Accepting Quote by Murray Bookchin
“I would agree that much with people who accept private property - that conscription is an unpardonable transgression, whether it be "corrupt" or not. The Spanish anarchists opposed conscription during the civil war in Spain as a gross expropriation of property, the most precious property that we have, our own physical beings themselves.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Post-Scarcity Anarchism, 1971
Conscription violates personal autonomy by treating bodies as property, aligning with anarchist opposition to state ownership of individuals.
In simple terms: Conscription is a violation of personal property.
Key Takeaway
Protect individual autonomy against state coercion.
Themes
politics
anarchism
autonomy
Mood
critical
inquisitive
Type
political
ethical
When to use this quote
- military service
- activist organizing
- legal challenges
- educational forums
Key Concepts
property rights
state power
civil disobedience
Questions to Reflect On
- Is there ever a moral justification for compulsory service?
- How does personal liberty balance with societal security?
A Different Perspective
Some argue conscription can be justified for collective defense.
![“[Ayn] Rand accepts that when she supports military conscription, even indirectly. Also, she starts her politics from the premise that the State must have police power. She fails to take into account the inevitability that once you start with police power you're going to have a police State.” quote by Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/6df/murray-bookchin-2587_accepting_ayn-rand-accepts-that-when-she-supports_2115369.jpg)
![“[The] term 'libertarian' itself, to be sure, raises a problem, notably, the specious identification of an anti-authoritarian ideology with a straggling movement for 'pure capitalism' and 'free trade.' This movement never created the word: it appropriated it from the anarchist movement of the…” quote by Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d1e/murray-bookchin-2587_free-trade_the-term-libertarian-itself-to-be-sure-r_144681.jpg)
![“[W]ithout changing the most molecular relationships in society — notably, those between men and women, adults and children, whites and other ethnic groups, heterosexuals and gays (the list, in fact, is considerable) — society will be riddled by domination even in a socialistic ‘classless’ and…” quote by Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/5e4/murray-bookchin-2587_children_w-ithout-changing-the-most-molecular-rel_189100.jpg)
![“The most important thing [anarchists] can do is educate themselves, develop a propaganda machinery in the form of books and periodicals, a literature, engage in discussion groups that are open to a community, to discuss and develop their ideas and to develop networks.” quote by Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d5f/murray-bookchin-2587_anarchism_the-most-important-thing-anarchists-can_190565.jpg)
