Communism; Industrial Workers of the World; Socialism
Having waded through blood and violence to exterminate "capitalism" and
cancel all "concessions" and "guarantees" in Russia, has "the
dictatorship of the proletariat" emerged out of its nightmare of
destruction simply to coax "foreign capital" back into Socialistic
Russia by bribing offers of "the most generous concessions and
guarantees?" After two years of a reign of terror to make an earthly
paradise by destroying "capitalism" and the whole machinery of
"capitalistic countries," this hungry reaching out by Lenine after
"capital" and "capitalistic" things is almost too ludicrous for belief!
Eyre's interview with Trotzky, sent from "Riga (by courier to Berlin,
Feb. 23)" and printed in the "New York World" of February 25, 1920,
simply reenforces Lenine's appeal to "foreign capital" and the wicked
"capitalistic countries." According to Eyre in the "World" of February
25, Trotzky spoke of "Russia, bankrupt, bleeding and starved," and said
in part:
"Our military successes have not blinded us to our need of peace.
We require peace for the re-establishment of economic
stabilization.... We have had to sacrifice the welfare of our
people and the health of future generations to the desperate needs
of the hour."
And for what? Apparently only to substitute the autocracy of a new
proletarian aristocracy for the autocracy of the old regime, and the
czardom of Lenine and Trotzky for that of the Romanoffs. And the new
tyranny not only re-establishes the old partnership between "capital"
and labor, but puts the burden of militarism on labor more exclusively
than before. This seems to be the program of Trotzky, "the People's
Commissary for Military Affairs," according to Eyre's report of
Trotzky's words in the "New York World" of February 25, 1920. His words
are as follows:
"We recognize our need for outside aid in setting this country on
its feet industrially and economically. It is a tremendous
enterprise, one that will take two, five, perhaps ten years to
carry out, but through the indomitable spirit of our proletariat it
will be accomplished with a speed and competency that will amaze
our foemen.... And once again I say that the people who help us
gain peace will share in the profits, the very considerable
profits, resultant from the aid they will have extended to us....
"Foreign capitalists who invest their money in Russian enterprises
or who supply us with merchandise we require will receive material
guarantees of amply adequate character. They need have no fears on
that score.... It is obvious that we must look to the victorious
nations, to Great Britain or, still better, to America for
machinery, agricultural tools and other imports which Russia's
economic renaissance demands."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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