3 APRIL 1, 1921.
THE WORKERS COUNCIL The Workers Council Vol.
New York, April 1, 1921.
No. 4 6 us. 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 ing force functioning on the political as well as on the economic fields, reaching the working class TABLE OF CONTENTS in the shops and in meetings, in the labor organizaPage tions and through the press, in political campaigns The Workers Council and in political organizations. Place in the Sun The Workers Council, a bi weekly organ for Bitter Lesson education and propaganda which is about to make Russia Triumph its first appearance, intends to become the medium Gompers and Hillquit through which this force will find expression. In England and America in Struggle launching the new undertaking we are fully confor World Domination scious of the task we are facing. But it must be Home for the Politically Homeless.
undertaken and can be met successfully if every Accepting the Third (A Telegram)
one of us does his duty.
Press Review The Workers Council will stand uncomproCommunist Russia misingly and unreservedly for the Third (CommunThe Commune: Half a century of Struggle ist) International and its principles. It will attempt Unity.
to carry such agitation into working class circles Manager Column that have never been reached before.
It will endeavor to become the expression of revolutionary Socialism, as it was conceived by Karl Published by the International Educational Association.
Marx and Frederick Engels in the Communist ManBENJAMIN GLASSBERG, Sec y Editorial Board ifesto of 1847, and as it has been interpreted, in WALTER Cook, SEC INTERN. EDUC. Assn. the light of modern corditions, by the Russian Revolution, culminating in the dictatorship of the proletariat. The Workers Cicil will stand by these prinThe Workers Council ciples and endeavor to make them a conscious force in the American labor movement. It calls upon the AN ORGAN FOR THE THIRD INTERNATIONAL class conscious elements of the workers to rally to its support.
The working class of the United States, today, is as much exploiter eccnomically and as much suppressed politically as any other in the world, and Place in the Sun it has the weakest labor movement on the political as well as on the economic field. Still the American Whatever our opinion may be of the gentleman masses are by no means inherently reactionary or who now occupies the White House, it must be adconservative. They have shown a keen response to mitted that he, unlike his weakly vacillating prethe appeal of the Russian proletarian revolution, decessor, leaves no one in doubt as to his position.
and their attitude towards Soviet Russia ha been He is the servant of the imperialist interest of so unmistakably sympathetic that though unorgan America, and he does not care who knows it. He ized it has prevented the government from active is determined upon an aggressive foreign policy that military hostilities during the last two years.
will establish the American capitalist class firmly as a factor in the world market. He realizes that imMoreover there is a growing sentiment that perialism abroad can be achieved and maintained stands behind the third International and its prinonly at the expense of democratic institutions at ciples. All that is needed is a force that will cement home, that only a complete centralization of power this unorganized sympathy and understanding and in the hands of a small group of autocrats can loose allegiace into a compact body.
sure the success of his ambitious plan. And Mr.
The Socialist Party vacillating between the Sec Harding is willing to pay the price. He has no ond and the Third International, standing upon a patience with the weakly sentimentality that preplatform of ineffectual reforms and parliamentarism tends to preserve constitutional rights that are obviof the kind that have, since the war, been discarded ously not in accord wtih the new role that America by every European socialist party outside of the is to play. He makes no attempt to hide his real Second International, is not today the instrument purpose behind a smoke screen of beautiful phrases.
of revolutionary working class education and action. He does not propose to be handicapped in the seriThe American working class undobutedly of ous business of capturing the world for the money fers a field for fruitful action. But this action can powers of the United States by a too close considerabe undertaken only after all those who are today tion of the opinions and feelings of its people.
working as indiviiinals and in groups for its cul The first week of the new administration has mination, have been gathered behind a great driv. indicated beyond a doubt the policy that is tr be pursued. In the inaugural address, hidden in the ment is determined to play a more important part mass of florid verbiage that is used on such occasions in the Pacific and in the Orient than hitherto. No.
to conceal the speaker true opinions, we find a thing that transpires in there shall escape its notice, short paragraph, so short that it almost escaped nothing of international moment shall be done there public attention, that serves notice upon the Ameri without its consent. According to these statements, can people, that the era of international warfare has Amreica has had to submit to indignity after inonly just begun.
