SOCIALIST APPEAL AUGUST 10, 1940 SOCIALIST APPEAL place the Soviet Union in the same category as Germany and Italy and Japan it should be clear to everybody that the greatest enemy of the Soviet Union is the Stalinist bureaucracy.
The lesson is the same that we have been teaching for years. To defend the Soviet Union it is necessary to destroy the Stalinist bureaucracy.
Trotsky Nails Talk Of Almazan Plot. VOL, IV, No. 32 Saturday, August 10, 1940 Published Weekly by the SOCIALIST APPEAL PUBLISHING ASSN.
at 116 University Place, New York, Telephone: Algonquin 8547 AGAINST CAPITALIST MILITARY TRAINING CONSCRIPTION BILLS Editorial Board: FELIX MORROW ALBERT GOLDMAN Poor Aren Paytriots In order to give my denial of the assertions reported in the Herald Tribune all the necessary completeness add. a) have never had either direct or indirect connections with the internal politics of Mexico, in particular the recent election campaign. b) do not have the honor of knowing Gencral Juan Andreu Almazan. have never had either direct or indirect relations with him in particular nor with any of the outstanding figures in general in any of the political camps of Mexico. c) do not have and could not have any motive to create any difficulties for the government of the only country which granted me its hospitality. d) The assertions reported by your correspondent represent not an isolated fact but part of a campaign which has been uninterruptedly and systematically conducted against me under the direction and with the financial assistance of the GPU. e) reserve the right to sue Mr. Cesar Ortiz for the malicious slanders he has made against me in the interests of the GPU.
LEON TROTSKY July 27, 1940 Coyoacan, By ALBERT GOLDMAN Are we for or against the Burke Wadsworth conscription bill? One thousand percent against it.
Not because of any particular clauses contained in it; not because it is a measure introduced in time of peace and thus violates American tradition. But because it is a measure introduced by a capitalist government for the purpose of defending the imperialist interests of American capitalism.
If our party had a representative in Congress he would vote against any conscription bill introduced by any representative of the capitalist class because it could have as its purpose only the defense of the interests of the capitalist class.
We are bitterly opposed to the capitalist class and to its government and we are opposed to any measure introduced for the defense of that class and that gov.
ernment.
Editor. Herald Tribune New York City, Sir: In the July 25 issue of the Herald Tribune an article was published, telephoned from Mexico City by Mr. Jack Brine, quoting declarations made by a certain Cesar Ortiz, Foreign editor of Mexico leading labor newspaper, Popular.
to sixty American educators visiting Mexico, of a conspiracy between me and General Juan Andreu Almazan to establish a fascist regime south of the Rio Grande and later in the United States in the event that were admitted to that country. Mr. Cesar Ortiz, according to the report in the Herald Tribune, added that the Mexican authorities are investigating this conspiracy allegedly organized with the financial help of Hitler and Mussolini; that is, the German and Italian allies of Stalin.
Your readers no doubt are intelligent enough to discern the source of this dirty, arrogant, and stupid falsification. The source is specified by three letters: GPU.
As for Mr. Cesar Ortiz, do not know anything about him. But can admit that he really exists and directs what is called the foreign policy of El Popular. On July before the Mexican courts, reaffirmed that this paper is a semi official organ of the GPU; that in all questions of interest to Stalin it supports the politics of the GPU; that it invariably defends the crimes of the GPU and propagates all the falsifications and slanders which the GPU spreads against the enemies of Stalin; that if after a long period of defending Hitler. El Popular today defends democracy it does so under direct orders from the GPU and in the interest of some temporary need of Stalin.
In view of the fact that the perpetrators of the assault against me, and particularly the murderers of Robert Sheldon Harte. Trotsky secretary) are agents of the GPU and members of the Comintern; that the editors of El Popular were moral accomplices in the preparation of the May 24 assault and in the attempts to cover up the crime; that these facts are being placed before the court by me with all the necessary exactitude; and in view of the fact that the friends of the GPU and the inspirers of El Popular happen to be deeply compromised, the secret police of Stalin, its agents and friends including evidently Cesar Ortiz whom do not know, are making desperate attempts to block the judicial investigation and to terrorize me in order to prevent further revelations concerning the criminal activity of the GPU on the American continent. All these attempts are in vain. will carry my work through to the end.
his class.
ORTIZ RETREATS; DENIES HE WAS QUOTED CORRECTLY 10.
