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At the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, capitalism reached the stage of monopoly, as was predicted by Marx. The capitalists of the day, as well as the bourgeois economists, were aware that the situation had changed, and began to refer to the new situation as imperialism. It was Lenin who conducted a detailed analysis of capitalism in its new monopoly stage, using facts and figures of the capitalists themselves, and in 1916 wrote a book, Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism.

The statistics make it quite clear that size matters, and in fact it matters a great deal. One huge factory can produce far more than a great many small factories. As Lenin phrased it, ”at a certain stage of its development, concentration itself, as it were, leads straight to monopoly…This transformation of competition into monopoly is one of the most important – if not the most important -phenomenon of modern capitalist economy”.

Lenin goes on to speak of cartels, which he refers to as ”one of the foundations of the whole of economic life. Capitalism had been transformed into imperialism.” Thus Lenin says that the transition from capitalism to imperialism is marked by the formation of cartels, a natural result of the creation of monopolies.

These new creations have certain characteristics, are created by the capitalists in order to ensure maximum profits. In short, ”Cartels come to agreement on the conditions of sale, terms of payment, etc. They divide the markets among themselves. They fix the quantity of goods to be produced. They fix prices. They divide the profits among the various enterprises”, as per Lenin.

We may add that the most famous cartel is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC.

In America, we have a similar situation, in that we have trusts instead of cartels. Whereas the goal of cartels is to generate maximum profit by selling at a particular price, perhaps by limiting the production of a particular product, say oil, the goal of trusts is to  generate maximum profit by any and all means that come to hand. What ever it takes to eliminate the competition. American capitalists tend to be more focused than their counterparts in other parts of the world.

The bourgeois economist have documented the methods the capitalists use to better ”organize” their businesses. These admissions, by the capitalists themselves, which were no doubt written for the benefit of other capitalists, have been documented by Lenin, and these admissions he refers to as ”edifying”, as indeed they are. He lists them in the following order:

1: Stopping supplies of raw materials

2: Stopping the supply of labor with the use of unions

3: Cutting off deliveries

4: Closing of trade outlets

5: Agreement with the buyers

6: Lowering of prices, even selling at a loss, in order to ruin the competition

7: Stopping credits, in that the bank cuts off a line of credit to the competition

8: Boycott

These are the weapons which the monopolies, corporations, cartels or trusts, use to drive the competition, the small business, into bankruptcy. The mere threat of such attention from a corporation is frequently enough to force such a small business to shut down or at least submit, perhaps becoming a division of a corporation.

The capitalists who set up and run these monopolies, or corporations as they are frequently referred to in North America, do so with the goal of ensuring a steady supply of profit, of eliminating crises in capitalism. Frequently, they end up assuring precisely the opposite. As Lenin phrased it, ”when monopolies appear in certain branches of industry it increases and intensifies the anarchy in capitalist production, as a whole.” italics by Lenin

Our bourgeois economists, belly crawling boot lickers, one and all, assure us that the way to prevent crises in capitalism is through the creation of ever bigger, more complete, more powerful corporations, those which are currently referred to as Too Big To Fail. Those same belly crawlers do not mention the fact that the rest of us are Too Small To Succeed.

In fact, these ever larger, more complete monopolies merely intensifies the crises. These crises ”in their turn increase very considerably the tendency towards concentration and monopoly”, as Lenin phrased it.

Under imperialism, monopolies are not limited to corporations, trusts and cartels. Lenin: ”Large scale enterprises, especially the banks, not only completely absorb small ones, but also ‘join’ them to themselves, subordinate them, bring them into their ‘own’ group, or ‘concern’…by having ‘holdings’ in their capital, by purchasing or exchanging shares, by controlling them through a system of credits…Scattered capitalists are transformed into a single collective capitalist”.

In effect, the banks possess an accurate picture of the universal book keeping of the whole capitalist class, the small business men, office clerks, and even of the upper stratum of the working class. No doubt they find this information to be quite useful.

Lenin goes on to speak of the export of capital. He explains that ”Under the old type of capitalism, when free competition prevailed, the export of goods was the most typical feature. Under modern capitalism, when monopolies prevail, the export of capital has become the typical feature.” italics by Lenin.

As we live under ”modern capitalism” and without doubt ”monopolies prevail”, it is up to Marxists to explain to the working people that it is only natural for the capitalists, the bourgeoisie, to export their capital, even in the form of factories, to other countries. It does not matter how many well meaning members of Congress are sent to Washington, the export of capital will continue. It is up to Marxists to drive that point home to the working class.

At the same time, we should encourage Americans to become card carrying members of the two mainstream political parties, Democratic and Republican. As such, these ”party bosses” can then decide the individual to run for any and all political office, on behalf of both parties. The idea is that we can then flood Washington with not only social Democrats, but also social Republicans.

This will not result in a peaceful transition to socialism, as many utopian socialists and revisionist Marxists maintain, but will lead to an increase in the level of awareness of the working people. They will soon realize, from their own bitter experience, that nothing will change. Even if Washington is swamped with such socialist, or Leftist people, capital will continue to leave the country, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, will remain in charge, and nothing substantial will change. That may be just what it takes to convince working people.

Indeed, imperialism is the monopoly stage of capitalism. This means that, as Lenin says.  ”surplus capital…will be used for the purpose of increasing those profits by exporting capital abroad…in these backward countries, profits usually are high, for capital is scarce, the price of land is relatively low, wages are low, raw materials are cheap.” It is facts such as this which must be stressed to the working class, time and time again.

Marxists should also encourage the members of the working class, or at least the most advanced workers, to read this book by Lenin. It is the most advanced workers who lead, as the less advanced pay strict attention to the more advanced.

As I write this, the government shut down is now into its fifth week. The main stream press, that which Trump refers to as the ”fake news”, is doing a fine job of exposing the lies and deception of Trump. This is to their credit, and as the news outlets are owned and operated by the capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, it shows that those same owners have turned against Trump. Even though he is one of their own, a fellow billionaire capitalist, they have likely decided that he is too independent, too unpredictable, and has to go.

