By Yavor Tarinski
The neoliberal bureaucratization of society and of government action seems to be one of the main characteristics of the contemporary world, transcending as it does the diversity of geographical, social, political, and economic situations.
Béatrice Hibou[1] Continue reading “Bureaucracy and Neoliberalism”
Over 100 academics, politicians, and human rights activists call for immediate halt to Turkish aggression toward Afrin in Syria. Continue reading “Do Not Let Afrin Become Another Kobane”
By Yavor Tarinski
[F]or the impulse of mere appetite is slavery, while obedience to a self-prescribed law is liberty.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau[1]
The philosopher Cornelius Castoriadis has often been credited with saying that “democracy is the regime of self-limitation.” [2] But since for him the only true democratic form is direct democracy, this claim might seem a bit odd. Direct democracy has come to be conceived by many, including several critics, as a regime that disconnects society from laws and regulations, resulting in its depolitization and degradation. This concept has understandably raised concerns about what would be the outcomes of the more excessive actions of the masses. Continue reading “Self-Limitation and Democracy”
Yavor Tarinski, Yannis Ktenas, Alexandros Schismenos, Nikos Ioannou, Nikos Katsiaounis and Ioanna Maravelidi, from the editorial team of Babylonia, in conversation with Jacques Ranciere, during B-Fest 6, 2017.
Continue reading “A coffee with Jacques Rancière beneath the Acropolis”
By Yavor Tarinski
If understood to the letter, a Democracy must be a stateless society. Power belongs to the people insofar as the people exercise it themselves
Giovanni Sartori [1]
The contemporary political model, vulgarly named democracy, is undergoing deep crisis, which can be attributed to many of its systemic features and the political parties are among the main reasons for it. The Party, once encompassing massive social support and powerful movements, has become today synonymous with dishonesty, greed for power and corruption. Many have embarked on journey to recreate it in different ways that strive at mimicking the grassroots, decentralized character of contemporary social movements and the internet. Continue reading “Political Parties: Obstacle to Democracy”
By Antonis Broumas and Yavor Tarinski
1. Introduction
Life on this planet, as we know it, is a result of fragile environmental conditions that the contemporary predominant neoliberal system has already began to alter. Capitalism and its doctrine of unlimited economic growth seems to completely neglect this dependency and continues to violently exploit nature for the benefit of tiny elites, thus increasing their already enormous power. Continue reading “Ecological Struggles in the Neoliberal Era”
By Yavor Tarinski
Introduction
Life on this planet, as we know it, is a result of fragile environmental conditions that the contemporary predominant neoliberal system has already began to alter. Capitalism and its doctrine of unlimited economic growth seems to completely neglect this dependency and continues to violently exploit nature for the benefit of tiny elites, thus increasing their already enormous power. Continue reading “Commons, Social Ecology and the Transcending of Capitalism”
By Yavor Tarinski
The commons offers a framework and a process for effectively and equitably stewarding of the resources communities need to live in dignity. If we have a collective right to a resource, we should be able to participate in decisions about that resource’s use.[…] So what about this for a radical idea: let people participate in the decisions that most directly affect their everyday lives.
-Chris Tittle[1]
During the last years there has been an increasing interest in the paradigm of the commons. Much have been written and done in this field. There has been an explosion in digital commoning with new platform co-ops, wiki-projects and free software to be successfully challenging the domination of corporations in this sphere. But advances have been made and in the non-digital world, with urban agricultural projects, charters of rights and municipal platforms being developed and experimented with. Continue reading “Commons: From free access to democratic management”
By Yavor Tarinski
*The present text was delivered as a speech in a panel, entitled “Overcoming the State”, part of the 3rd Antiauthoritarian Festival in Ioannina, Greece (June, 2017).
[T]he rhetoric of Thatcher and of Reagan has changed nothing of importance (the change in formal ownership of a few large enterprises does not essentially alter their relation to the State), . . . the bureaucratic structure of the large firm remains intact [and] half of the national product transits the public sector in one way or another (State, local governmental organizations, Social Security); . . . between half and two-thirds of the price of goods and services entering into the final national expenditure are in one way or another fixed, regulated, controlled, or influenced by State policy, and . . . the situation is irreversible (ten years of Thatcher and Reagan made no essential changes therein).[1]
Cornelius Castoriadis Continue reading “Overcoming the State by Reinventing the Polis”
By Yavor Tarinski
Despite many international meetings, dealing with every subject from biodiversity to climate change, the national political elites have found it impossible to come to meaningful agreements to deal with the environmental crisis. […] There is no avoiding imagining new and different scenarios than the status quo. Surely another world is possible.
– Dimitrios Roussopoulos[1] Continue reading “Climate Change and the Need for a New Paradigm”