11.
Who Is Responsible? ing 20 a week who has a wife and two children MEXICO CITY, July 29 Today El Popular. Stalinist controlled organ, publishes a letter by Cesar Ortiz in which he denies responsibility for the remarks attributed to him by the New York Herald Tribune, accusing Trotsky of plotting with Almazan. Trotsky having confronted Ortiz with the Herald Tribune article here, where Ortiz charge could not stand for a moment, Ortiz had to retreat.
It is his opinion. says Ortiz, that the members of the Fourth International in Mexico are linked to the Almazanist and reactionary elements, and are conducting a work of disruption and confusion among the workers and peasants of the country. In the talk that gave before the group. Seminary in Mexico, limited myself to giving this interpretation and to indicating the provocative character for the revolutionary regime of President Cardenas that the Trotsky case has had. am not responsible for the sensationalist forms which the Herald Tribune may have wished to give this simple and known reference.
all. if they are allowed to vote once in four years HAVANA PARLEY FAILED TO MEET HEMISPHERE ECONOMIC PROBLEM General afanager: GEORGE CLARKE There are 72 million poor people in this Subscriptions: 00 per year: 00 for six months. country, but it un American to be poor. Most of Foreign: 00 per year, 50 for six months. Bundle these people have been on relief at one time or orders: centa per copy in the United States: centa per copy in all foreign countries. Single copies: cents.
another during these last eleven years of economic crisis, and if they also happened to be non citizens, the fact that they have been on relief bars them Reentered a second class matter December 1, 1939, at the post office at New York, under the from citizenship. This is the opinion of Supreme Act of March 3, 1879.
Court Justice Nathan Lapham of New York State who, on July 22 at Rochester, denied citizenship to six applicants who were on relief. That, Fight with the Socialist Workers said the judge, showed they were not attached to Party for: the principles of the Constitution. This is only the latest of an increasing number of such inci1. JOB AND DECENT LIVING FOR EVERY dents.
WORKER.
We think the judges who came to the conclu2. OPEN THE IDLE FACTORIES. OPERATE THEM UNDER WORKERS CONTROL sion that poverty stricken people don make good TWENTY. BILLION DOLLAR FEDERAL patriots are quite right in their own way. Those PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING PROGRAM. who have no stake in this vile economic system THIRTY THIRTY 80. WEEKLY MINIMUM may very likely turn against it. Those who have WAGE 30 HOUR WEEKLY MAXIMUM FOR only their chains to lose may soon seek to win a ALL WORKERS ON ALL JOBS.
new world of socialism. 30 WEEKLY OLD AGE AND DISABILITY PENSION But the judges, if they want to complete their EXPROPRIATE THE SIXTY FAMILIES.
job, cannot stop with preventing aliens from be7. ALL WAR FUNDS TO THE UNEMPLOYED.
coming citizens. They must go on to disfranchise all naturalized and native citizens on relief. But PEOPLE REFERENDUM ON ANY AND ALL WARS.
that only the beginning. The sharecroppers and NO SECRET DIPLOMACY.
agricultural workers of the South and California, AN INDEPENDENT LABOR PARTY for instance, have less to live on than many reWORKERS DEFENSE GUARDS AGAINST lief clients in some of the Northern cities. Off with VIGILANTE AND FASCIST ATTACKS. their citizenship! And of course WPA workers FULL SOCIAL, POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC (who must now be citizens) live on about the EQUALITY FOR THE NEGRO PEOPLE. same scale as many workers in private industry.
Some point therefore should be fixed say, 15 a week and anyone earning below that should be stripped his. a The United Auto Workers Union convention dependent on him is obviously worse off than a adopted by an overwhelming majority a resolution single man earning 14 a week; so some table condemning the brutal dictatorships of Germany, should be worked out whereby a man earning a Italy, Russia and Japan. For the inclusion of certain amount should be dropped from the citiRussia in this list the real responsibility rests upon zenship rolls if he has more than a certain number the Stalinist bureaucracy in the Soviet Union. of dependents.
