Anarchy, as a word or concept has always brought with it a negative connotation. It brings about thoughts of riots, destruction, lawlessness, and death. Not a pretty picture and in many cases these are the direct results of a state of anarchy. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines anarchy as, "absence of government or a state of lawlessness or political disorder due to the absence of governmental authority." I believe the world right now is in a state of anarchy, but it is not at a national level as most would automatically think but rather an international level.
I believe, because the world is in a state of anarchy, we are seeing a union of states trying to impose their "universal laws" and basis of morality on national governments throughout the world. To them the world is without a governmental authority. Right now each government's control over their own country is slowly disappearing. All you have to do is look at the bills which are being pushed to become laws throughout the world, countries are pushing to make it illegal to discipline your child with a spanking, abortion is being legalised, families who home school their children are being prosecuted as sects and are having their children taken away from them and this is happening in South Africa, the States as well as Germany and many others. Anyone who express their freedom of speech to voice their beliefs are being sued and persecuted.
Recently South Africa's leading opposition party put forward a bill in parliament to essentially make it illegal to home school your child without using a government approved syllabus which leaves no space for the parents freedom of speech or freedom of religion. Anarchy is not a concept, anarchy is being fought as we speak. A church in South Africa has been taken to court for its beliefs, business's are being sued because the owners cannot in good conscience fulfill the prospective customers wishes because they are contrary to their beliefs. The days of freedom of beliefs is all but gone.
The reason why I think anarchy is being fought in international relations is because this union of states see's the fact that countries with different laws pose a serious threat to each other. The threat of war and political instability is far greater when two countries have completely different precedents than when they follow the same set of rules. So in the interest of world peace and ensuring we all get along a "New World Order" is attempting to be established. This "New World Order" recognizes that when it comes to international relations and international politics we are in a state of anarchy, we are without a "world government", we are essentially in a "state of lawlessness". Countries are in constant conflict with each other, therefore as far as a realist approach to the concept of anarchy goes the world is in a state of anarchy.
The spin off of having no higher authority than a nations authority is argued to lead to a self-help system among the different countries (Weber: 2009). Lebow quotes a definition of this self-help system by Mearsheimers as "a brutal arena where states look for opportunities to take advantage of each other" (Lebow: 2007). What the world doesn't realise is that while we might have "peace" it is at the cost of our freedom and no price is worth paying if it means we lose our freedom. Malcolm X said, "you cannot separate peace and freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom." So by seeking to bring about peace by taking away a persons right to freedom you in fact create no peace at all, only an illusion of peace. It can be argued that a love for humanity and our existence is the fuel behind a desire for ultimate peace, wars destroy people and wars can be said to be caused by an international state of lawlessness and anarchy. This might be true but if love and compassion is really at the centre then how can there be love without freedom? If love is at the centre could it really bare to see the object of its affection suffer the pain of a complete lack of freedom? The key is love but it is not a love as the world loves, which gives and expects something in return. If love, concern and compassion is to be the fuel it has to be unconditional.
It could be argued that war is inevitable because of "original sin" or as Albert Einstein put it, "man has an active instinct for hatred and destruction". So if war is inevitable then by taking away a mans freedom, or by prosecuting them for voicing or acting on their counter-cultural beliefs war therefore no longer inevitable as there is control. The trouble with this short term thinking is when there is no freedom a new kind war is inevitable. Take the popular films "The Hunger Games" into consideration. In the films a hyper-controlling "world order" dictated their laws with brutality by ruling with fear. There was no freedom, the people lived as prisoners, there was no equality. Although there was supposed peace in the different regions eventually a war broke out, the battle was for freedom. The very system put in place to prevent war brought about a war and it was the government that lost.
In South Africa a few weeks ago a bill was passed in parliament that, if it wasn't amended by some sharp people, it would have meant that if I got up in public and said "the husband is the head of the home" I could have been arrested and sentenced to 5 years in prison. That my friend is a loss of freedom, and for what? So that the world can be in a pseudo sense of security because our laws are finally the same? The truth is we are already at war, it is not a war fought with guns and tanks but a war of relations. It is a war being fought behind closed doors. A war that we can't even fight because we don't even know it is taking place. A war that will inevitably mean the loss of the freedom we currently enjoy.
The sons of anarchy are no more the rebellious teenagers of the past or the freedom fighters who fought against tyranny. The sons of anarchy are no more those who seek to build a new future out the rubble of a collapsed government. Our governments are collapsing but it is not as we might think. They are collapsing under the pressure of international relations, under the idea that conflicting laws between nations means a global state of lawlessness. The new sons of anarchy, the real sons of anarchy, are not fighting to protect freedom, or to win freedom. They are fighting to destroy freedom!!
