The Liquidation of Liquidationism

Proletary, No. 46, July 11 (24), 1909

Lenin Collected Works,Volume 15, pages 452-460.

In a special supplement to the present issue of Proletary the reader will find a report on the conference of the Bolsheviks and the text of the resolutions adopted there. Our purpose in the present article is to assess the importance of this conference and the breakaway of a small group of the Bolsheviks which took place there, from the standpoint both of our wing and of the R.S.D.L.P. as a whole.

The last two years, roughly from the coup d’état of June 3, 1907, up to the present time, have been a period of drastic change, of grave crisis in the history of the Russian revolution and in the development of the working-class movement in Russia and of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party. The All-Russian Conference of the R.S.D.L.P. held in December 1908 reviewed the present political situation, the condition and prospects of the revolutionary movement and the tasks of the party of the working class in Ike present period. The resolutions passed by the conference are a permanent asset to the Party, and the Menshevik opportunists who sought to criticise them at all costs, only succeeded in betraying the glaring futility of their “criticism” which was unable to offer any intelligent, integral and systematic solution of the problems as an alternative to the one given in the resolutions.

Continue to Read more »

THE HISTORICAL MEANING OF THE INNER-PARTY STRUGGLE

Lenin Collected Works 16, P 374

The subject indicated by the above title is dealt with in articles by Trotsky and Martov in Nos. 50 and 51 of Neue Zeit. Martov expounds Menshevik views. Trotsky fol- lows in the wake of the Mensheviks, taking cover behind particularly sonorous phrases. Martov sums up the “Russian experience” by saying: “Blanquist and anarchist lack of culture triumphed over Marxist culture” (read: Bolshevism over Menshevism). “Russian Social-Democracy spoke too zealously in Russian”, in contrast to the “general European” methods of tactics. Trotsky’s “philosophy of history” is the same. The cause of the struggle is the “adaptation of the Marxist intelligentsia to the class movement of the proletariat”. “Sectarianism, intellectualist individualism, ideological fetishism” are placed in the forefront. “The struggle for influence over the politically immature proletariat"  - that is the essence of the matter.

I

The theory that the struggle between Bolshevism and Menshevism is a struggle for influence over an immature proletariat is not a new one. We have been encountering it since 1905 (if not since 1903) in innumerable books, pamphlets, and articles in the liberal press. Martov and Trotsky are put-ting before the German comrades liberal views with a Marxist coating.

Continue to Read more »

Inherent Contradictions of Party Development

Stalin

1926. 

The Communist (New York). August, 1937, pp. 773-76. 

First, the question of the struggle inside our Party. The struggle did not commence yesterday, nor has it ended yet. If we take the history of our Party from the time it came into being as a group of Bolsheviks in the year 1903, and if we examine its latest stages right up to the present time, then it can be stated without any exaggeration that the history of our Party is the history of the struggle of contradictions within this Party, a history of the overcoming of these contradictions and of the gradual consolidation of our Party on the basis of overcoming these contradictions. It may be said that the Russians are too quarrelsome, that they love polemics, that they create differences and for that reason the development of the Russian Party is a process of overcoming internal Party antagonisms. This would not be true, comrades. This is not a matter of being quarrelsome; it is a matter of differences over principles, arising in the process of the development of the Party and the process of the struggle of the proletariat. 

It means that antagonisms can only be overcome by the struggle for this or that principle, for this or that fighting aim, for this or that method of struggle which leads to the goal. One can and must enter into every kind of compromise with those of a like mind within the Party on questions of current politics, on questions of a purely practical nature. But when these questions are bound up with differences of opinion involving principles, then no compromise, no "middle" line can save matters. There is not and cannot be a "middle" line in questions involving principles. Either the one or the other principle must be made the basis of the work of the Party. A "middle" line on questions involving principles is a "line" which leads to confusion of mind, a line which glosses over differences, a line of ideological degeneration of the Party, a line of ideological death of the Party.

Continue to Read more »

Some Questions Concerning the History of Bolshevism

Stalin

Letter to the Editorial Board of the Magazine "Proletarskaya Revolutsia"1931

Works, Vol. 13, 1930 - January 1934

Dear Comrades,

I emphatically protest against the publication in the magazine Proletarskaya Revolutsia 1 (No. 6, 1930) of Slutsky's anti-Party and semi-Trotskyist article, "The Bolsheviks on German Social-Democracy in the Period of Its Pre-War Crisis," as an article for discussion.

Slutsky asserts that Lenin (the Bolsheviks) underestimated the danger of Centrism in German Social-Democracy and in pre-war Social-Democracy in general; that is, he underestimated the danger of camouflaged opportunism, the danger of conciliation towards opportunism. In other words, according to Slutsky, Lenin (the Bolsheviks) did not wage an irreconcilable struggle against opportunism, for, in essence, underestimation of Centrism is tantamount to refraining from a thoroughgoing struggle against opportunism. It follows, therefore, that in the period before the war Lenin was not yet a real Bolshevik; that it was only in the period of the imperialist war, or even at the close of the war, that Lenin became a real Bolshevik.

Continue to Read more »

WHAT IS "FREEDOM OF CRITICISM"?

Lenin
What is to Be Done

DOGMATISM AND "FREEDOM OF CRITICISM"

A. WHAT IS "FREEDOM OF CRITICISM"?

"Freedom of criticism" is undoubtedly the most fashionable slogan at the present time, and the one most frequently employed in the controversies between the Socialists and democrats of all countries. At first sight, nothing would appear to be more strange than the solemn appeals by one of the parties to the dispute to freedom of criticism. Have voices been raised in the advanced parties against the constitutional law of the majority of European countries which guarantees freedom to science and scientific investigation? "Something must be wrong here," will be the comment of the onlooker, who has not yet fully grasped the essence of the disagreements among the disputants, but has heard this fashionable slogan repeated at every crossroad. "Evidently this slogan is one of the conventional phrases which, like a nickname, becomes legitimatized by use, and becomes almost an appellative," he will conclude.