It is the Kremlin dictator and his fellow Of course, to be really logical, the judges bureaucrats both within and without the Soviet would have to turn into non citizens about 72 milUnion who have created a lion where the lion poor peo That would have its average worker not trained in Marxist thinking would make so plain the distinction between mastcan see no difference between Hitler Germany and ers and slaves!
the Soviet Union On second thought, therefore, we think the Naturally we do not in the least forget the judges will reconsider and let those aliens on reabominable role played by the leaders of the Con lief become citizens. What does it matter, after vention, who together with other democrats are quite willing to play around with the Stalinists so for a president of the United States? If it makes long as the democratic capitalists are on friendly them feel they really decicie who is president, it terms with Stalin, but turn against the Soviet very useful to the capitalists to let the masses vote.
Union when Stalin stops playing ball with the democracies. We can rest assured that these trade union leaders will always be in the camp of the ruling clique of democratic capitalism.
We heard no squawk coming from these leaders GPU Made News when Stalin was murdering all the old revolutionists. At that particular time Stalin was still in the El Popular, the Mexico City daily which the good graces of the ruling cliques in the democratic Stalinists control through Lombardo Toledano (so imperialist countries.
much so that he was compelled to delete from its Nevertheless, it must be recognized that to the masthead the statement it formerly carried that it average rank and file delegate it appears that the was the organ of the Mexican Confederation of LaSoviet Union and Germany and Italy are all in bor. prints in its July 27 issue an article entitled: the same class. The propaganda of the Stalinists Rapprochement Between the United States and can hardly fool them into believing that there is the USSR.
democracy in the Soviet Union. All the lies eman This is big news, indeed. Under a Washington ating from Stalinist sources cannot conceal the fact date line it reports: It is considered that the Amethat there is not the slightest democracy in the rican government is disposed to get together with Soviets, in the trade unions or in the ruling the USSR, for various reasons for counter acting party in the Soviet Union.
the Japanese policy in the Orient, for the decisive The trade union leader who wants the support influence that the USSR could have in the Euroof the Stalinists can conveniently forget the exist pean war, and for the commercial needs of the ence of huge concentration camps where tens of United States, now that European markets are thousands of the most militant workers in the closed to it.
Soviet Union are tortured by Stalin GPU, but he There is, of course, no sign of such a trend in can bring that to the attention of the rank and Washington. Is this story another Stalin feeler file whenever he thinks it will serve his purposes. toward the United States? Mexico is being used Can the Stalinist leaders with all their fantastic for a number of such moves. After joining the lying conceal from the workers the fact that there Stalinists last August in the hasty switch from is now a close tie up between Stalin and Hitler. collective security to pro Hitler neutrality Can they conceal from the workers the despicable Toledano has recently been permitted to make a role Stalin has played in permitting the most pro Ally speech, without one word of criticism Vicious enemy of the working masses to gain confrom his Stalinist allies. Is the stage being set for trol of all of Europe?
a new Stalin turn?
It would indeed be a miracle if the average worker would fall for the Stalinist propaganda That turn is not here by a long way; Molotov under such circumstances, where every worker can speech showed that, with its fawning toward Hitsee that Stalin has been of the greatest help to ler. In his statement on Molotov speech which Hitler.
we print in this issue. Trotsky suggests another Only the most advanced workers trained in function of these feelers toward the democraMarxist thinking can see that the Soviet Union cies: to soothe the Stalinist agents in the demois something different from the Stalinist regime, cracies who got along so well with the capitalists just as a trade union is something different from in the Peoples Front period and who are now its corrupt and bureaucratic leadership. It is not smarting under the blows they are receiving as easy for the advanced worker to convince the averallies of Hitler. By these feelers hope is held out age worker that there is a difference between the to them that they will shortly be able to live in political apparatus of the Soviet Union, which is peace again with their own capitalists.
identical with the political system of Hitler, and This function of the Stalinist feelers does the economic base which consists of nationalized not, of course, rule out the likelihood, indeed a economy gained by the victorious October Revo certainty, that Stalin will be desperately seeking lution rapprochement with the United States when Hitler Stalin despotism makes it difficult for us to settles with Britain and turns eastward again.
distinguish the Soviet Union from the fascist capi None of Stalin recent gains solve his problem, talist countries but the fundamental distinction For he is the problem, he and his bureaucracy: does exist and we shall do our utmost to educate they have so weakened the Soviet Union that the the workers so that they can see that distinction possibilty of any attack hangs like a nightmare How often have we proclaimed that the great over the Kremlin. Externally, the chief defense est enemy of the Soviet Union is the Stalinist of the Soviet Union, the support of the world bureaucracy, which by its acts destroys the confi working class, has been shattered by Stalin dence of the workers in the Soviet Union as a crimes: internally, the initiative of the Soviet workers state. When a powerful and progressive peoples has been destroyed by the totalitarian union like the United Automobile Workers can regime.
