The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-10-29
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Too Easily Stumped
By JORGE

| A sympathizer writes in saying he's been
stumped by being asked the following questions;
Il. Karl Marx in the Communist Manifesto
opposed immediate demands, saying they are
only patches on the coat of capitalism. Why do
the Communist have reform measures and i'm.
mediate demands!"
That's No. l. And we'll say that Karl Marx
does NOT oppose" immediate demands, neither
IN the Communist Manifesto nor anywhere else
He mentions neither patches" nor coat" He
does and correctly, state that the class struggle
Is not settled by the winning of immediate de-
mandS, by remarking that: Nov and then the
workers are victorious, but only for time The
real fruit OF their battle lies not In the in,yed-
ate result but in the ever-expanding union of
workers"
Does Marx here oppose" immediate den1audsp
OF course not. Why don't you tell your oues-
Coners to read the Communist Manifesto? They
might find there, also, repeated references to the
fact that-"The proletariat goes through ysr1-
Gus stages of development" Which seem to be
overlooked" by your super-revolutionary cues
TONERS
"2 Ii the capitalist parliament Is an instru-
ment OF the capitalist class, why do the Come
munists participate in election campaigns?"
Because they want to spoil that instrument ss
to expose the secret moves of the enemy to the
widest possible masses from the rostrm OF par
lament itself, to prove to those workers who yet
do not know it, that parliament is an instrument
OF capitalism, that it should be abolished and
Soviet OF workers and sfarmers delegates e.
tablished In its place.
Also, in unity with the fight OF the masses ort
side parliament, to fight for and win If possible
all the immediate benefits that are possible to
force out of the reluctant capitalists Such as
Tor example, MORE UNEMPLOYMENT RE-
LIEF, social insurance, prohibition OF evictions-
all kinds of things that CAN be won.
Although these do not In themselves consti-
tute revolution they DO HELP THE WORK
ERS, both in immediate material results, and
also, the struggle develops the real fruit Of their
battle" as Marx says namely, 1t Inites and trains
the workers for struggle in e.
"The more less yelled civil war raging
within existing society, UP to the point where
that war breaks out into open revolution, and
where the violent overthrow of the bourgeoisie
lays the foundation for the sway of the prole-
tariat.'
%. II the Communist legislator can do NO
thing for the workers In capitalist parliament.
why elect him."
We have already answered that 'if" above He
CAN do something. He cannot make revolu-
ton all by himself, of course and no Cornrnu-
mist pretends So The masses must THEM
SELVES act. Unless, for example there ars
mass demonstrations OUTSIDE parliament de-
nlanding unemployment relief the Communist
minority INSIDE may expose the many thieves
and grafters and the starvation policy Of the
capitalist politicians, and fight herocally for re-
lief, insurance, no evictions and so on, the capi-
talst politicians in such case would merely sit
tight and nothing would happen
We now HAVE mass movement outside, 50
HELP the fight by electing Communists to carry
the fight INSIDE the city government! N needs
BOTH. And tell your questioners to read Lenin's
Left Wing Communsn-An Infantile Dis
order"