In fact, it is no secret that two trends have taken shape in the present-day international[*] Social-Democracy. The fight between these trends now flares up in a bright flame, and now dies down and smoulders under the ashes of imposing "truce resolutions." What this "new" trend, which adopts a "critical" attitude towards "obsolete dogmatic" Marxism, represents has with sufficient precision been stated by Bernstein, and demonstrated by Millerand.

Continue to Read more »

Differences in the European Labour Movement

V. I. Lenin

Zvezda No. 1, December 16, 1910. Collected Works, Volume 16, 

The principal tactical differences in the present-day- labour movement of Europe and America reduce themselves to a struggle against two big trends that are departing from Marxism, which has in fact become the dominant theory in this movement. These two trends are revisionism (opportunism, reformism) and anarchism (anarcho-syndicalism, anarcho-socialism). Both these departures from the Marxist theory and Marxist tactics that are dominant in the labour movement were to be observed in various, forms and in various shades in all civilised countries during the more than half-century of history of the mass labour movement.

This fact alone shows that these departures cannot be attributed to accident, or to the mistakes of individuals or groups, or even to the influence of national characteristics and traditions, and so forth. There must be deep-rooted causes in the economic system and in the character of the development of all capitalist countries which constantly give rise to these departures. A small book, The Tactical Differences in the Labour Movement (Die taktischen Differenzen in der Arbeiterbewegung, Hamburg, Erdmann Dubber, 1909), published last year by a Dutch Marxist, Anton Pannekoek, represents an interesting attempt at a scientific investigation of these causes. In our exposition we shall acquaint the reader with Pannekoek’s conclusions, which, it must be recognised, are quite correct.

Continue to Read more »

Marxism and Revisionism

V. I. Lenin

April 3 (16), 1908 

Published in 1908 in the symposium Karl Marx—1818-1883. 

Lenin Collected Works, Volume 15

There is a well-known saying that if geometrical axioms affected human interests attempts would certainly be made to refute them. Theories of natural history which conflicted with the old prejudices of theology provoked, and still provoke, the most rabid opposition. No wonder, therefore, that the Marxian doctrine, which directly serves to enlighten and organise the advanced class in modern society, indicates the tasks facing this class and demonstrates the inevitable replacement (by virtue of economic development) of the present system by a new order—no wonder that this doctrine has had to fight for every step forward in the course of its life.

Needless to say, this applies to bourgeois science and philosophy, officially taught by official professors in order to befuddle the rising generation of the propertied classes and to “coach” it against internal and foreign enemies. This science will not even hear of Marxism, declaring that it has been refuted and annihilated. Marx is attacked with equal zest by young scholars who are making a career by refuting socialism, and by decrepit elders who are preserving the tradition of all kinds of outworn “systems”. The progress of Marxism, the fact that its ideas are spreading and taking firm hold among the working class, inevitably increase the frequency and intensity of these bourgeois attacks on Marxism, which becomes stronger, more hardened and more vigorous every time it is “annihilated” by official science.

Continue to Read more »

Letter to the Russian Collegium of the Central Committee of the R.S.D.L.P

Lenin 

December 1910

Collected Works Volume 17 pages 17-22.

Recent events in the life of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party abroad clearly show that the “unity crisis” of the Party is coming to a head. I, therefore, consider it my duty, solely by way of information, to let you know the significance of recent happenings, the denouement that may be expected (according to this course of events) and the position adopted by orthodox Bolsheviks.

In Golos, No. 23, Martov in his article “Where Have We Landed?” gibes at the Plenary Meeting, at the fact that the Russian Collegium of the Central Committee has not met once during the year, and that nothing has been done to carry out the decisions. He, of course, “forgets” to add that it is precisely the liquidator group of Potresovs that has sabotaged the work of the Russian Central Committee; we know of the non-recognition of the Central Committee by Mikhail, Roman, and Yuri, and their statement that its very existence is harmful. The C.C. in Russia has been wrecked. Martov rejoices at this. It stands to reason that the Vperyod group also rejoices, and this is reflected in the Vperyod symposium, No. 1. In his glee, Martov has blurted out his views prematurely. He screams with delight that “legality will finish them” (the Bolsheviks or the “Polish Bolshevik bloc”). By this he means that thanks to the obstruction of the Central Committee’s work by the liquidators, there is no way out of the present situation that would be legal from the Party point of view. Obviously, nothing pleases the liquidators more than a hopeless situation for the Party.

Continue to Read more »

SUBSERVIENCY TO THE BOURGEOISIE IN THE GUISE OF "ECONOMIC ANALYSIS

V. I. LENIN
THE PROLETARIAN REVOLUTION  AND THE RENEGADE KAUTSKY

As has already been said, if the title of Kautsky's book were properly to reflect its contents, it should have been called, not The Dictatorship of the Proletariat but A Rehash of Bourgeois Attacks on the Bolsheviks.

The old Menshevik "theories" about the bourgeois character of the Russian revolution, i.e., the old distortion of Marxism by the Mensheviks (rejected by Kautsky in 1905!) are now once again being rehashed by our theoretician. We must deal with this question, however boring it may be for Russian Marxists.

