I don’t mean for this to be an exhaustive exploration of the nature of the state or its flaws. Lots of people have written lots about those. What I wanted to do here was introduce what I meant and did not mean, specifically, when I talked about the state.

I’m planning a few more threads about some of the complex, urban, but nonstate societies I mentioned above, and I wanted to be clear up front about how to distinguish the state from its alternatives. The state is not a synonym for a community, or a polity, or governance; it’s a specific institution of rule, violence, and extraction. We pay taxes for a reason: because the state wants our stuff or, more likely, the state wants us to labor for it or it’s (capitalist) allies, and taxes are a great way of mobilizing that labor. We don’t pay taxes to “pay our fair share” towards the common good. We don’t need the state for that or, well, for anything, really.

As always, if you appreciate my toots, you can support me at the link below, and stay tuned as I write more threads and explore ways of expanding my work into longer-form pieces.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heavenlypossum

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