An interesting argument coming from U.S. based anarchists:
- - -http://anarchiststrategy.blogspot.com/2008/10/elephant-in-room.html [..] a Democratic president means we can go on the offensive, while a Republican means we're forced to continue playing defense. Why? For one, we are far better equipped to take advantage of liberal disillusionment than liberal outrage. The last four years have been a testament to this, with the clearest beneficiaries of outrage being the Democratic party and the authoritarian Left (see: the anti-war movement.) While it's true that anarchists havebeen building some momentum of late, the Bush years, especially after 9/11, have not been good to us. Liberal disillusionment has been far kinder to anarchists. The C.S.A. is of the opinion that it is no accident that the surge of anarchist activity in the late '90s overlapped with a Democratic administration in the process of moving to the right. While it has been nearly impossible to break the liberal obsession with the current president's personality and grammar, it was relatively easy to point out that life under a likable Democrat still sucked.As the Clinton administration abandoned its social democratic agenda--especially in its decisive move towards a neoliberal economic policy--progressive liberals got involved in the anti-globalization movement, which, due to its pluralism, exposed some to anarchists and their propaganda. This is largely what led to the swelling of anarchist ranks at the time and thus allowed for the various dramatic events now immortalized on Hollywoodcelluloid.Another reason a Democratic administration favors us is that it forces us into fewer reactionary stances. As stated in the paragraphs quoted above, a Republican administration would likely busy itself with all manner of offensive actions in a continuation of the current administration's agenda--possibly at an accelerated clip--to which anarchists have struggled to effectively respond. Being the militant reaction to Republican offense does not suit anarchists for a variety of reasons, from the demographics of the anarchist milieu to the strengths of the anarchist critique of postmodern life.