The Russian revolution is a bourgeois revolution, said all the Marxists of Russia before 1905. The Mensheviks, substituting liberalism for Marxism, drew the conclusion from this that, hence, the proletariat must not go beyond what was acceptable to the bourgeoisie and must pursue a policy of compromise with it. The Bolsheviks said that this was a bourgeois liberal theory. The bourgeoisie was trying to bring about the reform of the state on bourgeois, reformist, not revolutionary lines, while preserving the monarchy, landlordism, etc., as far as possible. The proletariat must carry through the bourgeois-democratic revolution to the end, not allowing itself to be "bound" by the reformism of the bourgeoisie. The Bolsheviks formulated the alignment of class forces in the bourgeois revolution as follows: the proletariat, joining to itself the peasantry, will neutralize the liberal bourgeoisie and utterly destroy the monarchy, medievalism and landlordism.

Continue to Read more »

Martov’s and Cherevanin’s Pronouncements in the Bourgeois Press

V. I. Lenin

Telling How Certain Social-Democrats Resort to Bourgeois, Cadet Newspapers, Like Tovarishch, and, Through Tovarishch, to the Novy Put, in Order to Spread False Reports About Revolutionary Social-Democracy. Refutation. Estimation. Conclusions.

Martov and Cherevanin

In Tovarishch, L. Martov has refuted Cherevanin, who spoke of an agreement with the Cadets. In the same Tovarishch, Cherevanin now explains the “misunderstanding”. According to these explanations, Cherevanin did not really say definitely in No. 1 of Nashe Dyelo whether he advocates agreements at the lowest or the highest stages. In substance, however, he declares in favour of permitting agreements also at the lowest stages in the rural districts as well as in the towns. Cherevanin does not say with which parties agreements may be made. He (and apparently Martov, too) sees no difference between the revolutionary and the opportunist bourgeoisie, between the Socialist-Revolutionaries and the Cadets, between the Trudoviks of the type of the "33" in the Duma and the Trudoviks of the “Popular-Socialist” type, etc. Moreover, Cherevanin would even allow voting, without an agreement, for bourgeois candidates at the lowest stages of the elections!

Continue to Read more »

Two Letters

V. I. Lenin

Proletary, No. 39, November 13 (26), 1908. 

Lenin Collected Works, Volume 15

We print in the present issue of Proletary a letter from an otzovist worker[1] published in No. 5 of Rabocheye Znamyawith a note from the editors saying that they do not share his views, and regard the letter as an article for discussion; and secondly a letter from Mikhail Tomsky, a St. Petersburg worker, which our paper has just received.

We print both letters in full. We are well aware that there may be malicious critics capable of wrenching separate passages or phrases from their context, in one or other of these letters, and of grossly misinterpreting them, drawing conclusions from them remote from the intentions of both authors, who were writing hurriedly, in the most unfavourable conditions of secrecy. But it is not worth taking notice of such critics. Any person who is seriously interested in the state of the working-class movement and the condition of Social-Democracy in Russia at the present time will most probably agree with us that both letters are remarkably characteristic of two tendencies among our class-conscious workers. These two tendencies are revealing themselves at every turn in the life of all the Social-Democratic organisations of St. Petersburg and Moscow. And as the third tendency, the tendency of Menshevism, which is frankly and openly—or secretly and shamefacedly—burying the Party, is scarcely represented at all within the local organisations, we can say that the clash between these two tendencies is the topic of the day in our Party. That is why it is necessary to dwell in full detail on the two letters.

Both writers recognise that our Party is going through a crisis, not only of organisation but also of ideology and policy. This is a fact which it would be stupid to hide. We must clearly realise its reasons and understand the way to combat it.

Continue to Read more »

The State of Affairs in the Party

V. I. Lenin

Sotsial-Demokrat, No. 19–20. Lenin Collected Works, Volume 17, 

The question of the crisis in our Party has again been given priority by the Social-Democratic press abroad, leading to stronger rumours, perplexity and vacillation among wide Party circles. It is, therefore, essential for the Central Organ of the Party to clarify this question in its entirety. Martov’s article in Golos, No. 23, and Trotsky’s statement of November 26, 1910 in the form of a “resolution” of the “Vienna Club”, published as a separate leaflet, present the question to the reader in a manner which completely distorts the essence of the matter.

Martov’s article and Trotsky’s resolution conceal definite practical actions—actions directed against the Party. Martov’s article is simply the literary expression of a campaign launched by the Golos group to sabotage the Central Committee of our Party. Trotsky’s resolution, which calls upon organisations in the localities to prepare for a “general Party conference “independent of, and against, the Central Commit tee, expresses the very aim of the Golos group—todestroy the central bodies so detested by the liquidators, and with them, the Party as an organisation. It is not enough to lay bare the anti-Party activities of Golos and Trotsky; they must be fought. Comrades to whom the Party and its revival are dear must come out most resolutely against all those who, guided by purely factional and narrow circle considerations and interests, are striving to destroy the Party.

Continue to Read more »

A CARICATURE OF BOLSHEVISM

Supplement to Proletary, No. 44

April 4 (17), 1909

Lenin

We have already given a general appraisal of "otzovism" and "ultimatumism" in Proletary, No. 42.[*] Concerning the resolution of the St. Petersburg otzovists (reprinted in this issue) which served as their platform during the election of delegates to the December Conference of the R.S.D.L.P. (and unfortunately was not communicated to Proletary till after the conference) we have to repeat much of what was said there. 

This resolution simply teems with fallacious, un-Marxian arguments. Practically every point in it is evidence of the immaturity of its authors' ideas or of their oblivion of the ABC of Social-Democracy. 