By SAM MARCY ils on the verge of starvation for Western states. He must do so Now that the Havana Conter lack of these products, illustrates since the finance capitalists are ence is over, all sections of the once again the law of the grow. also the real rulers of the United American bourgeoisie are busilying disproportion between the States.
engaged in drawing a balance main branches of capitalist eco sheet of its results and accom nomy, between industry and agri. FARMERS AND STRUGGLE BETWEEN plishments.
culture.
All sections of the bourgeoisie Latin America must be in a FINANCE PICTURED are in accord that the menace of position to export its agricultural The struggle between the fin Nazt. cconomic penetration, real as products to countries which need ance capitalists and the agrarian well as feigned, must be vigorously them (Europe. The United States interests of the middle West was combated by force if necessary. can only absorb them to a very graphically and dramatically illuAll are agreed that henceforth small extent, and what is more strated in the Senate Banking Com the Caribbean sea must become a It is afflicted with the same mal mittee during the consideration of strictly American take that the ady as is Latin America: it has the Warner Bill providing for an long string of islands stretching huge surpluses of agricultural increase in lending powers of anfrom the Bahamas off the coast products, which it can only disother 500, 000, 000 in order to of Florida, to Trinidad oft Vene pose of in Europe or Asla.
cover loans to Latin America.
zuela, must pass into the hands Federal Loan Administrator of Yankee imperialism, by pay. WHY THE FARMERS Jesse Jones, representing the ment if needs must in the form AREN PLEASED ance capitalists, was explaining of a mark off for French and Agricultural capitalists in the the purposes of the bill and came British defaulted war debts. United States, or to be more spe to the part wherein he stated that And if there is still any room cific, the Middle Western agrarian the United States would help La for further exploitation of Latin interests, are in sharp competitin America export more wool and American markets, the United tion with Latin America in the hides, even into the United States.
States should extend its beneficent sale of the same products. He was immediately cut short by hand. with money in the form of loans, supported by good and sul evelt What then, is this talk by Roos. Senator Fraizer, of North Dakota fictent collateral security!
empowering the United who said. We produce wool and And if Latin America can ab loan Latin America 500, 000, 000 we need.
States Import and Export Bank to hides here we could produce all sorb American manufactured pro to help them sell their agriculSenator Clark, from Idaho, im.
ducts, shut out from the European tural products? Isn it enough mediately joined, since Idaho is markets by the imperialist War, cry the Western farmers, that we also an agricultural state. So dia then by all means, the Roosevelt bave to meet such sharp compett other Senators from the middle government should help create the tion from Latin America without Western states join in the pro facilities necessary for the mar Washington helping them to un test, but of no avail, since it is keting of these finished products. dersell us, with a subsidy paid the bankers and industrialists And above all, the solid democ! by American taxpayers?
who run the country and not the ratle bonds, which are common to all Americans such But it is not in answer to your middle Western farmers.
Vargas, Senator Reynolds and Interests, that make this pro. Perhaps it might not be far posal. Roosevelt would answer afield to point out here that the Martin Dies, must be strength. he were truthful. It is in the sharp curtailment of the home ened.
interest of powerful industrialists market for agrarian products, and THEY RUN UP AGAINST and financiers who have invested the ever growing dependency of SOME HARD FACTS billions of dollars in Latin Amer the American agricultural states Upon all of these things, all ican railroads, telephone compa upon exports to Europe and Asia.
sections of the American bourgeosie are in perfect accord. But and merchant vessels, that Roos demands for isolation as Amer.
ica foreign policy meaning by all of this unanimity cannot hide eveit makes this proposal the most burning contradictions These billions of dollars will that term non involvement in war.
within world imperialist economy, bring no premiums to the coupon since war curtails export markets cannot hide the fact that Latin clippers in Wall Street, unless La and for the devolpment of peace America is primarily an agrarian tin America can export its proful trade policies with all coun and raw material supplement ducts. Thus if Brazil does not tries and against high tariffs.
to industrial Europe and partially export its cotton, it does not use that explains the strong. sola to the United States, that Europe the American owned railroads in thonist tendencies in the middle and Latin America are component Brazil, uses less electric power. West, and the use it is put to by elements of a blind anarchical sys less telephones, less merchant ves such demagogues Senator tem of economy each of which sels. As a matter of fact, and not Wheeler and others.
