Voice of action. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1933-1936, 1934-07-27
nIheFRONT'
LINE ?. y y. $.
THE STRIKE
AND THE NEXT WAR
THE STRIKE

##
In the strike of the long.
shoremen and all marine
crafts American capitalism sees
a threat to its war prepare
tiOns. The arena of the next
imperialist war is on the Pa
cific. Here the differences be-
tween the imperialiSt powers
have reached the breaking
point, making an armed clash
inevitable.
For this war, American I'M
perialism is building bigger
navy, re-equipping and mech
AIMING it's army, increasing its
air fleet, strengthening its nav
al bases on the Pacific.
But in modern war such pre-
paratiOns in themselves are not
sufficient. AMERICAN I'M
PERIALISM WANTS TO BE
SURE THAT IT'S REAR is
ABSOLUTELY SECURED.
1t wants to be absolutely
certain of the smooth running
of its industries producing war
materials and, above every
thing else, it wants to be guar
anteed of the uninterrupted
shipping and transportation of
war materials and man power.
American capitalism is there
fore determined not to tolerate
any possible interference from
labor organizations in such a
vital and strategic war industry
as marine transport on the Pa
cific coasC. The bosses are de-
termined to prevent union con-
troll of the hiring halls, that is,
for union men to deride who
should load, unload and man
ships at q time when war is
being prepared for, and especi.
ally during the war itself.
\ \
The bosses do not feel so
sure with union men, even if
their organization is officially
controlled by the trusted, con-
sentative leaders of the Amer
lean Federation of Labor. No
matter how willing strike
breakers the AT of l. leaders
proved to be, yet the bosses
are not certain that these lead
ers will be able to control their
men and prevent the anti-war
strike actions of the marine
workers. The marine workers
in the AT of l. may strike, us
they have during the past ten
weeks, in spite of their leaders.
American capitalism knows
that the situation preceding
the next war is entirely differ
ent from that of the last war.
They know while during the
last war they had the uncOndi-
tiOnal support of the whole
AT of L, without any organized
and effective rank and file chal-
lenge of this betrayal, in the
next war this situation will be
different.
During the last war the So
cialist Party was the major pO-
litical organization of the Am
erican workers, whose leaders
supported the war or took all
attitude of benevolent neut-
railty and pacifism. But the
ruling class knows very well
that since the last war there
has grown up Communist
Party in America, which is al.
ready leading and organizing
the American working class to
fight the war preparations, and
which, when the next war does
take place, will know how to
organize the workers to fight
for their class interests against
their on exploiters.
y
That is why the shipowners
and the whole American CAPT
talist class have concentrated
their strength in an effort to
break the marine strike. That
Is why the war department and
the U. s.: government as a
whole have been doing the
strikebreaking and numbering.
And that is why the authori-
ties are gathering their forces
in what will be a completely
unsuccessful attempt to drive
the Communist Party off the
coast unsuccessful because
the Communist Party, as the
vanguard of the working class,
will grow and become strong
- r.