A Theory of the State

States have a peculiar dual character. They are at the same time forms of institutionalized raiding or extortion, and utopian projects. The first certainly reflects the way states are actually experienced, by any communities that retain some degree of autonomy; the second however is how they tend to appear in the written record.

Fragments of an Anarchist Anthropology, David Graeber, pg 65

clipped February 12, 2005

Collection: Philosophy