On another thread in the forums someone mentioned comics/graphic storytelling/whatever you want to call it as a means to communicate anarcho-capitalist ideas to the wider world. As an art major, I started thinking about how I could accomplish this. Comics lend themselves well to communicating ideas, because they combine pictures' ability to appeal to emotion with words' ability to communicate and appeal to logic. One way I've always thought would be effective to hook people into an-capism is to reframe our ideas as the answer to the problems of the socialists. Ownership of the means of production? Check! People, not those silly machines in factories, are the means of production - and everyone owns themselves. Bringing everyone in society to a higher level? Check! Helping the poor? You get my idea. As an artist, I can use this idea to portray an-capism as the best idea not for the elite but the Everyday Joe kind of guy.
I need a bit of input here from you all. What ideas or subjects are most important to you? Are there any in particular that make a good introduction to anarcho-capitalism?
How would you display an imaginary state? You could paint someone locked and chained to a state building or a statist ideas.
I dunno, just tossing out ideas. If you do decide to take this path, you owe me a copy.
You can display The Law --by-- Bastiat dueling the Constitution, but only a dork would buy that. How much would you charge?
To an American, there are certain things that are seen as arms of the State - the military, legislators, cops, tax collectors, etc. There are also certain things which are identified with or components of thuggery - multiple men attacking one helpless victim, "your money or your life" type of demands, severe dress and expression, violence interspersed throughout interaction, and lots and lots of guns. Combine the two, and you have the thuggish state. I was thinking more along the lines of revealing the innocent statist ideas designed to promote the public welfare as run by and backed up by thugs, in the end - a fact which escapes the notice of most statists I talk to.
Those images would all make excellent website-banner type graphics - just a one-shot deal. With comics stuff, you have the leisure of multiple panels to tell a narrative story, and _words_ to boot...helps take the onus off of symbols to convey ideas. Too much idea in one art piece can end up looking like someone raided a symbol bin and just tossed it on a canvas/paper.
As for charging? Nothing, at least at first. The internet brings the cost of distribution down to 0 or close to it (depends on how shiny you want the site to look) and I'm more than happy to spend my time on the originals, as art + anarchism are two of my favorite things to think about.
If I do get this up and running, I'll definitely post it somewhere and put up links for feedback ;-)
Ellen M: To an American, there are certain things that are seen as arms of the State - the military, legislators, cops, tax collectors, etc.
To an American, there are certain things that are seen as arms of the State - the military, legislators, cops, tax collectors, etc.
The state is an octopus, with many hands. A Robin Hood octopus, taking from some peoples pants and redistributing to others. Dunno, just trying to be a muse.
Probably not helpful, but I just wanted to mention Alan Moore while we're on the subject. He's the guy who made the "V for Vendetta" comic book that was later turned into a film, and he is a self-proclaimed anarchist.
That comic is _awesome_, as is the movie. Truly worth reading / watching.
The only downside of V's anarchism is that he is rather violent...but for him, that violence may as well be self defense.