Consider technical standards — the often invisible rules that ensure everything from electrical outlets to internet protocols function seamlessly. These standards don’t just appear by chance; they’re created and maintained by standards-developing organizations (SDOs) like ISO, ANSI, and IEEE. The way these SDOs operate — through open collaboration, consensus-building, and public knowledge-sharing — offer a rare example of an economic system that does not depend on capitalism to function.
Anti-capitalism does not mean anti-technology or anti-trade; it means building a society based on an economic basis other than capitalism. Non-capitalist societies in the modern world also possess technology, conduct trade, and experience material progress — mechanisms that are built into the standards development system. It’s just that how decisions get made about that progress and who owns and benefits from the fruits of that progress is different than in a capitalist society.