With that in mind, they are planning something, and do not want any publicity. So the journalists who work for them have been instructed to make no further mention of the White House Resistance or of the fact that the government is scheduled to run out of money in less that three weeks, on February 8.

Thieves love darkness, and the bourgeoisie are planning something more than simple theft. That which they have in mind falls more under the heading of treason. Talk of the lies of Trump, of the former stooges of Trump, many of whom are on their way to jail, of the politicians who have recently been elected to Congress, and of the upcoming 2020 election, are nothing more than a diversion, a smoke screen.

Bear in mind that, as Lenin phrases it, ”the political features of imperialism are reaction all along the line”. What ever the imperialists are planning, it is not in the interests of the working class. We had best be prepared.

It is my hope that this little article inspires working people to study carefully this work of Lenin. I also hope that it inspires Marxists to prepare for the approaching revolution, which is very likely any day now.

Workers, of the World, Unite!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The government shutdown enters its fifth week with no end in sight, so that the crisis in capitalism continues to intensify. Trump continues to insist the crisis is at the southern border, despite all evidence to the contrary. The press must be given credit for pointing out his lies and hypocrisy.

It is also reported that the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, suggested that Trump postpone his State of the Union report, possibly because she is concerned that the Secret Service, the personal body guard of the president, may not be able to provide adequate protection. After all, they are working without pay, some are having a difficult time even paying for gasoline to get to work, and no doubt their enthusiasm for the job, that of protecting the man responsible for this hardship, is somewhat lacking.

Trump has responded by denying Pelosi the use of military aircraft for government business. She had planned a trip to Europe, in complete secrecy of course, but at the last minute Trump torpedoed her trip, at the same time letting the American enemies know of that trip. To say that such behaviour is not professional is an understatement. To say that such behaviour is typical of Trump, is an accurate statement.

At the same time, the press also reports that the wife of Trump is flying to Florida on a government plane, allegedly at tax payer expense. That too is typical of Trump.

One of the journalists, a true wit, has compared this feud, between Trump and Pelosi, as a battle of King Kong versus Godzilla. A great many journalists agree that Trump has met his match. The only source of disagreement is the identity of King Kong as opposed to Godzilla.

The latest news, which is a bomb shell even by the standards of the day, is that it is alleged that Trump ordered his former personal lawyer, Cohen, to lie, under oath, to Congress. This is referred to as suborning perjury, and certainly rises to the level of ”high crimes and misdemeanors”, as is required by the constitution, in order to remove a president from office. If this can be proven to be true, then the lawyers of Trump will certainly have their hands full, earning their pay.

If such little details worry Trump, he is doing a fine job of concealing his concern. Instead, he is focused on the future, or at least his future, and wants to change the law so that he can serve more than a mere two terms as president. Perhaps he thinks that is the least he can do for the American people. He may even pull a Napoleon and crown himself emperor. I would not put it past him.

That man is far removed from reality, which is that the government is paralyzed. Trump is determined to get the money for his wall, and Pelosi is equally determined that the wall is not about to happen. Not that she has much choice in the matter, as even to attempt to provide that money would likely trigger a rebellion within the Congress, and she would almost certainly lose her position as Speaker of the House. The situation has changed dramatically, the revolutionary movement has resulted in a great many new members of Congress, and they are determined to make a change.

As for those who consider that these well meaning new members of Congress can enact significant change, perhaps even a peaceful transition to socialism, Lenin has a few choice words. ”A democratic republic is the best possible political shell for capitalism, and therefore once capital has gained control of this very best shell….it establishes its position so securely, so firmly, that no change, either of persons, of institutions, or of parties in the bourgeois democratic republic, can shake it”.(italics by Lenin)

It is up to Marxists to let the members of the public, the working class, the proletariat, know that the system cannot be changed ”from within”, regardless of how sincerely the newly elected members of Congress make a supreme effort. The capitalists, the bourgeoisie, are in charge, and they fully intend to remain in charge.

This is to say that the revolutionary situation is similar to Russia, in 1917. At that time, after three years of the great imperialist slaughter to divide and redivide the world, the working people of Russia decided they had enough. They spontaneously rose up and overthrew Czar Nicholas of Russia. Three centuries of Romanov rule came to an end. We can learn from the Russian revolution, as the situation is quite similar.

The capitalists of Russia, the bourgeoisie, were rather pleased to see the Czar vacate the throne. They determined to set up a democratic republic, which is the ideal political shell for capitalism. With that in mind, they promised land to the peasants, an end to the war, the establishment of a Constituent Assembly, and many other things. Of course, as all capitalists are liars, every word was a lie. The war continued, the peasants received no land, the opening of the Constituent Assembly was postponed, and so on.

At that time Russia was one huge, primarily underdeveloped country. Most of the population, three quarters of them, were peasants. It was unofficially classified as a backward country, one which few people took seriously. On the other hand, it had one asset which was grossly under estimated. That asset was the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, the RSDLP, led by none other than Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, otherwise known as Lenin.

In early 1917, Lenin was in Switzerland. As for those who think it strange that the leader of the RSDLP should be out of the country, it was only because years earlier he had first been thrown in jail, for his revolutionary work, then exiled to Siberia and finally allowed to leave the country. The Russian officials were glad to see him go. They thought that was the last they would see of young Ulyanov. They could not possibly have been more mistaken.

Even though Lenin was out of the country, he continued to do his revolutionary work. He stayed in touch with other revolutionaries, members of the RSDLP, inside and outside of Russia. He kept track of the revolutionary movement of the Russian working class and offered advice from afar. Lenin was a Marxist, and applied the theories of Marx to monopoly capitalism, technically referred to as imperialism.

In 1917, Lenin was anxious to return to Russia, as the revolution was taking place. The Czar had been overthrown by a spontaneous uprising of the people, and it was necessary to carry the revolution through to its logical conclusion, that of scientific socialism. The only way in which that could happen was by raising the level of awareness of the people, both workers and peasants, to that of Marxists. His presence was urgently required.