dignity in the past in its foreign relations. Recent Our supreme task, says Mr. Harding, is the re years have changed this. The war has made the sumption of our onward normal way. Reconstruc United States a military as well as an economic tion, readjustment, restoration all these must fol factor, and the new administration is not prepared low. would like to have them. If it will lighten to relinquish the position it has already gainel. In the spirit and add to the resolution with which we line with this change of foreign policy, it has been take up the task let me reptat, for our nation, we intimated that the new administration will disshall give no people just cause to make war upon regard the Lansing Ishi treaty, since it practically We hold no national prejudices, we entertain recognizes and establishes the dominance of Japan no spirit of revenge, we do not hate, we do not in the Orient. In other words, our neighbors on the covet, we dream of no conquest nor boast of armed other side of the Pacific have been thus unofficially prowess.
notified that the present administration does not If, despite this attitude, war is again forced propose to stand by the foreign policies of the Wilupon us earnestly hope a way may be found which son Administration.
will unify our individual and collective strength American capital is emerging from a long period and consecrate all America, materially and spirit of extremely profitable exploitation at home. But ually, body and soul, to national defense. can the industrial development of the nation has been vision the ideal republic, where every man and carried to the point of satisfaction. Investment woman is called under the flag for assignment to within the borders of the United States no longer duty for whatever service, military or civic the promise anything more than moderate return. Large individual is best fitted, where we may call to uni investors, their lust for enormous profits inflamed versal service every plant, agency or facility, all in by the extraordinary inflation that accompanied the the sublime sacrifice for country, and not one penny war, are reaching out to Asia for more profitable or war profit shall inure to the benefit of private fields. China, hitherto regarded by Japanese capital individual, corporation or combination, but all above as its own private field of exploitation, must be made the normal shall flow into the defense chest of the immediately accepssible to American capital. Mexico nation.
South and Central America must come so com Out of such universal service will come a new pletely under the domination of their great neighunity of spirit and purpose, a new confidence and bor on the North as to practically nullify the posconsecration, which would make our defense im sibility of Japanese influence there. They must, pregnable, our triumph assured. Then we should moreover, be made more tractable to the will and have little or no disorganization of our economic, dictatorship of American investors, must be forced industrial and commercial systems at home, no stag to lend them the same sympathetic support and ingering war debts, no swollen fortunes to flout the terest that they have been accustomed to receive at sacrifices of cur soldiers, no excuse for sedition, no the hands of their public servants at home.
pitiable slackerism, no outrages of treason.
Meanwhile England is ill at ease over this metaTo make certainly doubtly sure, the Secretary of morphosis that is turning a friendly and more or the Navy, a few days later, announced the program less desultory competitor into an active menace. Engof the new administration, and demanded that the lish capital has already found a firm foothold in United States must have a navy, as large or larger China. London reports the organization of a huge than that of any other nation in the world. business enterprize that will undertake to unlock Nor is all this to be accepted simply as idle big China industrial resources. This concern has altalk, or as a warning issued to the world in veneral ready secured important concessions from Pekin. Up that the United States intends to protect itself to to this time it has been impossible for foreign capital the utmost from foreign attack. On the contrary to own real property outside the open ports. These the administration has already launched upon a limitations have been removed in the interests of very positive program of imperialist aggression, a the new undertaking. Thus the United States, by program so palpably unfriendly to both Japan and reaching out into territory now under the dominaEngland, the two chief competitors irainst Ameri tion of either Japanese or English capital, is storing can capital in the world market, that sitficulties are up trouble for the future, a fart that our administrabound to ensue. The sending of General Wood to tion recognized, and for which it intends to be prethe Philipines will certainly be regarded in Japan pared.
as a threat. The proposed concentration of tiie entire In short, the United States, in a single week, has fleet in the Pacific can serve only to deepen this openly broken with its traditional position of aloofimpression. In fact Washington, crording to the ness in international affairs. The aiministration has statements given out to the corresponents of the steereil tlie ship of state into a course that can have press, makes no secret of its intentions. The fleet will but one ultimate outcome, new international difficulgo to the Pacific, not because the country is in dan ties and new wars, without preteniling to consult ger of invasion, but for the purpose of emphasizing Congress, the recogniz:d expression of the will of the the new foreign policy upon which the United people. Its trans:uctions are clothed in a deep shroud States is about to embark. The American govern of mystery becoming public only when all possibil.