Editorials The Third International Centrist Reconstryctionist Schemes COMMUNICATION OF THE AMSTERservices as of industry in general and of all DAM SUB BUREAU OF THE THIRD that concerns the public wealth, falls to the state or to the municipality, in order to increase the INTERNATIONAL DEBS TURNS TO THE RIGHT Editor Note: This communication has special prosperity and the happiness of all citizens.
interest in this country in view of the attempt of This definition of the basis of Socialism is, the Socialist Party to affiliate. with the Third As Babushka was used by the counterevidently, absolutely insufficient from a ConInternational and the same time participate in the revolutionary forces to combat the Promunist point of view; on the other hand not schemes of the recontsructionists. only the reformist and social patriot parties, letarian Revolution and the Dictatorship but many simple bourgeois reformists can Dear Comrades: of the Proletariat in Russia, so Eugene It seems to absolutely straightway accept it.
Comrade Johnson, Secretary of the IndependDebs, once beloved of the American revoluent Labor Party of Great Britain has kindly sent ignore the fact that the capitalist ownership of tionary masses, is being used against the the means of production can only be abolished us the copy of a letter addressed by the Communist Party of America and the Comaiter the downfall oi the bourgeois state and the to the Swiss Socialist Party (P. In this munist International, by the social patriots, letter the is invited to take the initiation revolutionary organs of the proletariat will have opportunists and compromisers of the Socfor the organizing in Switzerland of a conference to be the means of transforming it into collective ialist Party of the several Socialist Parties, where the basis ownership. Comrade Johnson definition is apparently contented with a state and municipal would be laid of the so called reconstruction Eugene Debs, having accepted the of the International.
Socialism, which would change nothing or very nomination for President on the ticket.
As the Labor Leader of March 4th observes. little in the social misery and in the degradation has also begun to speak from behind his the inajority obtained at the Strassburg Congress of the workers, and which would even aggravate prison walls and what he says shows that by the Longuet resolution necessitates such a their dependency.
he has become a conscious and willing tool conference. Now that most of the parties of It seems to us that for the Communist groups (not the first time, by any means) in the Central and Western Europe have left the Second and parties to participate in a conference of hands of those traitors who are manipulat International without deciding for Moscow, it this kind, would be a waste of energy. time and ing his name and prestige to retrieve in Seems that the formation of a new organism money, that it would be a real betrayal on their some measure, the revolutionary ground lost of a bloc oi the parties hesitating between the part of our principles and of the grand work of by the since the split last year, when old and the new tendencies the formulas of the construction pursued by Soviet Russia. The old all revolutionary elements left the old party. past and those of the future is no longer to ietish of Socialist unity (that worthy pendant be avoided.
of the equally dangerous and no less fatal Class Wee need not dilate here on his ridiculous What it the character of this bloc likely to be? Truce. will be made use of, for an attempt to attempts to bring about unity between the What, from a Communist point of view is to induce all more or less hesitating spirits to capituCommunist forces and the stinking carrion be hoped for from the principal parties interested Phraselate beiore double heartedness and lies of avhich he is the standard bearer. Suffice in its formations? The utter political weakness, mongering demagogy, the pathetic appeals oi able leaders will only serve to cover the absence the absolute lack of revolutionary firmness disit to say that between the Communist Party and there can be no compromise, no played by the majority of the leaders of the of ideals, of revolutionary faith (that is, of faith German Independent Socialist Party, Longuet in the masses. of class consciousness and of truce. The Communist Party is the advanceviolent attacks on the Communist International firmness.
guard of the proletarian revolution the at the Strassburg Congress, together with the It seems to 11s that the Communist groups and is a bulwark of capitalism and a poteninability or the disinclination of the French Cen parties would commit an exceedingly grave fault tially counter revolutionary force that will trists to understand the world revolution as the by taking part in the conference of the rConbe found (like Kerensky and the Ebertunavoidable consequence of the world war, and structors. They would aggravate the confusion Scheidemanns) with machine guns in hand at the same time as a process which may be still obtaining amongst the masses, they would shooting down the workers in the revolumore or less directed and hastened by the con render it more difficult for them to free themtion.
scious will of a proletarion vanguard. these are, selves of the old formulas and the old fetislics to mention only the three principal parties Debs sentimental whining for unity be(democracy, peaceful evolution, Socialist unity, destined to form the nucleus of a reconstructed etc. and consciously orientate themselves toward tween these two contending parties, shows International, so many signs that the organism the Communist theory and tactics.