The trouble was that Lenin was a Russian citizen and Russia was at war with the Central Powers, including Germany. To return to Russia, it was necessary to pass through Germany.

Ordinarily, this was out of the question, but the situation was anything but ordinary. The German High Command was well aware that Lenin was the worst enemy of the deposed Czar and the Russian Provisional Government, then taking shape, which became known as the Kerensky regime. They were of the opinion that ”the enemy of my enemy is my friend”, and decided to make an exception for their new friend, which was Lenin.

Accordingly, Lenin was placed on a sealed train and allowed to pass through Germany and into Russia. He arrived in Saint Petersburg in April of 1917 and promptly went into hiding, with the assistance of Stalin, as the police of the newly created provisional government were hunting for him. The provisional government agreed with the German High Command that Lenin was their worst enemy. In this, they were absolutely correct.

As Lenin saw it, the overthrow of the Czar was merely the first step on the road to socialism. The second step was to overthrow the capitalists, the bourgeoisie, whom had seized power. The details of this socialist revolution had to be worked out, and Lenin wrote that which is widely considered to be one if his greatest works, State and Revolution. This book is every bit as relevant now as it was in 1917. It deserves careful study.

Just as Lenin wrote that book in great haste, as he knew the revolution was taking place, so too we must study that book, with a sense of urgency, as our revolution is also imminent. It may help to think of the revolution as a force of nature, an act of God, as that is precisely what it is. Just as a hurricane does not wait until people are prepared, so too the revolution will not wait until we are prepared.

As Lenin phrased it, ”it is clear that the liberation of the oppressed class is impossible, not only without violent revolution, but also without the destruction of the apparatus of state power which was created by the ruling class”. (italics by Lenin)

This begs the question, what is the apparatus of state power? Lenin makes it clear that he is referring to the ”bureaucracy and the standing army”  which are a ”parasite on the body of society” one which ”chokes all its pores of life”. That is pretty clear, and explains the reason it must be destroyed.

In response to the revolutionary movement, we can expect the bourgeoisie to ”increase their repressive measures against the revolutionary proletariat, to strengthen the apparatus of the state machine” which ”compels the revolution to concentrate all its forces of destruction against the state power, and to regard the problem, not as one of perfecting the state machine, but of one of smashing and destroying it”. (italics by Lenin)

One possible way the capitalists can ”increase their repressive measures” is by declaring a state of national emergency, which would very likely amount to a state of martial law. Rest assured, the capitalists are determined to find some way to crush the revolution, possibly to  ”strengthen the apparatus of the state machine”. It is just a matter of time, and very likely a short time.

Our response is quite clear. We must ”concentrate all of our forces of destruction against the state power”, as it must be ”smashed and destroyed”.

It is up to Marxists to let the working class, the proletariat, know just what is expected, and what is required, in response to this anticipated attack on the working class.  Further, the proletariat also has to be made aware that a different sort of state apparatus must be established, after the successful overthrow of the capitalists, as Lenin makes abundantly clear.

As Lenin phrases it, ”A Marxist is one who extends the acceptance of the class struggle to the acceptance of the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat”. (italics by Lenin)

Under the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat, the bureaucracy and the standing army will be abolished. All officials will be elected and subject to recall, at any time. Such officials will be working at the wages of working men. The vast majority of working people will take part in crushing the desperate and determined resistance of the capitalists, the former billionaires who can be counted upon to resort to any subterfuge to regain their ”paradise lost”.

Lenin goes on to say that the workers ”will organize large scale production on the basis of what capitalism has already created; we shall rely upon our own experience as workers, we shall establish strict, iron discipline supported by the state power of the armed workers, we shall reduce the role of the state officials to that of simply carrying out our instructions as responsible, revocable, managers (of course with the aid of technicians of all sorts, types and degrees.) This is our proletarian task, this is what we can and must start with in carrying out the proletarian revolution.” (italics by Lenin)

I have merely touched upon a few of the main points which Lenin addressed in State and Revolution. It is my most sincere hope that this will inspire people to study this most essential work of Lenin. As for those who are skeptical concerning the theories of Marx and Lenin, may I suggest that the Russian revolution was successful. If not for the leadership of Lenin, it is doubtful that a socialist society could have been created. It is very likely that the 1917 revolution would have ended with the overthrow of the Czar.

The fact that the Russian capitalists were able to restore capitalism does not reduce the accomplishment of the Russian proletariat. We just have to make sure we do not repeat their mistake. After the successful American socialist revolution, we will have to make sure that we exercise complete and total dictatorship over the bourgeoisie. Any and all attempts to restore capitalism can and must be precluded. If there is any one slogan which must be driven home to the American workers, that one slogan must be:

Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

The government shutdown continues, with neither side speaking to each other. This is to say that the leaders of the Democratic Party are not speaking to Trump or to any other leader of the Republican Party. Not that any other leader of the Republican Party has anything to say about the shutdown, as Trump listens only to people who tell him precisely that which he wants to hear.

Now the press is reporting that the ”White House has invited moderate Democratic members of the House of Representatives to the White House to negotiate a deal to end the shutdown”. If we are to believe the press, and there are ”moderate democrats”, then there must be radical democrats, and such radicals are clearly not welcome in the White House.

Of course, there is no such thing as a moderate democrat, never mind a radical democrat. There are just democrats. Further, Nancy Pelosi, a democrat, is the Speaker of the House, and the democratic members of the House will vote the way she tells them to vote. Any and all ”moderate democrats” who accept the invitation to go to the White House, will do so only at the behest of Nancy Pelosi. As she is dead set opposed to the wall, this meeting is not about to happen. It is just an example of the stooges of Trump attempting to shift the blame for the government shutdown onto the shoulders of the Democrats.

In other news, the Brexit deal may collapse, and Elizabeth May is frantic to avoid such a disaster. She is afraid it may trigger an end to the United Kingdom, which is to say that Northern Ireland may separate and rejoin Ireland. As Northern Ireland is merely a colony of Great Britain, the sooner they achieve their independence, the better.

