The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-07-21
Where Is Russia Going? BY 4A ARTSzT GEORGE


pEVOLUTIONARY workers will
" give full credit to the Industrial
Workers of the World for the past
struggles it led against the bosses,
and will regret that, aside from minor
and desultory conflicts, it is not living
up to it's old tradition and at present
leads no great numbers in wage bat
ties against capitalism.
This cessation of active struggle
against capitalism, together with the
fact that the l. w. w. has allowed an
anarchist element within it to push it
into a position of hostility to the So
Wet government and all it means to
labor, has repealed the workers even
in those industries where it has little
or no rivalry and where it could, if it
wished, build up powerful unions of
real value to the working class.
We do not think all members of the
/. w. w. share the ideas of their an
archist fellow-workers against Soviet
Russia. The majority are industrial
unionists and not anarchists Neither
do all anarchists belong to the l. W.
w. A large section Of this element,
which, being anarchists, care more for
sectarianism than for the masses they
chatter about, who care nothing for in
dustrial unionism and its necessary
corollary of Capitalization, who wor-
ship their own ego as % political prin-
ciple and who advocate the dispersion
Of class power decentralization as
an organizational practice, split away
in 1924 and frankly proclaimed them
selves anarchists by applying to the
Berlin (anarchist) International for
afFiliation.
DUT a considerable number of an
- archists, and unconsciously an
archist ideas, remained in the organi-
cation, and while other elements who,
tho somewhat confused and without
courageous leadership, really desire to
organize and unity the workers for
battle against capitalism, have simply
drifted along-unable or unwilling to
assert themselves positively for or
against the Soviet power or any other
large issue agitating the masses-un-
able also to formulate and enforce
concrete programs for building the
industrial unions they visualize, the
remaining anarchists, with an organi-
rational base in the committee con-
trolling the marine transport workers
and in the general executive board,
have sought to turn the organization
more decidedly away from struggle
with the bosses to renewed cam
paign against the Soviet government.
1t is worthy of note that while in
the cases of subordinate sections, such
as the M. T. W., the anarchists are
fercely opposed to Capitalization
within the organization, when they at
tain central posts themselves, as in
the present G. z. B., they become cen
tralizers even to the point of open
dictatorship within the organization,
their decentralization policy being di-
rected externally to decentralization
within the working class, to placing
the organization in a position hostile
to all other labor groupings. Queer
manifestations ensue, such as the
present chairman Of the G. Il. B.
after an utter surrender to the an
archistic autonomists of the M. T. w.
writes a page and a half article in
favor of Capitalization, meanwhile
authorizing as an Official statement,
an anarchistic attack ON Soviet Russia
published in the industrial Solidar.
ity" of June 8, entitled after Eight
Years"
WHILE technically that article ac-
w CURED by this means the impor-
lance OF an official document and we
can ignore the name OF its nondescript
writer, II Is actually the work OF only
one element in the l. w. W.. the an.
archists. But since the other ele-
ments, tho they object to such things,
make no effective objection, the neces.
sity arises to take up the issues raised
by the article and show it's anti-labor
character.
The article Is far too long 10 reprint
here, but the writer aims to give it's
essential points and show how con-
trary they are TO any,interest OF the
working class. how they aid capital
ism by imposing capitalist ideas upon
the minds of workers. and really are
contrary to the purposes Of the I. w.
w. What are the essential assertions
iof the article "Aftere Eight Years.
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