The producers news., 1936-02-28
VAR AND The WORKERS

and controlled development IF 'Trr n-o y
duction Thus, under socialism. war
will disappear because the causes
OF war will be done away with.
Since the victory of socialism.
and this alone, will defeat war
every step on the path to social.
Ism Is a blow at war. In the strup-
gle against war, properly under
stood, every militant workers
demonstration, every broad mass
labor defense fight, everv welI-led
strike, and in general every AL
vance of the workers toward pow
er, is worth a thousand "Peace
Leagues"
Meanwhile, in carving on the
daily struggle, it is the dutv of
the Mardsts to prepare for the
war crisis. To this end, thev must
constantly expose the war plans
of the imperialist powers; thev
must resist the militarization Of
the masses; they must make clear
to the working class each step in
the progress toward war; they
must combat the patriotic war
propaganda; they must help
strengthen, ideologically and mat
erially, the organizations of the
workers, so that these will not be
crushed at the outbreak of the
war. And they must everywhere
and at all times expose the mis-
leaders and the betrayers in the
fight against war, from whatever
camp-those who make ready, bt
a thousand and one devices, to
turn over the workers to the war
makers.
But in the war crisis itself, the
Marxists do not suspend their
struggle. On the contrary, the
struggle becomes i'm m e n S e y
sharper, the duties infinitely heav-
ier. On the war question Marxists
are not neutral: they do not
withdraw into a shell until the
war disappears into the past.
One Of the great aims of the
revolutionary movement is the ell
limitation of war forever from the
world. But, as we have seen, this
can be accomplished only by the
revolutionary overthrow Of capi-
talism-that is, by the victory OF
the working class in the class war
This requirement is due not to the
wishes of Marxists, but to the &C.
tual realities of history. Thus, in
struggling against every war un-
dretaken by any capitalist power
Marxists cannot take a merely
negative pacifist position Of being
against "war in general. They
are actively for the victory Of the
working class in the class war
since only through such victory
can war in general be done away
with.
Therefore it is the business Of
Marxists not to stand aside, but
to support actively, in every pos
sible manner, any armed struggle
that is aimed against, and capable
of weakening capitalism; for ex'
ample, the revolts of colonies
against their imperialistic oppres-
ors, and the uprisings of all op'
pressed and exploited races anC
nations-just as Marxists support
strikes or any other mantle sta
tions directed against the capital
ist class or it's governments.
And, similarly, Marxists, are not
neutral" in an imperialist war
Their duty is to lead the work
ing class in delaying the outbreaks
of the imperialist war as long as
this is historically possible, since
imperialist war, besides numbering
millions of the finest of the work
ers and the youth generally, max
es incomparablv more difficult the
organization of revo lu t / n AIRY
struggle. But when the imperialist
war nevertheless, in the end Gas
it must), breaks out, the task Of
the Marxists is to turn the I'M
perialist war, which ranges the
peoples of one group Of nations
on the battlefields against the
peoples Of another group OF ma
tions. into a class war, a wa
of the masses under the Leadership
} of the working class and its par
tv for the overthrow of the cap1
talist state and the establishment
} of the rule of the working class
The Marxists fight, but within
each country thev fight not for tn
| victory but for the defeat OF thel
own government-not for its de
: feat bv the opposing capltalis