PROUDHON: FOR A BALANCE

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As an inscription to his first great book, The Economical Contradictions , Proudhon had insert the famous device from which one normally retains only the first part: Destruam et oedificabo. We agree on the fact that he did destroy quite a lot, one is less sure that the might have built. Its mercyless critic was actually exerted, on all the doctrines of its time, which distinguished it self for discovering the erroneous sides from the dangerous ones. Too individualistic Liberals and too gregarious Communists, too governmental or too fraternal Socialists, too much unitary and centraliser Democrats, Catholics too absolutists and skeptics, without deep faith, Materialists without customs, all felt the leather strap of its whip.If his attaks had been at times excessiv or eventually unjust, it’s necessary to make the violence of his temperament and his absolut conviction of listening to nothing except for Science and Right responsible for it.With these antinomical elements that his analysis undressed, Proudhon tried afterwards to constitute balances or syntheses. He did not obtain it, just as well, because he was for certain views too old, for others too advanced for his time. He was however hurt of being only considered as a demolisher, and in his Theory of the Property (posthumous) he tried to enumerate “the demonstrations of sufficiently positive things