WHAT CAUSES WAR

Every government, every political organisation proclaims itself for peace, against war. We hear no more that war is glorious. It is no longer possible wholly to hide the terrible, suffering caused by the nature of war. So our masters have changed their propaganda tactics: we learn that our rulers strive ceaselessly for peace, but it is the aggressive rulers of some other country who threaten us. In certain circumstances war is a necessary evil—we are struggling for freedom, human dignity—in fact, we make war for peace: war can only be abolished through war. Our position is: We are against every war, and both sides of every war. Wars are struggles between capitalist interests; no army fights for the interests of any working class. Only in a truly socialist worldwide society will war disappear, because while the capitalist world social order lasts, the roots of war remain. So the only way to lasting peace is through a new society. It is absurd to waste time and energy in an endeavour to convince the capitalists that wars are superfluous and a curse under capitalism.

Let the workers learn their position in society and unite to obtain control of the machinery of government, including the armed forces. Such action will make it possible for them to take possession of the means of production and use them for the benefit of all. In that way alone will they be able to usher in a system of society wherein universal unity of interests will abolish all war, be it between classes or nations. Workers should throw their weight against war. What does this mean in practice? As the working class have not yet placed themselves in control of the machinery of government, but continue at each election to place the capitalists in control, the latter is in a position to decide when, where and why the armed forces shall be set in motion, and also the amount and nature of the armed forces.  If the working class, or any large body of them, are hostile to the war the capitalists have to consider how to overcome that hostility and what will be the result if they should fail to do so. To the extent that the workers in any country are alive to their interests and opposed to war the capitalists will be inclined to make some concession to the enemy government, rather than face war. A majority of workers will, however, never be in favour of peace against capitalist wishes while they (the workers) are prepared to support capitalist government because they will always be ready to accept capitalist reasons for waging a particular war. The answer to capitalist intrigue and power-politics is not to be found in supporting one capitalist group against another. We can say of a particular war that nothing can come out of it for Socialism or democracy, or for the workers, justifying the suffering and other consequences of war. we cannot envisage circumstances arising which would justify socialist support for war.

Threatened by the greed of rival exploiters in foreign countries the capitalist class will drown the world in four years of blood and slaughter. They will destroy human lives by the millions, rather than give up their property, their right to exploit the workers, to the capitalists of a rival power. In short, as far as the capitalists are concerned, they have something to lose which is of the utmost value. They will go to the utmost limit to keep what they have. What of the workers? They have almost nothing to lose, except their lives, their homes and their health, and these they lose in war: not in the outcome of war, but in war itself, whatever the outcome. 

Anything which in the slightest way encourages the workers to retain the blighting and poisoning belief in nationalism and so-called national interests perpetuates the dangerous illusion of class harmony and plays always into the hands of the capitalist class. Only class-conscious socialists can speak across the frontiers of the capitalist nations to the working class of the world and they can do so only because they are entirely free from the taint of so-called national interests which can be none other than capitalist interests. The Socialist Party will continue on its way loyal to world socialism in the sure knowledge that it is the duty of all who seek socialism to oppose war. Whatever strength we can muster to influence the issue of war and peace will be thrown against war, no matter what the circumstances of the particular conflict may be.  Don’t tell us that that will take a long time. How long it takes depends on you. You can hasten it or delay it There can be no doubt that it will come. We need it, the working class of the world needs it. Join us and help bring it about.

 

Message from Marx and Lenin

 Messages from Marx and Lenin

Marx

https://twitter.com/i/status/1500787231950213121

Lenin

https://twitter.com/i/status/1502265756821696513

WHY WAR?

