this post was submitted on 25 Mar 2024
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Infrapolitics

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Infrapolitics is to politics what infrared is to light. Its domain encompasses the acts, gestures, and thoughts that are not quite political enough to be perceived as such.

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Lengthy PDF discussing how certain technologies such as nuclear power shape power dynamics around them towards authoritarianism.

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[–] poVoq 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I think you are mis-representing or misunderstanding Winner's argument. The atom bomb he says is unique because of the unique security requirements to not allow it to fall into the wrong hands (and as a result this distorts society toward authoritarianism), but elsewhere in the text he argues similar to Blair for nuclear reactors compared to renewable energy for example.

He also explicitly mentions that technology like the tomato harvester could be put to more equitable use in an anarchist society, but argues that this technology has a certain tendency to disempower farm-workers and thus shift the power balance towards capitalists, which is similar to the argument the Luddites had with certain types of weaving machines.

[–] Five 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I may be misunderstanding his argument. I admit I only partially read the 17-page paper, and missed any acknowledgement of an anarchist contribution to the discussion.

I've also altered my comment since you replied but before I received your reply, so I apologize for any confusion this adds to the discussion.

[–] poVoq 3 points 8 months ago

He mentions/cites Kropotkin and talks about "decentralized, democratic worker self-management" which I think is code for Anarchists without mentioning the word itself.