That same lady is careful not to say that her big concern is that such a collapse could also trigger an end to Great Britain, in that Scotland and Wales could also go their separate ways. Then England would be alone in supporting the richest welfare cases in the world, the royal family. As a staunch supporter of the monarchy, no doubt this is a big concern of Mays.

The press also reports that Trump is giving consideration to pulling out of Nato, possibly because the Premier of Russia, Putin, ”advised” him to do so.

It is strange, but significant, that the press has recently made no mention of the White House Resistance, or of the fact that the federal government will run out of money on February 8, a mere three weeks away. At that date the government will reach their debt limit, and unless the Congress, meaning the House of Representatives, raises the debt ceiling yet again, the government will effectively go broke.

Yet that same press quite cheerfully reports that the shutdown could last until the end of February, long after the government is scheduled to go broke. At the same time, they ignore the White House Resistance, which has vowed to stop Trump, ”one way of another”. Perhaps the press thinks that the right wing radical faction has lost interest. If so, the latest threat of Trump, that of pulling out of Nato, is sure to capture their attention. Every staunch supporter of imperialism swears by Nato. Every belly crawling boot licker of the bourgeoisie, of which there is no shortage, is sure to rise up in protest.

I have chosen these current news reports as examples of news items which concern working people , as such people pay careful attention to the news. That is a fact, just as it is a fact that the news is presented from a bourgeois viewpoint, along with opinions by loyal servants of the bourgeoisie, which can easily be confused by many members of the working class as facts themselves.

It is a popular misconception among members of the ”left”, which is to say socialists and those who consider themselves to be Marxists, that working people are only concerned with wages, living and working conditions. Such is hardly the case. Yet the literature the left produces for working people is mainly focused on precisely those items.

The situation we are facing can hardly be called new and different. In fact, Lenin faced precisely these challenges in Czarist Russia, and criticized them in his book, What Is To Be Done? It is a difficult work to understand, so perhaps a brief history lesson is in order. I say brief, as history lessons can be very boring, but in this case, perhaps essential.

In 1898 Russia, Lenin and several other middle class intellectuals, Marxists one and all, got together and formed the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, the RSDLP. The name was carefully chosen, as to stress the fact that all socialists are also democrats.

Shortly after the party was formed, it was faced with deep differences within the party. In response to these different opinions, Lenin wrote a major work, What Is To Be Done? We are faced with the same differences today, which is one reason the work is so important.

Several years later the RSDLP split, with the majority, led by Lenin, becoming the Bolshevik Party, and the minority becoming the Menshevik Party, because bolsh means majority and mensh means minority in Russian. It was only after the Russian revolution, which brought about a dramatic change in circumstances, that the name of the party was changed accordingly, to the Communist Party. The main thing is that Social Democrat, Bolshevik and Communist all refers to Marxists. So in reading that book, it is best to read Social Democrat as Marxist or Communist.

To return to the book, perhaps it would be best to read some of the Russian names with their English translations, or at least I found that helpful. With that in mind:

Rabochoye Dyelom means Workers Cause

Rabochoye Mysl means Workers Newspaper

Iskra means Spark

Narodnaya Volya means Peoples Will

Credo mean Beliefs

Zarya means Surprise

As Lenin pointed out, there was a vocal faction within the party who thought that ”Social Democracy must change from a party of the social revolution into a democratic party of social reform”. We can repeat that by Social Democracy he was referring to Marxism.

He went on to say that ”The very conception, ‘ultimate aim’, was declared to be unsound, and the idea of the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat was absolutely rejected. It was denied that there is any difference in principle between liberalism and socialism. The theory of the class struggle was rejected on the grounds that it could not be applied to a strictly democratic society…the demand for a definite change from revolutionary Social Democracy to bourgeois social reformism was accompanied by a no less definite turn towards bourgeois criticism of all the fundamental ideas of Marxism”.

The members of the Social Democratic party who wanted to change the party from a revolutionary Marxist party to a liberal party of social reform eventually split from the party. They formed the opportunist Menshevik party, and fought the revolutionary Marxist Bolshevik party.

We should add, for the sake of those who are new to the revolutionary movement, that opportunist merely means devoid of principle. There is no shortage of such people in the modern day movement, those who claim to be Marxist or socialists or communists, but are merely liberals masquerading as revolutionaries.

Lenin goes on to say that ”the reward for this utter humiliation and self degradation of socialism in the face of the whole world, for the corruption of the socialist consciousness of the working class – the only basis that can guarantee our victory – the reward for this is imposing plans for paltry reforms, so paltry in fact that much more has been obtained from bourgeois governments!”

A spontaneous revolutionary movement is now sweeping the world, as countless people rise up, not aware of precisely what they are doing. This is in stark contrast to the Marxists, the intellectuals, the people who know precisely what is happening, those who are also referred to as conscious people. It is up to such people, conscious people, Marxists, to lead the revolutionary movement, to give it direction, to ensure the overthrow of capitalism, the creation of socialism and the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. That dictatorship is necessary as it is the only way to crush the desperate and determined resistance of the bourgeoisie, whose resistance will be increased ten fold after the revolution, after they are removed from power. They will go to any length to regain their ”paradise lost”, stoop to any level, as they have in Russia and China, where they are once again in power.

In contrast to the Marxists there are a great many people who claim to be Marxists but embrace the beliefs of the Mensheviks. As Lenin phrased it, the belief of the Mensheviks is to ”let the workers carry on the economic struggle (it would be more correct to say the trade union struggle, because the latter also embraces specifically labor politics) and let the Marxian intelligentsia merge with the liberals for the political struggle”.

This peculiar belief of the Mensheviks is referred to as Economism, and is quite prevalent in society today, among members of the left. This peculiar belief is accompanied by a no less peculiar state of mind among our Economists, a fear of publicity. They want people to take them at their word. When they say they are Marxists or Marxist Leninists, they expect us to believe them because they say it is true. They tend to be quite shy, and do not appreciate anyone questioning their beliefs.

