Anarcho-syndicalists (turned into largely NP) // Popeye question answered

[mikebailey at speakeasy.net]

robinlandseadel:

> "Against the Day" makes Anarchy...the central mcguffin
> not only of that novel's inner workings, but for all of Pynchon's
> work. It was there all along, but always, to a certain degree,
> sub rosa.

but a nuanced, sophisticated, Henry-Adams-style 
anarchism, sans rabble-rousing,
free of denial or self-delusion...

...that sounds too effete, doesn't it?

>... Noam Chomsky describes Anarchism as:
>
>...the libertarian left, and from that point of
> view anarchism can be conceived as a kind of
> voluntary socialism

I still think what Wilson and Shea said in one
of the "Illuminatus" appendices (perhaps the
best part of that stellar work?) was terribly
insightful: people who prefer to compete form
the libertarian right, while people who prefer
to co-operate form the libertarian left...

> The Relevance of Anarcho-syndicalism
> Noam Chomsky interviewed by Peter Jay
> The Jay Interview, July 25, 1976

...the tradition of, say, Bakunin and Kropotkin and
> others. They had in mind a highly organized form
> of society...the workplace and the neighborhood, 
> and from those two basic units
> there could derive through federal arrangements
> a highly integrated kind of social organization
> which might be national or even international in
> scope. And these decisions could be made over
> a substantial range, but by delegates...

But that is representative government!
Unless you institute a consensus parliamentary
procedure requiring unanimity at all levels, 
you are going to be stuck with tyranny of the majority, 
enforcement of unpopular decisions and its consequent
hierarchy, representatives who don't represent 
all their constituents (and, really, how could they?) 
and all the other apparatus of government 
that anarchy was created to dispel.

Not that I'd dismiss anarchosyndicalism completely
just because of that (though I get more
excited about radical nonviolence) - there is
still lots to like in terms of social critique.
Attempts at formulating non-authoritarian
schemes are always fun to read, too, both for
the utopian glow and for practical suggestions
that can be realized without social upheaval...

http://www.syndicalist.org/ has new and back issues of a
pretty darn good periodical, which was called
Libertarian Labor Review at its inception in 
1986, but changed its name to Anarchosyndicalist
review as the Libertarian Party has begun to
own the "Libertarian" designation for its
right-anarchist (competers rather than co-operators)
views...so the rightists gained control over the name 
by competing...
anyway, some really good articles in there.
It's weird that Chomsky doesn't write for them.
Factoid: I believe that Chomsky still carries 
a red (IWW) card.

-------------
Popeye question: in the 60s, the big,
unshaven villainous guy who altercated with
our bulging-forearmed spinach-loving mariner
was called "Brutus" -- I specifically remember
Popeye's pronunciation as "Brutusk"

However, in my adult life, starting with the
movie "Animal House", I keep hearing references
to this character as "Bluto" - it has caused
me much cognitive dissonance.

What gives? Did They change his name for a reason?

Wikipedia has the scoop:
After the theatrical Popeye cartoon series 
went out of production in 1957, Bluto's name 
was changed to Brutus because it was believed 
that Paramount Pictures, distributors of the 
Fleischer Studios (later Famous Studios) cartoons, 
owned the rights to the name "Bluto"[1]. 
"Brutus" appears in the 1960-1962 Popeye television 
cartoons, but he is again "Bluto" in the 1978 
Hanna-Barbera Popeye series and the 1980 Popeye
movie. Brutus was also the name Nintendo used for 
their arcade game based on the property.

Prior to the name change to Brutus, the bearded 
strongman was known as "The Big Guy Who Hates 
Popeye", "Mean Man" and "Sonny Boy" in the comic 
strip and comic books. The name "Brutus" was first 
used on Popeye related products in 1960 and in print 
in 1962. It is generally accepted that Bluto and 
Brutus are one and the same. However, Ocean Comics 
published a one-shot "Popeye" comic book where Bluto 
and Brutus were twin brothers. Bobby London, who drew 
the "Popeye" daily strip for six years, wrote and 
illustrated "The Return of Bluto" story where the 
1932 version of Bluto returns and discovers a number 
of fat, bearded bullies have taken his place,
 calling themselves "Brutus" (each one being 
a different version of Popeye's rival).

Oh.  Ah.