as nothing else can show, his complete diexpected to be born from the conference which That is why we are of opinion that the British vorce from the revolutionary movement the proposes to the would only Socialist Party in Great Britain and the Comthroughout the world as represented by the serve to sanction in a general way the feeble mittee for the Third International in France liave Third Communist International. His sil ambiguous and vacillating policy pursued by men done well and acted as communists should, by ly echoing of the Hilquits and Bergers that like Crispien. Hilferding, Longet, Pressemane, absolutely reiusing to participate in any conthere is no Third International places him MacDonald and Snowdon after the war as before. ference of reconstruction, as the new Internadefinitely beyond the pale (his past record Theattempts of these parties, either to demand tional which answers to the needs and the aspito the contrary notwithstanding. from Moscow guarantees for the admission of rations of the working class in the era of the compromised leaders, and of deeds essentially world revolution, already exists. And we ardentJust as the Seventh Communist Congress hostile to Communist methods, or to form a ly hope that the example of these British and in Moscow expelled Fritz Adler of Austria new intermediary bloc between the Second and French comrades will be followed by all Comfrom his honorary post, in the Third Inter the Third International, can have no other result munist groups and parties.
national, so we, the Communist Party of but to weaken, to clag and to hinder revolutionary We in 110 wise wish to dictate ruiles of conduct America, proceed to READ EUGENE action in the proletarian masses and thus to hold to the advanced groups of countries where a DEBS OUT OF THE REVOLUTIONback the formation of the Soviet system, and Communist Party does not yet exist or is only ARY MOVEMENT OF AMERICA.
the establishing of the dictatorship of the pro in a nascent state. Evidently these groups are letariat in Europe and in America themselves the sole judges in the question oi the He has consciously aligned himself with The very terms of Comrade Johnson letter exact moment when they will think it necessary the social patriots and traitors, as against to the are evidence that the bases either to leave the old parties to which they the Communist Party. He has consciously of International Socialist unity as contemplated now belong, in order to constitute a Communist returned to the fold of the miserable comby the have nothing whatever in common Party and affiliate to Moscow, or to prevail upon promisers whom he once denounced. His with the principles of unity laid down by the the majority of these parties, the necessary prostatements, as printed in the Call, show First Congress of The Communist International cess of cleaning having been effected to follow him to be in agreement with them on prinheld at Moscow in 1919.
them. But we would feel we failed in the fullciples and tactics. Just as there can be The letter mentions the possibility of con filling of the mandate entrusted to us by the no compromise with the SO THERE stituting anew one single International whilst Amsterdam Conierence, if we neglected to warn CAN BE NO COMPROMISE WITH allowing the most complete autonomy in the our Communist friends against the very real 11e0EUGENE DEBS, LEADER AND matter of liberty of action and of tactics for confusionist danger constituted by the founding every individual country. This, evidently, means SPOKESMAN OF THE of an International lacking a precise conception that the double dealings which have led to the and a definite character. The attempt at redisaster in which the Second International was Eugene Debs has sounded his own establishing the so called Socialist unity is a death knell as a revolutionary Socialist.
wrecked, will be consistently, advisedly adopted dangerous snare in which the spirit of criticism as a new starting point, and that the terrific and the spirit of truth may equally be deceived.
catastrophe of the world war would have been of The press carried a statement credited to no benefit whatever to the proletariat. Each and The only real living and efficaceous unity is the Captain Swinburne Hale, who claims that one which has for its base not only the formal every national party would be free to wage the he has been acting for the in the war against its capitalism and its ruling acceptance of the Comunist principles and theory, but above all the revolutionary practice arising Department of Labor at Washington, that class in its own way, or even to substitute to this he would proceed to argue the case of the war the collaboration of the classes; the disout of this theory. And in order to constitute on the national as on the international scale this Communist Party beiore that same body ciplined and centralized action of the workers in the near future, in an attempt to legalize absolutely necessary in the Imperialist era would, of all countries, the international unity tactics real and living unity, we must also have the courage to reject nationally the traditional plea the Communist Party as he had succeeded for unity, ac to refuse on the international field from the beginning, be repudiated by the charter in the case of the Communist Labor Party.
of the reconstructed International, and it is supto lend a hand towards the formation of an The Central Executive Committee hereby osed that the Comn organism built on the sands of lies and illusions, nist Parties will fall into and fatally destined to confusion and to imannounces that it has at no time authorized any attorney to speak in the name of the Comrade Johnson letter says further, that the Communist Party before the Department parties accepting as the principal basis of Soc.
new International will be able to embrace all the The Executive of The Amsterdam Sub Bureau of Labor in Washington, and we repudiate of the Third International, anyone claiming to speak in the name of the ialism the collective ownership and use of the Wynkoop.
land and of the principal instruments of labor party at any such hearings.
in such a way the exploitation of the public Henriette Roland Holst. Rotgers.
this trap.
potency.