The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-12-03
Reviewed by
DAVID RAMSEY

DAVID RAMSEY
THROUGHOUT the history of the
/ revolutionary movement, there
have been renegades who because
Of one pretense or another have
sold out to the enemies Of the work
subsequent actions. They degenerate
subsequent actions. The degenerate
in every possible way, both as men
and as thinkers. Examples can be
cited from every period and from
every country Of these deserters
from the camp of the revolution,
who began with false criticism and
then progressively deteriorated to
the most vicious maligning and cor
rupt maneuVers against the prin-
ciples and the movement which for
merly they had upheld and fought
for.
None Of the renegades can escape
the consequences of this iron law.
The logic Of events drives them into
the arms of the enemies Of the
workers, and they spend their lives
attempting to block the growth of
revolutionary struggles. Since these
traitors know the literature and the
tactics of the working class move
ment, they are far more dangerous
alistakable hatred and mailed fist
mistakeable hatred and mailed fist
are out in the open.
That is why it is so important to
lip of their hypocritical masks and
reveal the menace to genuine revo-
lutionary action that they conceal
behind their false rhetoric and
pseudo-radicalism. All of them pro-
claim their undying love for the
working class. Their common point
of departure is the premise that it
is necessary and principled" to at
tack those nasty Communists. But
their ultimate function is to serve
as the storm troopers of the
counter revolution.
MIR Raymond Postgate is an inter
N1 esting specimen who illustrates
the law of degeneracy. He was once
a serious student, and in his early
books like The BoIshevik Theory
and Out OF The Past, he performed
the useful task of conveying some
conception to English and American
audiences, of the forces that oper-
ate in revolution. Now as
deserter from Communism, he
grinds out books that tell you what
Marx really meant, and in this par
ticular volume he demonstrates in
fifteen pages just how to make
revolution. Where once he dealt
with facts and their elucidation, he
now specializes in what Lenin called
renegade sophisms."
Like all renegades, he accepts
everything that is valid" about
Marxism except its revolutionary
content, its methods Of struggle, and
its way of training and preparing
the masses to overthrow capitalism
His book fulflls one useful purpose.
In the space of short volume, he
has managed to squeeze in nearly
all of the nonsensical misinterpre-
tation, malicious innuendo and
falsehoods that has been directed
against the teachings Of Marx and
Lenin and the world tactics of the
Comitern. Unfortunately, while
the book is thus mastery collation.
of the crude distortions that he has
gathered from the rubbish heap of
history, this one positive feature
makes it necessary to have pretty
strong stomach to finish the book
Postgate bases his suggested
revolutionary action on the false
premise that it is Communist ac-
tivity that brings on fascism. 1t is
not the policy of "gradualness in
reverse" of the labor bureaucracy
that helps pave the way to the
terroristic dictatorship of fascism,
but it is Communist agitation that
disillusions the workers and imbues
them with the belief that fascism is
inevitable.
This is the old canard that the
efforts Of the Communists to
achieve the united front of all work
ers against the menace of war and
fascism cannot do anything but
hasten the development of reaction.
But Postgate contradicts his own
argument. For on the one hand,
he claims that Communists believe
that fascist dictatorship is an in
evitable stage. On the other hand,
he insists that their militant ac-
tivity against fascist developments
hastens and brings on the open die
tatorship of capital.