Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 19:40:01 -0500
From: Paul Kneisel <tallpaul-AT-nyct.net>
Subject: Re: Fwd: Yahoo! Cancels Banner Ads Placed By SEIU Labor Union


Charles Finocchiaro presents another good example of what I termed the
narcissistic authoritarian tendency in the anarchist movement. Such people
merely announce the views they "know" others have, quite unsupported by any
data. 

Thus, he asserts that "you are out to get fascists, not because they have
done anything, but because of 'who they are'...." Someone more oriented to
reality testing might have considered whether getting someone because of
"who they are" of necessity excludes wanting to get them because of "what
they have done." Such a person might even conclude that at least some other
individuals might base their notion of *who* someone is on *what* they have
done. But Finocchaiaro does not appear to be such a person.  It seems that
Finocchaiaro cannot imagine such a thing and thus concludes that others
cannot imagine it either.

In similar fashion, Finocchaiaro charges that "parallels between your own
anti-fascist effort in coordination with Yahoo! and Yahoo!'s quashing of a,
in their view, controversial labor campaign have escaped you."

Whether the parallels to which Finocchaiaro refers are valid or not must at
present escape me for I can see many different issues that could be
accurately described with the word "parallel." Since I have a lack of
knowledge here I do what non-narcissistic adults do: they ask for
additional information, as I earlier asked of Chuck O. Hopefully,
Finocchaiaro will provide specifics of the "parallels" to which he refers.
Then and only then will I be able to accurately respond to his charges.

But his undifferentiated statement that the parallels have "escaped" me is
just another authoritarian pronouncement, made to the world with no data
save, we may infer, the thoughts that exist in the head of Charles
Finocchiaro and on no other authority are presented as true for me and the
rest of the world.

One telling fact in the entire extended discussion is the enormous
objections that people present against an anti-fascist organizing effort
and the complete absence of any alternate strategy for fighting fascism. I
don't recall seeing a single critic write a *detailed* theoretical document
on how we should and can fight fascists. Nor do I recall seeing anyone post
a URL to such a document on the net or even mention the existence of such a
document. But we have seen *every* anti-fascist tendency -- including
anarchists -- dismissed as "collectivist."

The critics of the anti-fascist organizing effort have loaded the
discussion with hostile remarks about what the organizers believe and have
listed an enormous number of errors we've made.

Can they devote an equal amount of time to outlining strategies for
fighting fascism that they deem suitable? 

  --  tallpaul

PS: Actually, not *every* anti-fascist tendency has been targeted.
Anti-Racist Action has been excluded. To remedy this, I post separately the
latest ARA material on the murder of two ARA members and how ARA "calls" on
the cops to arrest the killers.