As Lenin pointed out, ”the majority of the Economists quite sincerely disapprove (and by the very nature of economism must disapprove) of all theoretical controversies, factional disagreements, of broad political questions, of schemes for organizing revolutionaries…”

That was the muddle that Lenin faced in Russia before the revolution, and that is the muddle we face now. His solution was, first of all, to resume the theoretical work. He felt that the successful growth of the movement was impossible, without the theoretical work. It was also necessary to combat the lies and distortion of the Mensheviks, which was corrupting the working class. He went on to advise that the Marxists should actively counteract the confusion and vacillation prevailing in practical work, and should expose and repudiate every conscious or unconscious attempt to degrade the Marxist program and tactics.

That is also our task now, and I will be the first to admit that what we have here is a tall order, but what is the alternative? Lenin provides an answer which leaves no room for any misunderstanding: ”Without a revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary motion”. He goes on to say that the importance of theory is important for three reasons, the first of which is that ”our Party is only in the process of formation, its features are but just becoming outlined, and it has not yet completely settled its accounts with other tendencies in revolutionary thought which tend to divert the movement from the proper path…what at first sight appears to be an ‘unimportant’ mistake may give rise to most deplorable consequences…The fate of Russian Social Democracy for many, many years to come may be determined by the strengthening of one or the other ‘shade’ ”.

That was true in early twentieth century Russia, and it is true in America today.

The second reason is that ”the Social Democratic movement is essentially an international movement…a movement that is starting in a young country can be successful only on the condition that it assimilates the experience of other countries…a reserve of theoretical forces and political (as well as revolutionary) experience is required to fulfill this task”.

We can learn a great deal from the experience of the Russian revolution, especially as it so closely resembles our own approaching revolution.

The third reason is that ”the national tasks of Russian Social Democracy are such as have never confronted any other socialist party in the world…the role of vanguard can be fulfilled only by a party that is guided by an advanced theory”.

That was the advice of Lenin in the early twentieth century, to the Russian Social Democratic  Labor Party, of which Lenin was the leader. At that time the Russian working class was in the vanguard of  the international revolutionary movement. In fact, the 1917 November Russian revolution was successful, but only because the working people followed the revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin.

It may be objected that the overthrow of the Czar, in the spring of 1917, happened even without the leadership of Lenin and the other Marxists. That is true, but only because Lenin and all the other Marxists had been thrown in prison and either killed or exiled. The Czar was overthrown as a result of a spontaneous uprising of the people. This created a political vacuum, which gave the capitalists the chance to set up a democratic republic, under the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie, of course. This became known as the Karensky regime. The Mensheviks, the self proclaimed Marxists, gave this capitalist regime their full support. That is the Menshevik, or Economist, idea of a successful revolution.

It should come as no great surprise to anyone that Lenin and the other Marxists were of a different opinion. They considered this a betrayal of socialism, as indeed it was. In response, Lenin wrote another masterpiece, State and Revolution, which will be the subject of my next article. For the moment, suffice it to say that as a result of this, the Russian revolution of 1917 was carried through to socialism and the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. I mention this in an attempt to persuade people of the importance of the revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin.

To return to the current situation in America, the American working class is now in the vanguard of the international working class movement. The approaching revolution in the United States (America) will certainly spread to other parts of North America, and very likely South America.

That is a heavy burden, but I have no doubt the American workers will rise to the occasion. They have done it before, and they will do it again. They are a proud people, with a proud history of revolution. The only thing lacking now is the leaders.

That is where we come in. As Marxists, conscious people, it is up to us to lead the working class movement, to bring to the working class the awareness of itself as a class, with interests which are diametrically opposed to the interests of the capitalists, of the necessity of revolution and the subsequent Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.

At the same time, we can expect opposition from the capitalists and their servants, the belly crawling boot lickers within the working class, including those who claim to be socialists or Marxists. We have got to distinguish ourselves from those people and form a proper Communist Party at the same time. The success of the approaching revolution depends on this. Failure is not an option. The working class, and not just of America, is counting on us.

Revolution is also taking place in other parts of the world. In Asia, the working people of Hong Kong are also in the vanguard, defying the Chinese authorities, those who have embraced capitalism. In Europe, the people of France are taking part in a movement referred to as the Yellow Vest protest. They too are leading the revolutionary motion, and deserve our support.

No doubt most of the people who have recently become politically active are gravitating to socialist parties, or at least parties which claim to be socialist. Many such people are sure to find themselves disillusioned to find that these so called socialist parties are merely parties of social reform. The natural response is to explain to the leaders of these ”socialist” parties the error of their ways.

Invariably, the response of these Economists, masquerading as socialists, is to resort to anger. As Lenin pointed out, they want no part of criticism. If the newly created politically conscious people are capable of persuading the leaders of any ”socialist” party to become Marxists, to call for revolution and the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat, more power to them. Good luck with that. It is not about to happen. The leaders of such ”socialist” parties are liberals, social reformers masquerading as Marxists, and deeply entrenched. They are not about to respond to sweet reason. They have heard it all before, and are set in their ways. Trying to impress them with logic is similar to throwing water at a duck.

The alternative is to take part in the formation of a revolutionary Communist Party. This can be done, but only by intellectuals. Whether these intellectuals are members of the working class, current or former members of the middle class, it matters not. Bear in mind that both Marx and Lenin were members of the middle class. The obstacles they faced were far greater than the obstacles we face. They turned their backs on a comfortable middle class existence and chose to do the principled thing. We too can choose to do the principled thing and build upon their work, or we can choose to do the easy thing.

To proceed with our study of What Is To Be Done?, Lenin provides a rather lengthy quote of Engels, to the effect that there are three forms of the great struggle Social Democracy is waging, political, economic and theoretical. He stresses that the theoretical struggle is every bit as important as the political and economic struggle. This is not something our modern day Economists, would be socialists, want to hear.

Lenin goes on to say that the ”spontaneous element” represents ”nothing more nor less than consciousness in an embryonic form…there could not yet be Social Democratic consciousness among the workers. This consciousness could only be brought to them from without… the working class, exclusively by its own effort, is able to develop only trade union consciousness..The theory of socialism, however, grew out of the philosophic, historical and economic theories that were elaborated by the educated representatives of the propertied classes, the intellectuals. According to their social status, the founders of modern scientific socialism, Marx and Engels, themselves belonged to the bourgeois intelligentsia.”  (italics by Lenin). We could add that Lenin too was a middle class intellectual, a lawyer by training.

