government healthcare and government education and the rest, works towards consolidating corporatavism more than any other thing. People get used to government running and regulating things, to accept the government takes the fruit of their labor and they get some basic stuff on return (inefficiently), etc… Most people is not ideological and they get use to this things, because it gives them the basic to live. They dont realize this same system stops them from being able to achieve any type of progress (its somehow difficult to see, specially thanks to government indoctrination in the schools).

So at the end, it is true that it gives the basics (which the government made it impossible for people to get on their own) but at the same time it perpetuates the corporatist system.

[JAlanKatz]

I consider myself odd in that I identify as a left-anarchist, but don’t support those kinds of policies. My disagreement with them is largely for the reasons you point to. I think it is always a mistake to think, on any topic, that government is capable of doing something right. I also dislike the habit of setting up impossible conditions for liberty - we can’t free this until this, and vice-versa, or something like that. But I think ‘dangerous’ is a bit strong. In a bad situation, all possibilities are dangerous. I think it is dangerous (although probably worth doing) to eliminate or sharply reduce government after it has established a few huge, very powerful, well-armed corporations, such as Blackwater.