produces at its own risk the pro. merely as an illustration. Ameri Latin America and the Middle ducts needed by the other, but can investments in Latin Ameri West can only be liberated when never being in a position to adapt can industry have brought con the proletariat of the Western itselt to the demands of the stantly diminishing returns, as a Hemisphere takes the means of other.
result of the catastrophic drop production into its hands, ousts The fact that both Latin Amer. in Latin America export trade, the capitalists and establishes a ica and the United States both Thus the Roosevelt government socialist system of production, suffer from the same capitalist prefers to help the finance capi. based on use and not profit. That disease of overproduction, in the talists who have investments in is the only way to solve the im sphere of cotton, wheat, corn, cer Latin America rather than the perialist contradictions which are eals, oil and others, while Europe agrarian interests of the Middletorturing all of toiling humanity.
But we are for military training. We want workers to be trained in the use of arms. We have nothing in common with the pacifists. Our opposition to conscription is not based on the fantastic idea that somehow or other military training is bad for the character of an individual and bad for some kind of an abstract democracy.
We want to see every worker skilled in the use of weapons so that he can help defend the interests of If any pacifist speaks before a gathering of workers and tries to convince them that they should opposo military training, the revolutionary worker should ask him: What do you want us to do? Do you want us to be drafted during a war (as we shall inevitably De regardless of your pacifist mouthings) and be sent into the trenches without military training? Do you want us to stand up against the trained thugs of the capitalist class not knowing how to use modern weapons!
Anyone with half an eye can see that we are now living in a period of war and militarism and the intelligent worker realizes that the working class can meet its enemies only if it is prepared in a military sense, And it is because we understand the enormous necessity of military training for the workers that we stress that point.
Determined to make every worker see the neces sity of military training our emphasis will be on that aspect of the question. Every worker should know that our opposition to the conscription bill is not motivated by pacifist considerations. Every worker should know that we want the workers to be trained in military technique.
We Were Wrong On in my opinion we made a serious mistake in the past on the question of our opposition to the Reserve Officers Training Corps at the colleges. The student youth who then were the majority of the youth in our party had all the pacifist characteristics connected with the left wing of the social democrats. Our agitation against the was largely pacifist in character.
This section of the student youth did not see then, as they do not see even now, the necessity of emphasizing the need for military training for every worker and every student who wants to participate in the revolutionary movement.
But then the question arises as to how to get military training for the workers. As a revolutionary party opposed to military conscription by the capital ist state, but at the same time in favor of military training for the workers, we are obliged to propose a measure which would place the training of the workers under their own control.
Trade Unions Must Take Charge What better means than to have organized labor take charge of training the workers in military science? It would be an easy matter for the trado unions to organize camps of their own where the workers would be trained under officers over whom they had complete control.
And so long as there is capitalist state able to draft workers for war, why should not that state furnish the funds to defray the expenses of workers training camps. Will the capitalist government grant such a demand? That is immaterial and it depends upon how strong a movement is created around such a demand.
Will the workers rally around such a demand? We do not know definitely until we try. Certainly such a demand will appear reasonable and necessary to every advanced worker. And above all it is bound to instill into the minds of many workers the necessity, of military training for themselves and their class.
If Conscription is Adopted Assuming that Congress passes some kind of a conscription bill, should advanced workers refuse to be conscripted. Absolutely not. They should take their place amongst those conscripted just as they take their place among the workers who are exploited in the factories.
To be a conscientious objector is to read oneself out of the revolutionary movement. There is no place in that movement for people who cannot see the necessity of living with the masses whether in the factory or in the barracks.
No revolutionary worker should try to avoid conscription on the theory that he does not want to serve in a capitalist army.
And after having been drafted into the army the revolutionary worker is under an obligation to act in such a way as to gain the confidence of his fellow soldiers. It would be contrary to the interests of tho revolutionary movement if he were to be marked and constantly punished for individual insubordination.
We are not in the army to show off our independent spirit. We are there because unfortunately the masses have not yet been won over to our ideas and while we are there we must try our best to make them believe in our ideas.
To be a skilful soldier and to fight for the interests of his fellow soldiers is the best method to achieve the position of leadership which every revolutionary worker should have in order best to serve the interests of the working classes.
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