Anarchism and capitalism

This article examines anarchism vis a vis capitalism. "Some anarchists advocate free-market, laissez-faire capitalism",[1], while other anarchists oppose it.

In anarchists writings concerning capitalism, one must take into account context, as the definition of capitalism has changed over time. Early anarchist movements operated with a definition unlike contemporary definitions. For example, the 1909 Century Dictionary defined capitalism as "1. The state of having capital or property; possession of capital. 2. The concentration or massing of capital in the hands of a few; also, the power or influence of large or combined capital." In contrast, the contemporary Merriam-Webster Dictionary (unabridged) refers to capitalism as "an economic system characterized by private or corporation ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision rather than by state control, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly in a free market."

[edit] Anarchist support of capitalism or aspects thereof
Some anarchists, such as Murray Rothard, express support for what they call "capitalism," but this is not the limited state capitalism of Adam Smith. Rather they advocate a theoretical ideal of a market economy with absolutely no intervention by the state and advocate abolition of the state itself. Rothbard identifies "capitalism" with "the market" and any state action on the market as "intervention," including the existence of the state itself which he sees as an anti-market parasite.[2] Anarchism of this type is sometimes called anarcho-capitalism. In this system, private property is embraced, and protection of it would be provided by the market itself by competing for-profit enterprises.

The anarcho-capitalist Murray Rothbard believed that anarchism is not fully developed unless it accepts capitalism and that capitalism was not complete unless it accepted abolition of the state: "In other words, we believe that capitalism is the fullest expression of anarchism, and anarchism is the fullest expression of capitalism. Not only are they compatible, but you can't really have one without the other. True anarchism will be capitalism, and true capitalism will be anarchism."[3]

On the subject of wage labor, anarcho-capitalists vary. Being that the idea of contract is central to anarcho-capitalism."[4], in an anarcho-capitalist society, any individual would be free to contract with any other individual to provide for any good or service, provided that it is done without the use of force or fraud. This includes the right to sell one's labor to another. Though the right to do this is supported, some anarcho-capitalists prefer to see self-employment prevail over wage labor. For example, David Friedman has expressed preference for a society where "almost everyone is self-employed" and "instead of corporations there are large groups of entrepreneurs related by trade, not authority. Each sells not his time, but what his time produces."[5]

Some writers, including capitalists, have critiqued the anarcho-capitalist version of anarchism.