Point 1: "The first stage of the revolution is concluded. . . ." What does that mean? That a stage in social and economic development is concluded? Probably not. The authors have in mind the end of the stage of direct revolutionary struggle of the masses. We must assume that the otzovists mean that, if we are not to impute to them something totally absurd. If that is the case, then they admit that present conditions are unfavourable for the direct revolutionary struggle of the masses. But although compelled by the force of circumstances to admit this, the otzovists are unable to reason out the conclusions that follow, and cannot, therefore, get their arguments to hang together. "Russia . . . is moving towards a new revolutionary upswing". . . . Quite right! She is only moving towards an upswing, i.e., there is no upswing yet -- that is what this means, both in logic and in grammar! It appears, however, that this still non-existing upswing is "characterised by a sharp conflict", etc. The result is utter nonsense. The otzovists are incapable of characterising the present. They "characterise" the future, which we are "moving towards", in order to cover up failure to understand the present. For instance, the "pauperised town petty bourgeoisie" jump into the picture from God knows where, and the reference to them is not backed by even an attempt at an analysis. Why the future upswing should be "characterised" by a sharp conflict of pauperised petty bourgeois is not evident at all. Nor does there appear to be any reason why the pauperised town petty bourgeoisie should be brought in just at this moment. Lumpen-proletarians are sometimes distinguished for their sharp conflicts, and sometimes for their amazing instability and inability to fight. The otzovists' ideas are utterly confused, and we are not surprised that at the conference of the R.S.D.L.P. only two Bundists voted with the two otzovists for the insertion of the reference to the "pauperised town petty bourgeoisie". Our opinion that otzovism is opportunism turned inside out has been magnificently borne out.

With whom will the sharp conflict take place? "With the ruling bloc of the big bourgeoisie and feudalist landlords." And not with the autocracy? The otzovists cannot distinguish absolutism, which is manoeuvring between these two classes, from the direct rule of the two classes; with the absurd result that the struggle against the autocracy drops out of the picture entirely.

"Secret work is going on to organise the forces. . . ." The work of learning the lessons of experience, of digesting new lessons, of accumulating strength may be, and often is, performed in secret; but the organisation of forces cannot be performed in secret even when all work is driven under ground. In 1901-03 the organisation of forces proceeded illegally, but not secretly. The otzovists are merely repeating scraps of parrot-phrases and garbling them in the process.

Point 2: "The solution of this conflict, in view of the strongly developed class antagonisms in Russia, will assume the form of a revolution". . . . Class antagonisms in Russia are less strongly developed than in Europe, which is not faced with the task of fighting autocracy. The otzovists fail to see that in trying to broaden their views they are coming closer to their antipodes, the opportunists.

. . . of a revolution which will lead to an armed uprising. . . ."

The otzovists have not yet told us anything distinctly about the object of the struggle, or about the present stage of development of the autocracy; but they make haste to tell us about the means of struggle in order to proclaim themselves "revolutionaries". This is childish, dear comrades, for you are showing us once again that you have learnt by heart scraps of good phrases, without understanding what they mean. The attitude of the revolutionary Social-Democrats towards insurrection was different in 1897, 1901, and in 1905. It was only after January 9, 1905 that they made it a key issue -- although Russia, in 1897 and in 1901, was undoubtedly "moving towards upswing", towards a "sharp conflict" and towards "revolution". It is not enough to learn slogans by heart; one must also learn to judge the opportune moment to issue them. To advocate one of the means of struggle at a time when the "upswing" has not begun and "revolution", in the most strict and direct sense of the term, is still a matter of the future (and the otzovists speak of it in the future : "will assume the form of a revolution") means only to make oneself into a caricature of a revolutionary Social-Democrat. The resolution adopted by the conference speaks of a developing revolutionary crisis and of the aim of the struggle (conquest of power by the revolutionary classes); more than this cannot and should not be said at the present time.

How the mysterious "municipal reforms" got here, and represented as "radical reforms" at that, God only knows. Apparently the otzovists themselves do not know what this means.

Point 3: "In view of this, Social-Democracy as a consistently revolutionary party must put non-parliamentary action in the forefront.". . .

And yet there are people (the ultimatumists) who are so short-sighted that our disagreements with the otzovists seem to them differences only about practical matters, disagreements over the ways and means of applying a common line of tactics! In the summer of 1907 the disagreement over boycotting the Third Duma might have been regarded merely as a disagreement over methods, and the mistake of the boycottists merely as a mistake in choice of methods in applying tactics with which all Bolsheviks were agreed. Today, in 1909, it is ridiculous even to suggest such a thing. The mistake of the otzovists and ultimatumists has developed into a deviation from the principles of Marxism. Just think: "in view of this ", i.e., in view of the fact that we are "moving towards" an upswing, and that the conflict "will assume the form of a revolution", "in view of this" let non-parliamentary action be put in the forefront! Why, comrades, this is merely a jumble of words to cover up a monstrous confusion of ideas! Before you have even said a word about the Duma in your resolution, you have already concocted the conclusion: "in view of this" . . . "non-parliamentary action"! In view of the fact that we do not understand the importance of the Duma and the tasks of the Party at a time when an upswing is maturing, we proclaim that struggle must be outside the Duma -- that is the nonsense that the otzovists' case amounts to. They have repeated, without understanding them, scraps of arguments which the Bolsheviks advanced at a time when non-parliamentary action was not merely being proclaimed, but carried on by the masses ; and repeated them at a time when they themselves consider "the first stage of the revolution concluded", i.e., that for the time being the conditions for direct mass action are absent.

They have learned by heart the sound proposition that work in the Duma must be subordinated to the interests and direction of the working-class movement outside the Duma, and repeat scraps of what they have learned irrelevantly, and in a garbled, scarcely recognisable form.

