ANews Podcast 401 – 1.31.25

From ANews Podcast

 

 

Welcome to the ANews podcast. This podcast covers anarchist activity, ideas, and conversations from the previous week.

What’s New This Week
written by chisel and read by chisel and Pain in the Ass

Topic of the Week: RIGHTS, or So This Is How Cassandra Felt
a conversation with chichi and donny fucking don’t

Sound editing by rocinante
music samples:
ANews intro theme
Beastie Boys – (You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party)
Masshysteri – Paranoid

Comments

Nick (not verified) Tue, 02/04/2025 - 16:29

Cassandra is fairly well known in the US - ie: the character is a not just a regular trope, but also a regular character in US/Netflix TV programs and movies.... most recently Kaos - in which Cassandra was played by Billie Piper, and like, why not? - although we children of the 90s would have to take a double-take on that one.

anon (not verified) Wed, 02/05/2025 - 09:51

In reply to by Chichi (not verified)

I think were the metaphor of Cassandra comes into play in regards to anarchists and the discourse of "rights" is that anarchists are the ones screaming that rights are not transcendental, "god-given." Therefore, while liberals hold on to the idea that if something is a "right" it can't be take away. Anarchists recognize that you only have as much freedom as you can take and defend.

I have memories of being at the 2016 Republican convention where a small group of kids, bloced up, livestreaming themselves being followed by bike cops pulling out a pocket sized U.S. Constitution/Bill of Rights. Reading them out to the police as if they held some magical power, the part about freedom of assembly would surely make the pigs stand down and realize their impotence.

The founders of the U.S. based their grievances with the british crown as being violations of their god given rights as englishmen. Going back to the time of the Magna Carta, a bunch of lords used their combined ability to bring force to bear against the monarch. It was the threat of force, not the king's signature, or the Lord's gifting of them that secured those rights (or limits on the monarch's power.)

lumpy (not verified) Wed, 02/05/2025 - 12:42

In reply to by anon (not verified)

yeah, you get it.

i believe folks in the ancient world (or more recently in your example) tended to intuitively understand this stuff a lot better because there was a dark, bitter humour when you quipped about "god given rights" because most people understood that it was a euphemism for violence. mao's line about political power from the barrel of a gun, etc.

maybe that's because more people experienced more violence, more often? carried weapons and used them more often? i don't know exactly why people used to understand this better but i do know the phrase "god given rights" becomes pretty funny in that context

so yeah, power concedes nothing without a demand but it won't even talk to you until "god" gives you "rights" *bah dum TSSHH*

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