The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-08-21

Inc workers fdrly is BOlnB JHTu
an extraordinarily interesting and sig
nifcant and important period of its
existence.
The old fractional crisis is clearly
nearing its end. The remains Of fac
tionalism are still very strong. In
connection with the convention we
have seen sharpening of the faction
al fight, but there is no doubt but that
this is the last flare-up of the dying
fire. The fact that all the political
resolutions were unanimously adopt
ed by the Parity Commission, that
there is an agreement in many organ
national matters that had divided the
! factions, proves that in general the
old fractional crisis is approaching
complete liquidation.
But the old crisis has not yet fully
disappeared when we see new and
more serious crisis ripening. This
time it is a question of struggle of
the Bolshevik wing of the party Tor
more properly speaking, the wing
which is sincerely and earnestly NOV
ing toward Bolshevization) and the
opportunistic wing which is going to
make very bitter resistance against
the reorganization of the party. The
! old fractional walls are broken down,
! but there are new factional walls be.
ing built up between the Bolshevist
and the n-Bolshevist or anti-Bolshe-
visit sections of the party.
Nevertheless we hear some com
rades say, There is no opportunism
in our party" Comrade Lore him
self has declared that he does not
know what Loreism is. Comrade
Poyntz, (see her resolution intrOduc
ed in the recent New York member
ship meeting of our party) is decided
ly against Loreism. Comrade Jam
polsky and others (see their resolu-
tions introduced at the same meet
ing) are also against Loreism. The
Finnish branch in Superior has pro-
claimed a crusade against Loreism
Comrade Askeli is going side by side
with the Finnish branch in Superior
If all these comrades are opposed to
Loreism, the question arises: Where
are the Loreites against whom they
are going to fight? If we are to be-
lieve all these comrades the result is
that there is no Loreism in the party
But we have good grounds for not
believing them. More than that we
are completely able to prove that pre-
cisely they are Loreites.
No Loreite has ever declared that
he is an opportunist. The usual trick
of all. opportunists is to deny the exist
ance of opportunism. Opportunism is
but a malignant invention of SANDER
ers, fabricated only to silence free
criticism. Thus speak the opportun-
lists of all countries Examine the
history of the French, German and
, Russian parties and you will find
there hundreds of examples of this
tactic on the part of opportunists.
~ Clumsy opportunism.
But the opportunists are not con-
tent with this trick--they are going
much further. They declare that pre-
cisely they are the most genuine rep
resentatives of Marxism and Lenin-
ism, that they are in full agreement
with the C. l., that they are merely in
disagreement with their own party
In some parties such a substitution
of opportunism for Leninism is made
very skillfully (Trotsky in the Rus
sian Communist Party; in other par
ties not so skillfully (Brandler and
Radek in the German Party; Smeral
and Neurath in the Czecho-Slovakian
Party; Simon Markovich in the
South Slavic Party and in the Work
ers Party this substitution is made
in ridiculously clumsy fashion.
In any event, it marks a great step
forward for the Workers Party that
the opportunists find it necessary to
assume a feminist disguise to keep
their place within the party.
But before entering into an ana
lysis of the substitution of opportun-
ism for Leninism in the Workers
Party, it is necessary to formulate an
answer to the question: What is OPP
portunism? Such a question has been
asked and answered by the Finnish
branch in Superior. This is what they
write:
THE essential distinctive feature of
lopportunism is blind patriotism to-
ward an organization, the setting of
the organization even above the lead
ing principles, currying favor with he
terogeneously colored elements and
the avoidance of self-criticism."
This definition is incorrect. More
than that, it is dragged in by the
hair for polemic purposes. This is
not a definition of opportunism but a
collection of illusions and hints,
concealed polemic (which is the worst
and most cowardly kind of a polemic)
a polemic against whom directed we
do not know-against the majority or
against the minority or against both
together.
Blind patriotism toward an organ
ization." The whole question is only:
With respect to which organization?
Blind patriotism toward good Com