Instead of emphasising the necessity of continuing -- in addition to work in the Duma -- to devote maximum effort to persistent, prolonged and painstaking organisation and agitation among the masses outside the Duma -- the otzovists, in company with the Socialist-Revolutionaries, raise a "revolutionary" yelp about "non-parliamentary action", making an onslaught, and so forth.

"Direct action is impossible at the present time," say the otzovists at the end of the resolution (Point 1), although at the beginning of it they proclaimed a non-parliamentary struggle. If this is not a caricature of Bolshevism, what is?

And work to carry the revolution through to complete victory". . . . First, the scrap of an idea about the means of struggle, then its object! . . . "and for this purpose to organise the proletariat and the broad masses of the peasantry". . . . At a time like the present, when the first and foremost task is to strengthen and rebuild the semi-destroyed Party organisations, this is a mere phrase, comrades!

Point 4 is one of the gems of "otzovism". "The Party may employ only such forms of organisational and agitational action as do not obscure or weaken the revolutionary struggle". . . .

This, according to the "practical" ultimatumists, is the "practical" way of stating the issue! In 1909 the otzovists are compelled to search for theoretical justification and the quest inevitably bogs them down. "Only such forms of action as do not obscure . . ." -- this is a broad hint at the work of the Social-Democrats in the Duma and at their utilisation of semi-legal and legal organisations. It appears, then, that there are some "forms of action" which obscure and others which do not. In order to save people who are unable to think the trouble of using their brains, let us draw up a list of "forms of action" and cross out those which "obscure" -- now that will be real revolutionary tactics!

Take legal literature, for instance, dear comrades. Does this "form of organisational and agitational action" obscure, or does it not? Of course it does, under the Stolypin regime. Then it must be eliminated according to the otzovists, who do not know how to distinguish the conditions in which revolutionary Social-Democrats may resort to the most varied forms of action, and therefore talk nonsense. "The Party must pay special attention to the utilisation and reinforcement of existing organisations and the formation of new illegal, semi-legal and, where possible, legal organisations that could serve as its strongholds," declares the resolution of the conference, proposed and carried by the Bolsheviks. This resolution is as remote from otzovism as heaven is from earth. "Only such forms as do not obscure" -- is just a hollow phrase: a mere "yelp", and not a revolutionary utterance. The formation of illegal Party "workers' committees" to utilise "semi-legal and, where possible, legal organisations" -- these are the tactics of revolutionary Social-Democrats who take into account what "forms of organisational and agitational action" are prescribed by the present situation, and who are able to display methods of genuine Social-Democratic activity in the most diverse "forms".

"Down with legal Social-Democratic literature" is a hollow phrase, impracticable and therefore only to the advantage of the opportunists -- who are perfectly well aware that it is impracticable. It is difficult to draw a line between Social-Democrats who are ready to answer to the Party for their legal writings and non-Party literary hacks; but it is possible, and it provides a real line of activity for those who want to work with the Party. "Down with the legal Duma group, down with legal organisations" -- these are hollow phrases which are only to the advantage of the opportunists who would be glad to rid themselves of Party control. To keep on exercising this control, "utilising" legal organisations, rectifying every mistake and tactical blunder committed by Social-Democrats -- this is Party work, which we and all those who wish to-carry out the decisions of the conference will continue to do.

The end of Point 4: "strenuously opposing all deals between the counter-revolutionary bourgeoisie and the autocracy."

Ugh! The otzovists will insist on inappropriately repeating scraps of ideas drawn from Bolshevik literature. Really, comrades, you must try to make out what's what! In the period of the First and Second Dumas, the government was still groping its way towards such deals, while the Cadets were recommending deals to the people as slogans of "struggle" (slogans which misled even the Menshevik Social-Democrats). At that time a resolute struggle against any deals was really the slogan of the day, the task of the moment, the exposure of fraud. Today tsarism has found the way to conclude the deal, and has already done so, with those classes which the otzovists themselves refer to as a "bloc"; and moreover no one is deceived by the deal which has been concluded in the Third Duma. To make the task of "strenuously opposing all deals " the pivot of our agitation today means making oneself a caricature of Bolshevism.

Point 5: "Our Duma cannot be regarded as a parliament working in an environment of political liberty, and with a measure of freedom for the class struggle of the proletariat, but is merely a deal between tsarism and the big bourgeoisie"

. . . . This contains two mistakes. It is wrong to say "not a parliament but a deal", for quite a number of the world's parliaments are nothing more than a deal between the bourgeoisie (at various stages of development) and various survivals of medievalism. We had to, and did, fight to prevent Russia's first parliament from being a Black-Hundred and Octobrist parliament, but once it became such in spite of our efforts -- and history obliged us to pass through this stage -- it is childish to try to exorcise this unpleasant reality with exclamations and declamations. Secondly: according to the authors of the resolution, if there is a "measure of freedom" then it is a "parliament"; if not, it is a "fraud". This is a vulgar-democratic view, worthy of a Cadet but not of a Marxist. Under the Third Duma there is much less freedom than there was under the Second; but the Third Duma is a less fictitious parliament, because it more truly reflects the actual relation between the state authority and the present ruling classes. As long as power is in the hands of the tsar and the feudalist landlords, there can be no other parliament in bourgeois Russia. It might befit Cadets to try to brush this bare truth under the carpet, but not Social-Democrats.

Point 6, by way of an exception, is correct. But this is precisely an exception which proves the reverse rule, because . . . because on this point the otzovists are expounding, not their own ideas, but the ideas of the anti-otzovists who carried the resolutions at the conference.

