A Cumbrian village was hailed as a vanguard of the \’big society\’, but the projects set up by residents have a much longer history than Cameron\’s idea, writes Peter Hetherington
We\’ve been having projects being set up by residents since long before we had a central state. Whatever the Anglo-Saxon version of a barn raising was wasn\’t ordered by a man in Westminster.
That society pre-existed the State…..well, such an obvious idea that I fail to see why people are all falling about to find that mutual cooperation, that society, does and can exist without the State.
society, does and can exist without the State
Yes, but its the wrong sort of society.
All socialists believe in a Year Zero, before which society didn’t exist or if it did it was a pastiche of back-street abortions, capitalist exploitation and oppression, slavery, etc.
Be fair, for all you know barn-raising was decreed by the chieftain of the Worstallingas.
Tim adds: There’s a certain amusement at that. As we all know, many surnames are derived from occupations. There’s a story (a thought perhaps) that “Worstall” is derived from the “man who knows how to build barns”.
dearieme – “Be fair, for all you know barn-raising was decreed by the chieftain of the Worstallingas.”
Sure, but man is, as some dead Greek guy once said, a political (i.e. social) animal.
Perhaps some Chief Ur-Stall ordered everyone out to hunt Mammoth, but I doubt it.