Direct action ethic

Direct action has long been associated with European anarchism, from the industrial sabotage espoused by nineteenth and twentieth century anarcho-syndicalists to the anti-Poll tax activists and the "DiY culture" of more recent British movements. A particular ethic is identified within anarchist direct action, which has two features: the first requires that means be in accordance with ends (prefiguration); the second the identities of the subjects involved in the act. prefiguration distinguished direct action from both Leninist consequentialism and the deontological approaches of liberal and anrcho-capitalist traditions. The identities of the agents involved and created through direct action illustrate important differences between anarchist direct action and that of more conservative groupings. The paper not only clarifies direct action but also considers whether a prefigurative ethic necessitates non-violence. Additionally, the paper answers the question of why direct action is embraced by the anti-hierarchical anarchist tradition, explaining the attractions of such methods to contemporary movements and illustrating parallels between contemporary anarchism and politically-engaged post-structuralisms. Examples are drawn from actions from the 1990s to early 2000s' the publicity and discussion materials of contemporary groupings and their critics as well as texts more centrally located within the academy

Demotic possession

As Allan Brown reports, Robin Hardy regarded The Wicker Man (1973) as an anti-fascist film. As such it fits into the classical liberal political schema, based on Enlightenment thinking that freedom and the democratic distribution of power is a product of reason. The obverse is that irrationality and superstition lead to authoritarian forms of government. In this sense Hardy’s film coheres with then contemporary orthodox fears that the counter-culture, with its rejection of traditional sexual moral codes and religious practices, were either opening up the way for dictatorial governance or were implicitly totalitarian. As such the film adopts an analysis that, on the surface, corresponds with Max Weber’s approach to understanding the relationship between political power and authority to rule. Despite Hardy’s intentions, more recent Mayday celebrants, namely anti-capitalist activists, have adopted the text to promote revolutionary, anti-hierarchical politics (an appropriiation of the text by, and for, the demos or 'demotic possession'). This paper explores these subversive interpretations and uses of the film, and examines the celebration of the libidinal lifestyles, and the lampooning of established totems of power. The paper also considers how anarchists approach, what are for them, problematic features of the text such as the hierarchical status of Lord Summerisle. The playing with the filmic text by anarchists draws attention to the ways in which the film ultimately undermines liberal approaches to legitimate authority, and the just exercise of power

Postanarchisms: a critical assessment

Post-modernism has had a significant influence on anarchism, notably in the interrelation between the theoretical positions of libertarianism and post-structuralism (a set of theories and philosophies strongly identified with, but not identical to, post-modernism). This has generated a subset of anarchist thinking referred to as postanarchism. Postanarchism, like anarchism, is a fluid assemblage of political concepts that alters according to geographic and historical context. Within this chapter, some of its key theorists, principal terms, and some of the structures that coordinate its central principles, are identified and assessed. The chapter then concentrates on the apparent differences between postanarchism and more traditional anarchisms, arguing that rather than regarding postanarchism as a transcendence of anarchism, as some of its proponents maintain, it is more appropriate to regard postanarchism as representing a particular, historically specific constellation of practices, which consequently prioritizes particular discourses, agencies and tactics that are peculiar to these locations

New right/New left: an alternative experiment in freedom

This paper argues that the "Non-Plan: An experiment in freedom" by Reyner Banham, Paul Barker, Peter Hall and Cedric Price, published in 1969 in the leftist magazine "New Society", has more in common with the then developing New Right, than with the New Left. Their 'non-plan' is shown to shared key characteristics with the proposals of F. A. Hayek and it is counterposed with an alternative 'non-plan' practiced by contemporaneous radical squatters

Differentiated Anti-Predation Responses in a Superorganism

Insect societies are complex systems, displaying emergent properties much greater than the sum of their individual parts. As such, the concept of these societies as single 'superorganisms' is widely applied to describe their organisation and biology. Here, we test the applicability of this concept to the response of social insect colonies to predation during a vulnerable period of their life history. We used the model system of house-hunting behaviour in the ant Temnothorax albipennis. We show that removing individuals from directly within the nest causes an evacuation response, while removing ants at the periphery of scouting activity causes the colony to withdraw back into the nest. This suggests that colonies react differentially, but in a coordinated fashion, to these differing types of predation. Our findings lend support to the superorganism concept, as the whole society reacts much like a single organism would in response to attacks on different parts of its body. The implication of this is that a collective reaction to the location of worker loss within insect colonies is key to avoiding further harm, much in the same way that the nervous systems of individuals facilitate the avoidance of localised damage

Structure and tribological performance of diamond-like carbon based coatings for aerospace component processing

Copyright @ 2009 The Surface Science Society of JapanThis work examines diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) as an environmentally friendly alternative to chromium plating in restoration of worn or damaged aircraft components. DLC coatings offer superior mechanical properties; however, high internal stresses and poor adhesion can prevent the deposition of thick films. This work examines a series of layered structures based on epoxy-resin interlayers with DLC applied as a surface film. Wear testing and examination with scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy lead to the development of an optimum DLC/epoxy system with wear characteristics superior to those of chromium-plated steel. This new coating system has a great potential in restoring aircraft components in a more efficient and environmentally friendly manner.This work is funded via the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)