Conclusions. Point (a) "The Duma being . . . a deal . . . and a weapon of the counter-revolution". . . . Quite right! . . ."only serves to bolster up the autocracy". . . . This "only" is wrong. The autocracy has staved off its downfall by organising such a Duma in time: but it has not been strengthened thereby, rather on the contrary, advanced in its decay. The Duma, as a "screen", is more effective than many an "exposure", because for the first time, on a thousand and one issues, it reveals tsarism's dependence on the counter-revolutionary sections of society; it is for the first time demonstrating en grand how close is the alliance between Romanov and Purishkevich, between tsarism and the "Union of the Russian People", between the autocracy and the Dubrovins, the Iliodors and the Polovnyovs.

That the Duma sanctions the crimes of tsarism is beyond doubt; but it is the sanction of particular classes, on behalf of particular class interests, and it is the duty of the Social-Democrats precisely to use the Duma rostrum to reveal these instructive truths of the class struggle.

"The eight months' proceedings of the Third Duma have shown that the Social-Democrats cannot make use of it."

Here is the very essence of otzovism, the error of which our "ultimatumists" are only covering up, confusing the issue by their ridiculous equivocation -- that since we have spent so much energy on creating a Duma group, we must not recall it lightly!

There is a straightforward question, and evasions won't do: have these eight months' proceedings proved that it is possible to make use of the rostrum of the Duma, or not? The otzovists' reply is wrong. In spite of the immense difficulties involved in Party guidance of the Duma group, it has beyond question proved the possibility of making use of the Duma as a platform. To be daunted by difficulties and mistakes is timidity; it is intellectual "yelping", whereas what we want is patient, consistent and persistent proletarian effort. Other socialist parties in Europe encountered even greater difficulties at the beginning of their parliamentary activity, and made many more mistakes, but they did not shirk their duty. They succeeded in overcoming the difficulties and in correcting their mistakes.

(b) "Our Duma group . . . persistently pursuing opportunist tactics, could not and cannot be a staunch and consistent representative of the revolutionary proletariat."

The grandest truths can be vulgarised, otzovist comrades, the noblest aims can be reduced to mere phrase-mongering -- and that is what you are doing. You have degraded the fight against opportunism into mere phrase-mongering, and are thereby only playing into the hands of the opportunists. Our Duma group has made and is making mistakes, but by its very work it has proved that it "could and can" staunchly and consistently represent the proletariat -- could and can, when we, the Party, guide it, help it, appoint our best men to lead it, draw up directives, and draft speeches, and explain the harmful and fatal effects of taking advice from the petty-bourgeois intelligentsia who, not only in Russia but all over the world, always gain easy access to all kinds of institutions on the parliamentary fringe.

Have the courage to admit, comrades, that we have as yet done far too little to provide this real guidance of the work of the Duma group, to help it with deeds. Have the courage to admit that we can do ten times as much in this direction, if we succeed in strengthening our organisations, consolidating our Party, bringing it closer to the masses, creating Party media exercising a constant influence on large sections of the proletarians. That is what we are working for, that is what everybody must work for who wants to fight opportunism in deeds and not in words.

The otzovists have reduced the struggle against opportunism in the Duma group to a mere phrase. They have learned words by rote without understanding the difference between anarchist and Social-Democratic criticism of opportunism. Take the anarchists. They all pounce on every mistake every Social-Democratic member of parliament makes. They all shout that even Bebel once made a speech in an almost patriotic spirit, once took up a wrong stand on the agrarian programme, and so on and so forth. True, even Bebel made opportunist mistakes in his parliamentary career. But what does this prove? The anarchists say that it proves that all the workers' M.P.s should be recalled. The anarchists rail at the Social-Democratic members of parliament and refuse to have anything to do with them, refuse to do anything to develop a proletarian party, a proletarian policy and proletarian members of parliament. And in practice the anarchists' phrase-mongering converts them into the truest accomplices of opportunism, into the reverse side of opportunism.

Social-Democrats draw quite a different conclusion from their mistakes -- the conclusion that even Bebel could not become Bebel without prolonged Party work in training up real Social-Democratic representatives. They need not tell us, "We have no Bebels in our group." Bebels are not born. They have to be made. Bebels don't spring fully formed like Minerva from the head of Jupiter, but are created by the Party and the working class. Those who say we have no Bebels don't know the history of the German Party: they don't know that there was a time, under the Anti-Socialist Law, when August Bebel made opportunist blunders and that the Party corrected him, the Party guided Bebel.[*]

(c) "The continued presence of the Social-Democratic group in the Duma . . . can only do harm to the interests of the proletariat . . . lower the dignity and influence of the Social-Democrats."

To show how "quantity passes into quality" in these preposterous exaggerations, and how anarchist phrases grow out of them (irrespective of whether our otzovist comrades desire it or not), we need only refer to Belousov's speech during the 1909 budget debate. If such speeches are considered as "harmful", and not as proof that the rostrum of the Duma can and must be utilised, then our disagreement ceases to be a mere difference of opinion about the character of a speech, and becomes a disagreement concerning the fundamental principles of Social-Democratic tactics.

(I) "Launch a wide campaign . . . for the slogan: 'Down with the Third Duma'" . . . .

We have already said in Proletary, No. 39, that this slogan, which for a time appealed to some anti-otzovist workers, is wrong.** It is either a Cadet slogan, calling for franchise reform under the autocracy, or a repetition of words learned by rote from the period when liberal Dumas were a screen for counter-revolutionary tsarism, designed to prevent the people from seeing clearly who their real enemy was.

(II) "Recall . . . the Duma group; this will emphasise both . . . the character of the Duma and the revolutionary tactics of the Social-Democrats."