 

The Socialist Party's attitude to capitalist wars is simple. We seek the abolition of capitalism, of the wages system. In Ukraine and Russia, the workers are wage slaves. They will be wage-slaves in victory and in defeat. Capitalist nations go to war because capitalist interests are at stake. The workers stand to gain nothing, and they risk losing life and limb. There is no interest at stake justifying the sacrifice of a single worker’s life. The Socialist Party’s attitude on the subject of wars is clear and definite. Those who do not own the country cannot have it taken from them, and even a complete victory by one capitalist power over another, resulting in the complete subjugation of the vanquished state, would not benefit the workers of the victorious country, and would only mean a change of masters for the workers in the defeated country. The Socialist Party alone points to the truth concerning the issues at stake and affirmed the unity of interests of the workers throughout the world and their antagonism of interests with the capitalists throughout the world.

Capitalism requires an armed force at its disposal for two reasons: to use against rival powers, and to use against the working class if they attempt to lay their hands on their masters’ property. All governments rely ultimately on armed might. The idea that wars are caused by particular statesmen is entirely erroneous. No matter how much disposed towards peace a government maybe, when the conditions are ripe for war the government is forced to take action in accordance with the interests of the ruling class, no matter what that government is labelled. Let us urge you not to waste your time with futile anti-war movements, but to join with us in working for the overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of socialism, confident that the ending of the system will end the danger of war.

The only way in which humankind can bring about social change and build a fraternal society, free of war, is to establish socialism. This will not come about as an expression of non-violence but as the conscious act of a socialist working-class. The attitude of pacifism can be and has been, adopted by people of all manner of opinions—for example, by Christians and so on—all of whom support the capitalist social system which produces violence and which therefore makes pacifism an empty dream.  Any organisation which accepts the continuance of capitalism, the cause of war in the modem world, is standing in the way of socialists who seek to end capitalism and with it war. Many pacifists have proved their sincerity and courage, but this does not alter the fact that their views are out of touch with reality. The only way in which war and social violence can be removed from our lives is to remove capitalism. This is not, as pacifists argue, a question of propagating ideas of non-violence. It requires that a socialist working-class democratically gain control of the machinery of government for the purpose of abolishing capitalism and establishing socialism.

The job of socialists is to work for the spread of socialist understanding among the working class. This is not done by suggesting that “defensive” wars should be supported by workers, nor by confusing the interests of the working class and bourgeoisie.  All wars were now purely capitalist, disputes between rival imperialist powers. The task of socialists was quite clear: to struggle uncompromisingly and consistently for the establishment of socialism throughout the world.

The Socialist Party has long pointed out that the wars of civilised countries, since the birth of the capitalist system, have been caused through the struggles between sections of the world’s capitalist class for the trade routes, raw materials, markets, and the like. As long as there is commodity production, buying and selling, with the consequent competition among buyers and sellers and the enslavement of the producing class, wars are of the very essence of things. Lasting peace can only arrive when the private ownership of the means of living has been abolished and common ownership has emerged from the ruins—in other words, wars and all the other evils that are a consequence of capitalism can only disappear when capitalism gives place to socialism.

Socialism will abolish war because it will bring a community of interests; it will be a society without frontiers, without nations, without classes, without conflict.

Capitalism is war; socialism is peace

 

Capitalism is incendiary and has ignited yet another conflagration in the Ukraine. It has let free the Horsemen of the Apocalypse galloping around the globe. All the diplomacy was in vain: they were naught but charlatanism and mirage. For capitalism, war and peace are business and nothing but business. ar always came from above—from those who did not live on the work of their hands, but lived upon the blood and the sweat of the manual workers. the real instigators of wars are the lords of the land, of the factory, of the mine, and of the stock exchange.

We do not have, today, the peace yearned for by millions all over the world.  The preaching of peace does not necessarily further the cause of peace. We all want peace, which in itself means nothing, if we cannot give a positive form to this platitude. The interests of the working class are bound up with the maintenance of peace.  The peace we want means true democracy. 

The supporters of peace campaigns ignore or pay too little attention to the profit-making nature of capitalism. Under capitalism it is for profit that goods are produced, and it is so that profits may be realised by the sale of goods in the world market that rivalries and armed conflicts arise between states. Passports and frontier inconveniences are of little concern to the working class.

