The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1932-12-19

Slldtl lldNC EANAelA OPRCANeaAAAN Q
his proper share OF all the gooo
things of life, and a chance to enjoy
leisure.
Task of PrOIetariat
THE ruling class won't establish
such a society, the middle class can't,
and the proletariat not only can but
carries the chief burden OF respon-
sibility for doing So"
"What the workers of the Soviet
Union have done, you can do"
Fish began, oratorical style, mod
ulated voice, dramatic gestures, and
introduced himself all over again by
reading "boners" about Hamilton
Fish, Jr., in college examination
papers.
Knows His Socialists
Then he said he knew he couldn't
Z convert the Communists present, but
addressed himself to the Is per cent
s of Socialists and Liberals present.
Repeatedly throughout the debate he
proved to them that he and they
were united against the dictatorship
of the proletariat, and urged them
10 abandon their pretense of OPP
position to capitalism and come out
openly for the Republican Party.
This at least was realistic, and the
crowds opinion of Fish obviously
went up. But from that point on,
the debate degenerated.
Fish Uses Dmanty
Fish in this and succeeding turns
at the debate, made but two points
against Communism, such as could
require answer. He declared that
after Is years of Communist rule,
Soviet Russia should not have food
crisis if Communist rule was any
good. He quoted DlTanty's eXag-
gerated account of the food crisis.
Nearing in rebuttal made no ade-
ouate answer did not challenge Du-
ranty's figures or give any Of the real
figures, did not show that what tenn
porary difficulties Of growth exist,
f and compare them to the awful mis-
cry, poverty and starvation in the
world of decaying capitalism, did not
: turn back Fish's argument on cap
italism by asking what good capital
ism is if it has starvation after $50
years of rule Nearing confined him
self to pointing out that the trend
in capitalist production is downward,
from high points reached in Eng
land in 1896, in Germany in 1910,
and in United States in 1920. Even
tually. probably soon, these trends
will cross. Neither side considered the
possibility of imperialist war, or its
effects.
The Red Vote
Fishs other main point was the
smallness of the radical vote in AM
erica, which, he said, showed the
surprising loyalty to American tradi-
tons of the American workers.
Nearing did not answer this by an
description of the skulduggery of the
capitalist press, of the repression of
free speech, Of the arrests of leaders,
of the denial of franchise to unem-
ployed, of the control of sources of
! information by capitalist agencies,
n nor even mention that though still
small, the Communist movement adj
= vances year by year. Nearing only
said that where Fish says loyalty
ne would say Ignorance and back
wardness."
He ignored the big increase in the
Communist vote this year and the
significance election of the first Com
munist mayor in the U. S. in Crosby,
MINI.
Right To March on Congress
Fish was allowed to repeatedly as
sert that Communists had the right
TO petition Congress, and that work
ers could strike in America, without
any presentation of the evidence to
the contrary by Nearing.
Fish, with the jail and deportation
machinery of the government grind
ing back of his words, challenged
Nearing to say whether Communists
believe in overthrowing the govern
ment by force, and whether they fol
lowed the American flag or the red
flag.
The Violence Question
Nearing stated that the industries
belong to the workers, and they will
1 take them; that history shows that
mo ruling class permits such a change
without resort to force, and that the
red flag represents all that is good
and hopeful in human relations, and
he is for the Red Flag.
A Distortion of Marx
Nearing produced quaint dis
tortion of Marxism, like this The
l introduction of machinery laid the
J basis for the change from feudalism
to capitalism; the introduction Of
automatic machinery lays the basis
for the change from capitalism TO
Communism.
He overlooked the whole question
Of The revolution needed TO overthrow
the old system of society. Nor did he
enter into the question of the con-
tradiction between social production
and private ownership, as the reason
for the modern class struggle. He
laid himself wide open for Fish to
ask, Where was the automatic ma
chinery that brought on the Boil
shevik revolution?' but Fish was too
immersed in his native depths to
think of that question.
For is or 20 minutes Fish forgot
apparently that he was debating on
Communism, and while the crowd
listened Supplied, he launched into a
TRADE against France for not paying
the debts!
Finally he hooked this up by de-
claring that he couldn't remember
ever attacking the Soviet Union for
not paying the debt.