This is a paraphrase of the proposition advanced by the Moscow otzovists, that the recall of the Duma group will emphasise that the revolution is not dead and buried. Such a conclusion -- we repeat the words of Proletary, No. 39, "emphasises" only the burial of those Social-Democrats who are capable of arguing in this way. They bury themselves thereby as Social-Democrats; they lose all feeling for genuine proletarian revolutionary work; and for that reason they are so painfully contorting themselves to "emphasise" their revolutionary phrases.

(III) "Devote all efforts to organisation and preparation . . . for open . . . struggle [and therefore renounce open agitation from the rostrum of the Duma!] . . . and to propaganda", etc., etc.

The otzovists have forgotten that it is unseemly for Social-Democrats to refuse to conduct propaganda from the rostrum of the Duma.

At this point they give us the argument repeated by some ultimatumists, that "there is no sense in wasting energy on hopeless work in the Duma, let us use all our forces more productively". This is not reasoning, but sophistry, which -- again irrespective of whether the authors desire it or not -- leads to anarchist conclusions. For in all countries the anarchists, pointing to the mistakes committed by Social-Democratic members of parliament, argue that it is "a waste of time to bother with bourgeois parliamentarism" and call for the concentration of "all these forces" on organising "direct action". But this leads to disorganisation and to the shouting of "slogans" which are futile because they are isolated, instead of conducting work in every field on the widest possible scale. It only seems to the otzovists and ultimatumists that their argument is new, and applies only to the Third Duma. But they are wrong. It is a common argument heard all over Europe, and it is not a Social-Democratic argument.

Thus, otzovism and ultimatumism are a caricature of Bolshevism. What gave rise to this caricature? Of course, the fallacies of Bolshevism as a whole, the Menshevik hastens to declare. Such a conclusion, undoubtedly, is very "profitable" for the Mensheviks. Unfortunately for them, however, objective facts do not corroborate, but refute it. The objective facts are that in the development not only of Bolshevism, but of Russian Marxism in general, there was a period when Marxism was caricatured, and that Russian

Marxism grew strong and developed in struggle with these growing pains, pains which accompanied the expansion of its sphere of influence. Russian Marxism was born at the beginning of the eighties of the last century in the works of a group of political emigrants (the Emancipation of Labour group).

But Marxism did not become a trend of Russian social thought and a constituent part of the working-class movement in Russia until the middle of the nineties of the last century when a "wave" of Marxian literature and of a Social-Democratic working-class movement arose in Russia. And what happened? This wave carried with it a caricature of Marxism in the shape of Struvism on the one hand and Rabocheye Dyelo-ism and Economism on the other. Marxism grew and matured because it did not conceal the disagreements in its ranks, did not play the diplomat (as the Mensheviks do with Maslov, Cherevanin, Kuskova, Prokopovich, Valentinov, Yermansky and Co.), but waged a victorious campaign against the caricature, which had been engendered by the deplorable conditions of Russian life and the turning point in the historical development of socialism in Russia. And Bolshevism will grow up and become strong, making no attempt to conceal the incipient distortion of its principles by a caricature engendered by the deplorable conditions of Russian life and the turning-point in the counter-revolutionary period, but openly explaining to the masses into what a bog the otzovists and ultimatumists would lead the Duma group and the Party.

Continue to Read more »

"MONISM AND DUALISM"

V. I. Lenin

A Caricature of Marxism and Imperialist Economism

Reproaching us for "interpreting the demand dualistically", P. Kievsky writes:

"Monistic action of the International is replaced by dualistic propaganda."

That sounds quite Marxist and materialistic: monistic action is contrasted to "dualistic" propaganda. Unfortunately, closer examination reveals that it is verbal "monism", like the "monism" of Dühring. "If I include a shoe brush in the unity mammals," Engels wrote exposing Dühring's "monism", "this does not help it to get mammary glands."[27]

This means that only such things, qualities, phenomena and actions that are a unity in objective reality can be declared "a unity". It is this "detail " that our author overlooks!

He thinks we are "dualists", first, because what we demand, primarily, of the workers of the oppressed nations -- this refers to the national question only -- differs from what we demand of the workers of the oppressor nations.

To determine whether P. Kievsky's "monism" is the same as Dühring's, let us examine objective realities.

Continue to Read more »

OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE NEW ERA

V. I. Lenin

A Caricature of Marxism and Imperialist Economism

The heading is Kievsky's. He constantly speaks of a "new era", but here, too, unfortunately his arguments are erroneous.

Our Party resolutions speak of the present war as stemming from the general conditions of the imperialist era. We give a correct Marxist definition of the relation between the "era" and the "present war": Marxism requires a concrete assessment of each separate war. To understand why an imperialist war, i.e., a war thoroughly reactionary and anti-democratic in its political implications, could, and inevitably did, break out between the Great Powers, many of whom stood at the head of the struggle for democracy in 1789-1871 -- to understand this we must understand the general conditions of the imperialist era, i.e., the transformation of capitalism in the advanced countries into imperialism.[¥]

Kievsky has flagrantly distorted the relation between the "era" and the "present war". In his reasoning, to consider the matter concretely means to examine the "era". That is precisely where he is wrong.