During the progress of the war we can expect our masters to make the most of their opportunities to further subjugate us. We must resist every attempt in this connection. Attempts will also be made to lower real wages by financial sleight of hand.  The working class must be on their guard. The capitalist class do all the “paying,” but the working class do all the producing. Everything necessary to the carrying on of the war will be produced by the workers, the capitalist class will not produce anything.

The capitalists will do their “paying” out of the profits they make by exploiting the working class. War, unfortunately for them, is an expensive business. But if the workers can be induced to lie low, and not be too troublesome about asking for more wages to meet a higher cost of living, cut down their butter and sugar, and so on, it might not prove so expensive after all. During the war the capitalist class will loan to the government a portion of their profits: this gives them a mortgage on the future production of the working class. After the war the Government will “owe” the capitalist class countless millions. It will then be discovered that social services, wages, etc., must be cut to the bone in order to meet the interest on what is owing. This is the reward of the working class. Whilst the sectional struggle between the capitalist powers has taken on the form of armed warfare, the economic warfare between capitalists and workers, between rulers and ruled, continues from official peace time into official war time, with this difference, that when a war is on, owing to the elimination of the competition of the unemployed, the scales are weighted in favour of the workers. Hence the concern of our capitalist masters over the wages question and their attempt to drum into the heads of the workers the necessity of “doing without a lot of things they will miss very much,” and the false belief that the “wealthier classes have had to make large reductions in standards of living.”

All the world over the World Socialist Movement has always been fighting for peace between nations. Its energies have been directed towards the elimination of the causes of war. The remedy lies in arousing the active opposition of working people against predatory, capitalist-made peace, in turning the never-ending war into a class war and by carrying through the dispossession of the capitalist classes as the sole means of putting an end to all menace of war, to all exploitation, and to all brigandage. Not till the world belongs to the workers will our class be free.

THE END OF WAR IS POSSIBLE ONLY WITH THE END OF CAPITALISM

 Many commentators are overflowed with compassion for Ukraine. Yet they are silent on the Saudi Arabian bombing of civilians in Yemen. The silence of the criminal policy of the Israeli government in Palestine is even more deafening. The Kurds are forgotten. The Myanmar military repression has dropped from the media headlines.

Nobody expects a capitalist diplomat or politician to be strictly truthful, any more than that virtue is expected of the advertiser boosting the sales of his products.

 People are still disposed to believe that if the leaders of the nations were better men, “men of goodwill” the world would be a better place. Capitalism is based on private ownership of the means of production and distribution, and on cut-throat competition to sell the goods and realise the profit. The war will make the competition of the industrial nations more intense than ever, and not all the schemes and hopes of the statesmen will turn that savage scramble into a better Europe.

A brief study of the causes of modern war proves that war is an essential part of capitalism. The inner conflicts of capitalism lead and must lead to war. Nevertheless, there have been serious misconceptions in following out the consequences of this conclusion so far as they apply to the struggle against war. The most serious mistake made in the attempted struggle against war comes from the widespread belief that this struggle is somehow “independent” of the class struggle in general. Acting on this belief, attempts are made to build up all kinds of peace movements and pacifist organisations. The only way to get rid of war is to remove the cause of war. In order to build a genuine anti-war movement, it is our duty to expose these pie-in-the-sky peace proposals.

 

War is not the cause of the troubles of society. The opposite is true. War is a symptom and result, of the irreconcilable troubles and conflicts of the present form of society, that is to say, of capitalism. Since war is inseparable from capitalism it follows that the “abolition” of war is possible only through the overthrow of capitalism. The only way to be against war is to campaign against the causes of war. It therefore follows that the only possible struggle AGAINST war is the struggle FOR socialism. By overthrowing the capitalist economy and supplanting capitalism with a socialist economy, it will remove the causes of war. Under socialism, there will no longer exist the basic contradictions that lead to war.