The fact that Lenin placed such importance on the raising of the level of consciousness of the working class, to that of Marxists, stands in stark contrast to that of the Economists. As Lenin phrased it, ”people appeared – and even Social Democratic organs – who were prepared to regard short comings as a virtue, who even tried to invent a theoretical basis for slavish cringing before spontaneity.” (italics by Lenin)

Now those ”Social Democratic organs”, which bow down to spontaneity, are the rule and not the exception.

Lenin also had a few words to say concerning ideology. ”Since there can be no talk of an independent ideology being developed by the masses of the workers in the process of their movement, the only choice is : either bourgeois or socialist ideology. …to belittle socialist ideology in any way, to deviate from it in the slightest degree means strengthening bourgeois ideology…for the spontaneous labor movement is pure and simple trade unionism…and trade unionism means the ideological enslavement of the workers to the bourgeoisie. …the task of Social Democracy is to combat spontaneity, to divert the labor movement from its spontaneous, trade unionist strivings to go under the wing of the bourgeoisie, and to bring it under the wing of revolutionary Social Democracy….The working class spontaneously gravitates towards socialism, but the more widespread (and continuously revived in the most diverse forms) bourgeois ideology spontaneously imposes itself upon the working class still more. (All italics by Lenin)

In my opinion Lenin sums this up quite nicely when he says ”The Social Democrats ideal should not be a trade union secretary but a tribune of the people, able to react to every manifestation of tyranny and oppression…he must be able to take advantage of every petty event in order to explain his socialist convictions and his Social Democratic demands to all, in order to explain to all and everyone the world historic significance of the struggle for the emancipation of the proletariat.” (all italics by Lenin)

I most sincerely hope that gives the reader some idea of the importance of What Is To Be Done? I have done my best to present the most urgent, most pressing tasks now facing Marxists. As the revolution could break out any day now, there is no time to waste. I just hope this inspires the reader to conduct a careful study of this book.

In fraternal comradeship

Gerald McIsaac

Since Trump was sworn in as president two years ago, we have been deluged with political hype, the most prominent one being ”wait until the midterms”. The idea was that the Democratic Party would sweep the House of Representatives, referred to as the Congress, and hopefully the Senate. The implication was that at that time, Trump would be stopped, the forces of democracy would prevail, and America would enter an age of peace and tranquility.

Well, now the midterms are over, the Democrats have control of the House, the Republicans still control the Senate, Trump is still president, and the country has yet to enter the Age of Aquarius. Harmony and understanding are hardly the order of the day. There are perhaps one million government workers who can testify to that, and their numbers are growing. Half of them are out of work, and the other half are expected to work without pay. The government shut down has now entered its fourth week and there is no end in sight. The people who are responsible for the shut down are not speaking to each other. Trump and the leaders of the Democratic party are not on speaking terms. The press is reporting that the shut down could last until the end of February.

Workers are not taking this lying down. They are demonstrating, demanding to be treated with the respect they deserve. Some are calling in sick, even though it could cost them their jobs. Others, such as the air traffic controllers, are suing the government. Their democratic rights, as are guaranteed in the constitution, are being violated. Many other workers are losing their jobs daily, as ever more government agencies are running out of money.

The only people who work for the government, with no fear of unemployment, are the politicians. In fact, they just gave themselves a raise. Further, the White House just hired more lawyers, at tax payer expense, so that they can protect the president. It is such details which must be driven home to the working class.

The level of awareness of the working class, the proletariat, must be raised. The only way in which this can be done is by using particular examples, taken from everyday life. The shut down is merely one example, to which all working people can relate. We can use this example, and numerous others, to drive home the point that the working class exists, and the interests of the working class are diametrically opposed to the interests of the capitalist class, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie. It is only through such examples, and repetition, that the level of awareness of the working class can be raised to the level of a conscious person, a Marxist.

The current situation is similar to the situation which existed in Europe, immediately after the end of the First World War. As Lenin pointed out, its ”greatest misfortune and danger is that it has no revolutionary party. It has parties of traitors …and servile souls…but it has on revolutionary party.” But then he goes on to say ”a mighty popular revolutionary movement may rectify this deficiency, but it is nevertheless a serious misfortune and a grave danger”.

We are now in the midst of ”a mighty popular revolutionary movement” and it is up to us to ”rectify this deficiency” as it indeed presents a ”serious misfortune and a grave danger”. The Communist Party can be created, it must be created, and it will be created.

We must also be careful to distinguish ourselves from the ”parties of traitors and servile souls”, those who claim to be communist, or socialist, or Marxist Leninist or just plain left leaning. I think the best way to do this is by calling ourselves Communist Party,DOP, in that DOP stands for Dictatorship of the Proletariat.

I can think of no other way to distinguish ourselves from the ”independent socialists” and the parties of ”traitors and servile souls”, those who claim to be communist or socialist or Marxist Leninist, while at the same time repudiating revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat. Such people are merely social reformers.

As for those who object that giving a name to a political party which does not even exist is akin to putting the cart before the horse, I can only respond that we have not only to lead the revolution onto a proper course of scientific socialism, but we also have to form a party, at the same time. The party will be based upon the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat, a basic tenet of Marxism. I consider the choice of a proper name the first step towards the formation of the party.

As we are in the midst of a ”mighty popular revolutionary movement”, this means that a great many people are currently politically active, or have ”woken up”, as they phrased it. They are demanding change, and most are not satisfied with petty reforms, even though such reforms are important in their own right. They are merely a step in the right direction. Such people tend to gravitate to ”leftist” political parties, which makes complete sense. They then find that these political parties are indeed filled with ”servile souls”, to use the rather accurate appellation of Lenin. Such people are determined to patch up the system. They are social reformers, not revolutionaries, not Marxists, even though many of them claim to be Marxists. Instead, they are loyal servants of the bourgeoisie, careful not to demand anything that is not acceptable to their masters, the billionaires, the capitalists, the bourgeoisie.

