| From Utopia ... |
| Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809-1865) |
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| His Principle of Federation (1863) shows his concern to develop an alternative theory of government. Proudhon advocated a decentralized economy based on non-profit principles. Production was to be organized either by self-governing groups of artisans or by cooperatives. The financial system was to avoid rent and interest and was to be based on mutual institutions, such as credit unions. The political system was to be decentralized and based on the principle of federation; power would flow from the bottom up, controlled by democratic local authorities. Political institutions above the local level were to have strictly limited purposes and powers. Proudhon believed strongly in voluntarism as a principle of social action and rejected coercion as the basis for obedience to authority. |