We pointed out that the League of Nations and then the United Nations was bound to fail, since it did not put an end to the real causes of war: —the intense struggle for world trade which capitalism forces upon rival sections of the capitalist class. We urged then, as we do now, that the only way to peace is to get rid of these rivalries which are inherent in capitalism, by abolishing capitalism itself, and by establishing a new social system—socialism. Again we issue a warning to our fellow workers of being led up a blind alley in another futile quest for permanent peace. 

In a capitalist society, there are TWO CLASSES, and between these two classes a persistent struggle and clash of interests. The capitalist class owns the means of production and distribution and employs the working class which, being propertyless, must work for the advantage of the owners, i.e., to produce profits for them. Over the questions of wages and working conditions, the capitalists and workers are in constant conflict. This class struggle, evident within every capitalist state, is ignored or dismissed as unimportant by the federalists. However, so long as it continues to exist the world cannot possibly become one community.

Furthermore, in a capitalist society owing to the existence of private property and the consequent production of goods SOLELY for profit, the world is one big jumble of conflicting capitalist interests. Wars are the result of these conflicting interests.

Capitalism is by nature competitive and monopolistic. Different sections of the capitalist class—which to prosper must make profits—compete with each other to obtain monopolies of markets, monopolies of raw materials and monopolies of fields for investments. It is partly for the purpose of protecting or furthering these capitalist interests that the gigantic armed forces of the states exist; and the great powers annex territories, not so that the vanquished natives may benefit, but so that the interests of their capitalists can be developed without interference.

If, as often happens, the flow of profits going to capitalists is interfered with by competing sections of the capitalist class, quarrels break out, and, when other means fail, it is by force that differences are settled.

Developing capitalism has led to the growth of international trading blocs and cartels, but this has not diminished the rivalries between groups of capitalists. On the contrary, it has led to an intensification of those rivalries, for now capitalists of different nationalities work together in exploiting spheres of influence in order that a firmer monopoly may be obtained to the disadvantage of rival groups.

Capitalism FORCES this “cut-throat competition,” this struggle for spheres of influence upon the different sections of the capitalist class. It is, therefore, capitalism that gives rise to wars. We repeat that to end the war, its cause must be abolished. Until capitalism is swept away, all the forces making for armed conflicts will be at work. Attempts to clamp down these forces are doomed to failure.  We urge the working class, therefore, not to waste its time on so-called solutions which, leaving untouched the causes of war, cannot possibly put an end to it. Only when capitalism has been overthrown and socialism established will the causes of war—production for profit, trade and commercial rivalries—be removed.

Perish “the Patriot”.

 “I look upon the whole world as my fatherland...I look upon true patriotism as the brotherhood of man and the service of all to all...National independence? That means the masters' independence...The flag? Does it wave over a country where you are free and have a home, or does it rather symbolize a country that meets you with clenched fists when you strike for better wages and shorter hours?" - Helen Keller

The idea of national sovereignty is a notional fraud. A nation-state is not sovereign in its affairs. In practice, it means a mightier or the mightiest nation-state, regardless of law and ethics, may ‘sovereignly’ decide what is good for its own nation and by extension for the international community. What does the national identity of a nation really mean in today’s world? Are we not all citizens of the world, holding multiple identities (and in an increasing number of cases even multiple passports)? Our place of birth is accidental, but our duty to our class is worldwide. Socialism recognises no distinction between the various nations comprising the world. Socialism does not recognise national distinctions or the division of humanity into nations and races. The position of the Socialist Party in every country is one of hostility to the existing political order. The socialist movement is global in sentiment and scope and the name, the World Socialist Movement, was deliberately chosen as an aspiration to be achieved.  No socialist party can serve the “Nation” so long as the nation is divided into two warring classes—one which owns the wealth and one which produces the wealth and does not own it. No socialist party can serve the robbers and the robbed at the same time. To speak of the “Nation” when it is thus divided is camouflage to hide their support of the robbers because the great majority of the nation belongs to the class which is robbed.

