The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-07-11

revolutionary resistance to the fun
damental program Of the bankers
and industrialistS, TO whom the mu-
nitions makers are but minor SER
vice subdivision.
Liberalism, the pre- war crisis
handmaiden Of a desperate capital
ism, tries to dope workers by trying
to get them to believe that they
can defeat the armament lobby
Without the revolutionary overthrow
e capitalism and that guns and
-ot capitalism are the primary
causes Of imperialist war. Jonathan
Mitchell advanced this anti-working
class view in an article entitled
The Armsments Scandal" printed
in the May 9, 1884, New Republic.
He wrote:
A few days ago. an investigation
Of American munitions makers was
voted by the Senate. The sponsors
Of the investigation, Senator's
Gerald P. Nye and Arthur H. Van
denberg, are very much in earnest.
1t is to be hoped that their invests
cation will end with the decis-
i've overthrow OF the armament
lobby's power at Washington.
Evidence Of its work is not hard
to find. The thumbprints Of our
munitions makers are smudged all
over the budgets Of the United
States army and navy. The evidence
is plain, at least to this corresponds
ent. that they are the principal
cause Of our steadily mounting ar
maments. :"
1t makes little difference how
plain" the evidence" is to INTEL
lectuals like Mitchell. The impor-
tant thing is that this pacifist posi-
ton must be exposed, whenever it Is
advanced as weapon for keeping
workers from joining the revoln-
tionary struggle against war, the
only kind OF workers opposition
which will help to eliminate CAPT
talism, "the principal cause Of our
steadily mounting ornaments"
The seven Senators who are to
conduct the Nye-Vsndenberg in
quiry are instructed to examine
existing legislation and treaties per-
tanning to the manufacture Of
arms, munitions or other inple-
ments Of war" and to review the
findings Of the War Policies Com
mission (of which Vandenberg was
a member with a view to crystal
lizing them into legislative form.
Though the preamble of the reso-
luton refers to the influence Of
the commercial motive" as an Sin
evitable factor in considerations in
volving the maintenance of the
national defense" this same "influ-
ence," in the second sentence of the
preamble, becomes lone of the in
evitable factors often believed to
stimulate and sustain wars" [Em-
phasis Mines. WI
Such wriggling to camouhage the
war danger inherent in capitalist
society, however, is not so dangerous
as the resolutions Misrepresentation
Of the origin and recommendation
of the War Policies Commission.
Furthermore, said the Senate:
Whereas the Seventy First Con-
gress, by Public Resolution No. 90,
approved June 81, 1880, responding
to the long-standing demands Of
American war veterans, speaking
through the American Legion, for
legislation to take the profit out
of war created War Policies Com
mission, which reported recommen-
dations on December 7, 1881, and
on March 7, 1882, to decommercial-
ize war and to equalize the bur-
dens thereof; and
Whereas these recommendation
never have been translated into the
statutes: Therefore, be it
Resolved, =" and so forth and
so on, that special committee OF
the Senate be appointed for the
purposes already named.
Now the war veterans did de-
mand that the government take
the profit out of war" but under
universal mobilization" slogans,
popularized for ten years by the
very leadership that betrayed the
rank and file on the witness stand,
which called for drafting capital
"as man is drafted" 1t is well
known in Washington how the then
American Legion Commander Ralph
ONeil Ca railroad lawyer went
even one per cent further than the
War Department. O'Neil recon-
mended guaranteed wartime re-
turn to industry up to per cent.
This Z per cent, he declared, would
be "a fair return"
Ito Be Continued)