There are a few things which are not acceptable to the bourgeoisie, and the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat tops the list. That can only happen if the proletariat becomes aware of itself as a class, aware of the revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, and takes the appropriate action.

So now we have a very strong revolutionary motion, and the social reformers, those ”servile souls”, are determined to divert the revolution onto some harmless path of social reform, harmless in the sense that it is acceptable to the bourgeoisie. The people who have recently become politically active are not satisfied with this belly crawling behavior, and are looking for an alternative. That is the reason I am suggesting the Communist Party ,DOP.

No doubt many of these newly minted revolutionaries are interested in taking part in the formation of such a party. Using the electronic devices which are currently available, it should not be as difficult as it once was. The platform of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, at the time of Lenin, can be used as a guide. Not all of it applies, as for example, at that time, the majority of the Russian people were peasants. So such a platform must be adjusted to fit the current American situation.

This brings us back to the elections, and the non stop campaigning, which most people find to be quite tiresome, if for no other reason than that they are a bore. This is not to say that we should avoid running for office, just that we should avoid being a bore.

Now that the midterms are a thing of the past, the bourgeois politicians are focusing on the 2020 elections, as they refer to them. Several people have already ”thrown their hats into the ring”, as they phrase it, determined to run for president, at least for the Democratic party. There is talk that members of the Republican party may also run for president, against Trump. This sort of talk is referred to as a ”trial balloon”, and is just as boring as any other balloon. Then there are the races for the governors, House of Representatives, Senate and numerous local offices, such as mayor and city council. The list is endless.

Rather than ignore these political races, perhaps it would be best to embrace them. To ignore these political platforms is to surrender the field to the bourgeoisie, as the only difference between the Democrats and the Republicans is in the spelling. Both serve the same class, with equal enthusiasm. All are devoted servants, lackeys, belly crawling boot lickers. All serve at the pleasure of the bourgeoisie. The trouble is that many working class people are not aware of this. They think the democrats are fine, progressive soul, who are anxious to set things straight.

The only exception is the odd ”independent socialist”, as that is the words they use to describe themselves. They are utopian socialists, and although mistaken, as the system cannot be changed from within, they must be respected. They are not the enemy, and no Marxist should run in any political campaign against them.

Instead, we should call for an alliance with any and all self styled independent socialist, or a socialist by any other name. All should be encouraged to join the two mainstream political parties, as card carrying members. In fact, we want all members of all Leftist parties and groups to join the Republican Party, as well as the Democratic Party. If enough Leftist people join the two parties, we may have not only Democratic Socialists but also Republican Socialists. Bear in mind that the card carrying members of the parties are the party bosses, and they select the individuals to run for any and all political office. If both parties have the same party bosses, then one socialist candidate could conceivably run for office, on behalf of both parties. The only thing required is that a majority of card carrying members be Leftist people.

That is where the members of the public come into the picture. No doubt the seniors, students, union members and working people of all walks of life will be interested in taking part in the democratic process. We just have to present them with the opportunity. Then it is a matter of working together to elect honest people, those who may or may not be socialists, to any and all political offices. At the very least, we can reasonably expect to send a great many people to Washington who are at least sympathetic to the idea of socialism.

The number of seats in Congress or any place else is of no concern to us, as we are not interested in seats. Our goal is to carry our message, to raise the level of awareness of the working class, to make the working class aware of itself as a class, aware of the necessity and inevitability of revolution and of the subsequent Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. At the same time, we want to prepare workers for that dictatorship.

In short, our goal is to transform workers, or at least the most advanced workers, into Marxists. At the same time, having such people in Washington, at the time of the revolution, can only work to our advantage.

The election will give us an opportunity to explain to voters, the working people, that scientific socialism is far superior to capitalism, that the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat is far superior to the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie, whether it is in the form of Trump or anyone else. Further, to place the democrats in control of the White House, Senate and House of Representatives will change nothing. The sooner this happens, the sooner the workers will see that we are right.

We must keep upper most in mind that our goal is to further the revolution, to raise the level of awareness of the working class, not to win political office and seize political power. We can use the campaign to make the point that capitalism is the problem, and the one and only solution lies in scientific socialism, achieved through revolution and the subsequent Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.

The next federal election is still almost two years away, but that could change as the bourgeoisie, the ruling class, is forced to change their method of rule. The revolutionary motion is growing ever stronger, so that full scale armed revolt could break out any day, not only in America but anywhere else in the world. In fact, I am surprised it has not happened already. In case it does break out, then the option of running for political office is ruled out.

We must also avoid becoming a crashing bore, as most people who run for political office are just that. We must point out current instances of abuse, of which there is no shortage. Current such examples include the shut down, the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, the recent article in the NYT which allege that Trump is a Russian agent, the even more recent article in the Washington Post which allege that Trump concealed the substance of his meetings with the President Putin of Russia. We may also point out to workers that one of the strongest supporters of Trump, Fox News, straight out asked Trump if he was a Russian agent. Trump responded for two minutes without once using the word ”no”.

It is details such as these which concern working people. Most of them are avid readers, and pay attention to such things. Granted, their vocabulary may be somewhat limited, so it is necessary to explain things in rather popular language, even very popular language for those who are much less advanced, although such popular language must certainly not be  vulgar. Then from the particular it is necessary to proceed to the general, to stress the fact that paltry reforms are merely a stop gap measure, that a revolution is necessary.

Another fine current example is the ”yellow vest” movement in France. It started as a protest against high fuel prices, was attacked quite fiercely by the government, appeared to die down, but is now stronger than ever, and is now reported as a protest against ”social injustice”. The bourgeois press is careful not to refer to it as a revolutionary movement. They do not want to give workers any bright ideas.

In fact, and this should be explained to all workers, the uprising in France is similar to the uprising in America. It is all part of an international revolutionary movement. We are not alone.

