The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-09-12
Speech of ROBT. MINOR
At Workers Party Convention.
Continuation

ana SSCOluly tlt EMU liASASet'NS
in military preparation Of the CAPT
talist nations for war; and thirdly the
theological preparation" of h e
masses for support of the imperialist
governments in the coming war, which
theological preparation" of the
workers is being carried on system
atically by the Socialist" parties and
trade union bureaucracies.
I pointed out that the coming war
will come under conditions very diff
ferent from the last world war, both
technically and politically.
Now, comrades, it is necessary, as
the Communist International pointed
out in its plenum, that these new con-
ditions be met with a new adjustment
of the revolutionary practice. Let us
90 into a few of the most important.
1t is understood that our press has
given YOU and viii give you the
greater part of the information neces-
sary for an understanding of this
adjustment. However, to emphasis
a few of the more important. You
know, of course, the slogans of the
Bolshevik Parties of Lenin in the
war of 1914, where Lenin pointed out
that it was necessary for every revo-
lutionary workers party in every
country to seek the overthrow Of its
own imperialism. That there was no
nation engaged in the war in which
the working class had not the duty
of the revolutionary opposition to the
war and to its own government. The
situation of today, however, you see
already is a changed situation. And
an illustration of that, during the
subcommittee meeting in Moscow,
where 3we were considering the tao
tics to be employed, the question Of
determination was brought up. The
question was raised, whether we
should use, unchanged, the slogan,
Soldiers fraternize in the trenches"
This was a feminist slogan used in
the World War Of 1914. For while
there were comrades who took that
slogan automatically as one which
was to be continued in the present
time unchanged. But further con-
sideration and consultation with our
Russian Bolshevik comrades, who
am thankful to say are still in the
lead of our Communist international,
it became quite evident that no such
automatic application could be made
in the present situation. What is the
difference? The slogan of fraterniza-
ton as employed in the last war, was
a slogan intended to break the morale
of two opposing armies. To break
the morale of this inperialist side and
also to break the morale of that i'm
perialist side. That is, to cause a dis
ruption of the military discipline OF
the two opposing imperialist armies
mutually. Is that the same problem
we face in the coming war No. lr
the coming war, not all sides will be
imperialist. There will also be reyo.
lutiOnary and anti-imperiahst par
Elephants. In the coming war it is
necessary to make an adaptation BY
which our tactics will be aimed
against the morale of the imperialist
armies but in favor. or the morale anc
the discipline of the revolutionary
armies. This idea was worked out
partly in the May Day proclamation
which was issued even before the ex-
traordinary plenqpd of the Executive
Committee. That May Day procla.
nation of 1927, as you will see, makes
it clear that the application of tht
determination slogan no longer ap.
pears in the simple form but in the
form of calling for the soldiers OF the
armies of the imperialists to go ovel
to the side of the revolutionary army
Other questions arose over tht
question of slogans of peace. Thu
Russian revolution we remembei
raised the slogan Of bread, land, anC
peace. Some comrades have the ide;
to raise this slogan "The struggle fo.
peace" and, comrades, when tina
question was raised we had to searcl
very carefully to find out whethe
there remained a little touch O
pacifist theology among the comrade
who come. The slogan of "struggl
for peace" is too dangerously nea
and too essentially akin to the slogan
which Comrade Trotsky mistaken,
raised during the war of 1914 w
can raise such a slogan as EVA
against war" We find that the slo
gans which Lenin raised, the slogar
of converting the imperialist war in
to a civil war, the slogan of defea
your owns government with tn
modification which am going t
make) still apply. When it comes t
the slogan of defeat your own gov
eminent, there comes modification
When it comes to the Soviet Union, 0
course there can be no attempt o
the part of revolutionists to defea
our own Soviet Union, or its govern
ment. When it comes to a certai
non-imperialist nations which ma
find themselves in such a position
for example, we may say, Persia, Q
we might suppose state of the CHI
nese revolution, such nations, not pre-
letarian relationships, not imperialis
powers, can find themselves actual
/ ,I1;o.oo Nth t,o Cnr,.,