Continue to Read more »

A Caricature of Marxism and Imperialist Economism

Lenin

"No one can discredit revolulionary Social-Democracy as long as it does not discredit itself." That maxim always comes to mind, and must always be borne in mind, when any major theoretical or tactical proposition of Marxism is victorious, or even placed on the order of the day, and when, besides outright and resolute opponents, it is as sailed by friends who hopelessly discredit and disparage it and turn it into a caricature. That has happened time and again in the history of the Russian Social-Democratic movement. In the early nineties, the victory of Marxism in the revolutionary movement was attended by the emer gence of a caricature of Marxism in the shape of Economism, or "strikeism". The Iskrists[20] would not have been able to uphold the fundamentals of proletarian theory and policy, either against petty-bourgeois Narodism or bourgeois liberalism, without long years of struggle against Economism. It was the same with Bolshevism, which triumphed in the mass labour movement in 1905 due, among other things, to correct application of the boycott of the tsarist Duma[21] slogan in the autumn of 1905, when the key battles of the Russian revolution were being fought. Bolshevism had to face -- and overcome by struggle -- another caricature in 1908-10, when Alexinsky and others noisily opposed participation in the Third Duma.[22]

Continue to Read more »

THE FIRST STEPS OF BOURGEOIS BETRAYAL

Proletary, No. 5
June 26 (13), 1905

Geneva, Wednesday, June 21 (8) 

Yesterday the telegraph brought the news that Nicholas II had received a Zemstvo deputation last Monday. Responding to speeches by Prince Sergei Trubetskoi and Mr. Fyodorov, the tsar emphatically confirmed his promise to convene an assembly of people's representatives.

To appreciate fully the significance of this "event" we must first of all reconstruct certain facts that were reported in the foreign press.

On May 24 and 25, old style, about 300 Zemstvo and municipal representatives held three meetings in Moscow. In the lithographed copies we have received from Russia of their petition to the tsar and of a resolution adopted by them the number of attending delegates is not indicated; mention is made only of City Mayors and Marshals of the Nobility, as well as Zemstvo and municipal councillors, having attended the Conference. The representatives of landlordism and urban capital discussed the political fortunes of Russia. According to the foreign correspondents, the debate was very heated. The Shipov party, with its moderate policy and its extensive Court connections, enjoyed great influence. The most radical were the provincial delegates, the most moderate those from St. Petersburg, while the "Centre" was formed by the Moscow delegates. Every word of the petition was debated, St. Petersburg finally joining in the vote for it. The resulting document was a patriotic and loyal petition. "Actuated solely by ardent love of country", the respectable bourgeois gentlemen sink "all discord

Continue to Read more »

"LEFT-WING" CHILDISHNESS AND THE PETTY-BOURGEOIS MENTALITY

May 9, 10, 11, 1918 in Pravda Nos. 88, 89, 90 

Lenin 

The publication by a small group of "Left Communists" of their journal, Kommunist (No. 1, April 20, 1918), and of their "theses", strikingly confirms my views expressed in the pamphlet The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government.[*] There could not be better confirmation, in political literature, of the utter naïvete of the defence of petty-bourgeois sloppiness that is sometimes concealed by "Left" slogans. It is useful and necessary to deal with the arguments of "Left Communists" because they are characteristic of the period we are passing through. They show up with exceptional clarity the negative side of the "core" of this period. They are instructive, because the people we are dealing with are the best of those who have failed to understand the present period, people who by their knowledge and loyalty stand far, far above the ordinary representatives of the same mistaken views, namely, the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries .

I

As a political magnitude, or as a group claiming to play a political role, the "Left Communist" group has presented its "Theses on the Present Situation". It is a good Marxist custom to give a coherent and complete exposition of the principles underlying one's views and tactics. And this good Marxist custom has helped to reveal the mistake committed by our "Lefts", because the mere attempt to argue and not to declaim exposes the unsoundness of their argument.

Continue to Read more »

WHAT IS INTERNATIONALISM?

THE PROLETARIAN REVOLUTION AND THE RENEGADE KAUTSKY

Lenin

Kautsky is absolutely convinced that he is an internationalist and calls himself one. The Scheidemanns he calls "government Socialists." In defending the Mensheviks (he does not openly express his solidarity with them, but he faithfully expresses their views), Kautsky has shown with perfect clarity what kind of "internationalism" he subscribes to. And since Kautsky is not alone, but is the representative of a trend which inevitably grew up in the atmosphere of the Second International (Longuet in France, Turati in Italy, Nobs and Grimm, Graber and Naine in Switzerland, Ramsay MacDonald in England, etc.), it will be instructive to dwell on Kautsky's "internationalism."

After emphasizing that the Mensheviks also attended the Zimmerwald Conference (a diploma, certainly but . . . a tainted one), Kautsky sets forth the views of the Mensheviks, with whom he agrees, in the following manner:

". . . The Mensheviks wanted a general peace. They wanted all the belligerents to adopt the formula: No annexations and no indemnities. Until this had been achieved, the Russian army, according to this view, was to stand ready for battle. The Bolsheviks, on the other hand, demanded an immediate peace at any price; they were prepared, if need be, to make a separate peace; they tried to force it by increasing the state of disorganization of the army, which was already bad enough." (P. 27.) In Kautsky's opinion the Bolsheviks should not have taken power, and should have contented themselves with a Constituent Assembly.

Continue to Read more »

THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY AND THE SOVIET REPUBLIC

THE PROLETARIAN   REVOLUTION   AND THE RENEGADE KAUTSKY
Lenin


The question of the Constituent Assembly and its dispersal by the Bolsheviks is the crux of Kautsky's entire pamphlet. He constantly reverts to it, and the whole of this literary production of the ideological leader of the Second International is replete with innuendoes to the effect that the Bolsheviks have "destroyed democracy" (see one of the quotations from Kautsky above). The question is really an interesting and important one, because the relation between bourgeois democracy and proletarian democracy here confronted the revolution in a practical form. Let us see how our "Marxist theoretician" has dealt with the question.

Continue to Read more »