 Every plutocrat, every profiteer, every exploiter, every oppressor will tell you that you must be loyal and patriotic to their particular “nation". Are you their ally or is your allegiance to your class, your own “nation”?  Workers must be united and act together. Solidarity must be the watchword. Political unity and industrial unity will give us the power to conquer capitalism and emancipate the workers of the world. As individual wage slaves we are helpless and our condition hopeless. As a class, we are the greatest power on Earth. The individual wage slave must recognise the power of class unity and do all to bring it about. That is what is called class consciousness. Class conscious workers recognise who their “nation” is. They join the union and the party of their class and gives their time and energy to work for the emancipation of their “nation.”  We do battle against the “nation” of the bankers and the bosses who applaud their own "patriotism" and who glory in robbery and plunder.  Patriotism, as generally understood, is an objectionable sentiment since it means the placing of one’s own country, its interests and well-being, above those of the rest of humanity. Patriotism, in its essence, is a readiness to die and to kill for abstraction, for what is largely a figment of the imagination. Nations are in no sense natural communities; they stand in stark opposition to the principles of mutual aid and solidarity upon which our very survival depends. This community of interests and of relationship or neighbourly feeling does not necessarily or exclusively apply to nationality. As a matter of fact, in ancient times it was the city-state rather than the nation-state which was its boundary.

The capitalists are good mystifiers: they want to have us believe that their interests as an oppressing class are the interests of all classes. Since the time of Marx, class conscious workers have combated the capitalists’ chauvinist appeals with appeals for the international solidarity of the working class. They have fought the attempts of the bourgeoisie to enlist the workers in their nationalist strivings with appeals for the joint class struggle of the workers of all countries against world capitalism. In The Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels insisted that ‘the working men have no country’. They argued that the nation-state was alien to the interests of the proletariat and that in order to advance their interests workers must ‘settle matters’ with the bourgeoisie of each state, that workers must challenge the power of their ‘own’ capitalist class directly.  It implied uncompromising opposition to the local state and its dealings with the rulers of other capitalisms – other members of the ‘band of warring brothers’ that constituted the capitalists at a world level. It also implied workers should organise in mutual solidarity across national borders. This was not a mere abstraction. Marx maintained that workers must free themselves of patriotism and national superiority in their own interests, for without discarding these aspects of bourgeois ideology they would never themselves be free. Marx and Engels maintained this approach throughout their political activities. It was also the position taken by Luxemburg.

At the same time as capitalism creates the objective basis for the fusion of nations, it tries desperately to erect artificial barriers between them, so as to maintain itself as a system of control. Thus, by setting nations one against the other, by inflaming national animosity, the bourgeoisie aims at consolidating national barriers in order to protect its part of the spoils of capitalist exploitation, to attack the class consciousness of workers and to sow strife in their camp. The working class faces a powerful and aggressive enemy which is solidly united despite certain contradictions within its ranks. The people’s army is not going to win the class war by dividing themselves according to borders.

Those of us in the Socialist Party are told that our critique of nationalism is resented by many supposed revolutionaries because they think that our criticism casts aspersions upon their sincerity as revolutionaries. The Socialist Party are told that we should accept that nations “exist” (even though we have seen that a common race, implying the same origin and purity of blood is but a fiction) Diseases exist as well. Is it that reason not to try and eliminate them? The real fight is the struggle of the dispossessed against the possessors and it is the only fight that matters. The national prejudices deliberately fostered by the governing class has to be fought by workers united against their common foe. For us, the workers, our weapon is solidarity, it is the awareness that we all form, whatever the language we speak or the colour of our skin, or the land of our birth, one single class exploited by a minority of capitalist parasites who are very much in agreement, despite their national rivalries, to crush us. Our duty as socialists does not permit us to spare the feelings of any particular group which directly or indirectly acts contrary to the interests of the working class. At the end of socialist meetings, it was once customary to sing “The Internationale”.