We are on the eve of a socialist revolution, one which can be expected to spread around the world. Now, more than ever, it is imperative to make the working class aware of the slogans:

Workers of the World, Unite!

Scientific Socialism!

Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

As I write this, the American government shut down has entered its twenty second day, officially making it the longest such shut down in history. Close to a million government workers are either out of work, or forced to work without pay. The number is growing, as other government agencies, such as the federal courts, also run out of money.

The workers are not taking this lying down. They are proud people, who want to earn an honest living. They are asking only for a ”days pay for a days work”, which is completely reasonable.

Instead of jobs, the government is advising them to ”have garage sales and walk dogs”. This advice the workers find offensive, as indeed it is. They are picketing, and their signs make it clear that they want to work. They are workers, not pawns, not at all happy to be caught in this glorified chess game the politicians are playing. They are also voters, and are making that fact quite clear.

Trump says that these workers approve of the shut down, and that he can relate to them. Of all his lies, this is perhaps the most flagrant. The fact is that he is a capitalist, has been filthy rich all his life, and has more money than he can ever hope to spend. Now to suggest that he can relate to workers who are struggling to make ends meet, is completely absurd.

Into this explosive situation, the New York Times just released another bombshell. As one of the most highly respected newspapers in the country, this report is not to be taken lightly. A source more favourably inclined towards capitalism – to put it mildly – would be difficult to find. That being said, it is safe to assume we can trust the details which they report are accurate. These details may well cause Trump to be removed from office.

The headlines are completely shocking: ”FBI Opened Inquiry Into Whether Trump Was Secretly Working On Behalf Of Russians”.

When I refer to this as a bombshell, that is not an exaggeration. If these allegations are true, then Trump, the president of the United States, could well be charged with treason.

The NYT reports that the FBI became suspicious of Trump and his associates even before he became president, but was running for office.  As they phrased it, the FBI was ”uncertain how to proceed with an inquiry of such sensitivity and magnitude”.

We can hardly blame the FBI for not immediately proceeding with an investigation into a candidate for the presidency. Such an investigation would have very likely resulted in the career suicide of the agents taking part in the investigation. Self preservation instincts kicked in, prompting their silence.

The situation changed dramatically shortly after Trump became president and fired the head of the FBI. At that time the American capitalists, the bourgeoisie, determined that their golden boy was a loose cannon, and had to be removed. It is very possible that the Russian capitalists were of the same opinion. Either way, the people who work behind the scenes, on behalf of the bourgeoisie, ”advised” the FBI to proceed with the investigation, as Trump was considered to be a liability, and had to go.

As the NYT reports it, the ”FBI opened an inquiry into whether Trump was secretly working on behalf of Russia”, either ”knowingly or had unwittingly fallen under Russian influence”. This is considered a ”possible threat to national security”.

That is a masterpiece of under statement, as the Russians are considered ”foreign adversaries”.

The writers for the NYT certainly have a way with words.

The investigation, which first began as a possible ”obstruction of justice”, on the part of Trump, has expanded into an investigation into a possible ”threat to national security”.

If Trump is indeed working for the Russians, then it is safe to say the ”threat to national security” is very real.

This helps to explain the hiring of a small army of lawyers, at the expense of the tax payers, of course, whose job it is to protect the ”executive privilege” of the president. Trump does not want the members of the public, the working people, or the politicians, the democratically elected members of the House and Senate, to be made aware of that which he has been doing. As that very likely includes being in the service of the Russians, as the NYT alleges, such an attitude is completely understandable.

The investigation into Trump, which was started by the FBI, has since been turned over to the Special Prosecutor. It is expected that his report should be finished soon, and Trump is determined to bury it. Perish forbid that tax payers should find out just what he has been up to.

It is up to Marxists to stress to working people, including those who are currently unemployed due to the government shut down, that Trump and the capitalists can afford to hire an army of lawyers to protect the president, to shield him from the members of the public, as well as members of congress, to keep the tax payers in the dark as to the manner in which their tax dollars are spent, but cannot afford to pay government workers!

It is only the Senate that has the power to remove the president from office, and only by a vote of two thirds, and only upon conviction of charges of ”treason and other high crimes and misdemeanors”, as specified by the Constitution. The crimes which Trump is alleged to have committed certainly fit that category.

This is not to say that his removal from office is assured, as it requires very strong pressure ”from below”, as is the currently correct political expression. That means only the uprising of millions of working people will secure his removal from office. It is only under such pressure that the Senate will take action. In other words, a revolution is necessary, and in fact, it is inevitable.

The point must be driven home to the working people that Trump is not the problem. Capitalism is the problem, the bourgeoisie is the problem, removing Trump from office will not change that fact. He will merely be replaced by another stooge of the capitalists, and the class war will continue.

It just means that another clown will assume the office of the presidency – the current vice president comes to mind – and the deception of the people will continue. The current crisis in capitalism will continue to be portrayed as a crisis at the border. The working people will continue to be slandered. The desperate hard working people streaming towards the southern border will continue to be portrayed as thieves, terrorists, rapists and murderers. In fact, they are trying to escape desperate poverty and degradation, seeking a better way of life, just as our ancestors, in a similar situation, came to this country, many years ago.

Only the transfer of all political power to the proletariat can solve the problems of capitalism, that of war, poverty, unemployment and starvation. Further, that transfer of power can only take place through revolution. That revolution can only be successful if the working class, the proletariat, follows the teachings of Marx and Lenin. There is no alternative to scientific socialism.

It was Lenin who stressed that without a revolutionary theory, there can be no revolutionary motion. That is a fact, just as it is a fact that the Marxist Leninist movement is by its very essence an international movement. It is up to us to support our brothers and sisters, our comrades, who are seeking to enter the country, in their quest for a better way of life. It may help to regard them as our own ancestors of years ago.

Finally, Lenin also stressed that the ”role of vanguard fighter can be fulfilled only by a party that is guided by the most advanced theory.” As yet, there is no such party in existence, so it is the duty of the most advanced members of the proletariat, along with people who are aware of class distinctions, to form such a party.

Now is not the time for despair. Now is the time for action.