Lore: Our National Executive Committee [Jan. 1918] 1 Our National Executive Committee [an editorial] by Ludwig Lore Published in The Class Struggle [New York], v. 2, no. 1 (Jan.-Feb. 1918), pp. 123-125. More than 9 weeks have passed since the sive action on this question, on a matter that in 25th of [October, old style] 1917, when the revo- importance overshadowed all other questions a lutionary Russian proletariat took the power of thousandfold. They preferred to wait for devel- government into its own determined hands. And opments in Russia, to see whether or not the Bol- the Socialist Party of the United States has not yet sheviki would be maintained in power. After all, taken a stand. where is the wisdom of compromising oneself for Not for lack of opportunity; on the contrary a course whose “stability” is by no means assured, the situation has fairly clamored for action from which tomorrow may have become a “dead” is- our controlling party authorities. On the 16th and sue? 17th of December [1917] the National Executive How very differently the European Socialist Committee met in Chicago in its regular quar- parties have acted. The national convention of the terly session. A more suitable occasion for a dec- Swiss Social Democracy that met at the end of laration can hardly be imagined. It eliminated even November sent heartiest greetings to the Russian the necessity of an initiative by one of the 5 mem- revolutionary government, assured it of its soli- bers of the Executive Committee. Local Kings darity, and endorsed its program. The “British County (Brooklyn), and, as we have recently Socialist Party,” the Independent Labour Party of learned, Local Boston, Mass., as well, requested Great Britain, the French party, the Social Demo- the NEC to issue a call to the locals throughout cratic parties of the three Scandinavian countries, the country for the holding of meetings in sup- the minority and majority parties in Germany, the port of the demands made by the Lenin-Trotsky Socialist movement of Austria, the Italian Social cabinet for an immediate armistice and a demo- Democracy, and even the Labour Party of Great cratic peace on the basis of no annexations or in- Britain, declared their solidarity, in one way or demnities, and the self-determination of nations. another, with the Bolshevist government. In a The report of this session of the Executive Com- word: all parties formerly affiliated with the In- mittee that appeared in the December issue of the ternational, even those whose social patriotic in- National Office Review shows how the question clinations made them obviously sympathetic to was decided: by motion, action was deferred un- the overthrown Kerensky government, sent mes- til the question of party policy could be taken up. sages of sympathy and solidarity to the courageous In other words, our 5 national leaders, the comrades in Russia — all, that is, except the So- comrades Victor L. Berger, Morris Hillquit, Anna cialist Party and, of course, the hopelessly sterile Maley, Seymour Stedman, and John M. Work, “Socialist Labor Party.” Arm in arm the two felt that the time had not yet come to take deci- American Socialists organizations, or rather their 1 2 Lore: Our National Executive Committee [Jan. 1918] Executives, have sternly called the Socialist world have though out and planned their activity down back into its bounds. They prefer to play safe, and, to the minutest detail. But the iron consistency like respectable business concerns, virtuously de- with which they have carried out their resolutions, cline to undertake anything that smacks of ad- the infallibility with which their plans become ac- venture. tion, are so different from the habit of coining Now, to be sure, we may expect an official high-sounding phrases without going out of one’s declaration of our “leaders” at any moment. For, way to carry them out. In a word, our leaders are in the meantime, the highest official of the United wholly out of sympathy with the Bolsheviki — it States has uttered words of highest appreciation could not be otherwise. for the revolutionists of Russia. Under the circum- In the new epoch of severe social struggles stances it is not likely that the opportunistic poli- into which the world is evolving, the Socialist ticians that make up our Executive Committee movement of the world, and certainly that of the will hesitate much longer, especially since the party United States, will sorely need the socialist clear- membership is clamoring more and more urgently ness, the revolutionary determination, the prole- and unanimously for a declaration of sympathy. tarian fearlessness and consistency of the Bolshe- Our leading elements recognize this and will draw viki. the consequences. Spirit and tactics of the Third International But it would be a mistake to assume that will be permeated with the spirit of the Bolshevi- our National Executive postponed decisive action ki, or it will cease to be. The new election of the because it feared the consequences of a declara- National Executive that is already under way gives tion of solidarity with our Russian comrades. the Socialists of the United States the opportu- Though our Executive Committee has never been nity to “do their bit” in preparing the Socialist remarkable for its courage, it could and would have movement to cope with the problems that are found some way, some “safe” form of expression. awaiting it. L. What really prevented a declaration was honest distaste for the Bolshevist tactics. These people • • • • • were so uncompromisingly revolutionary, so little respectable, so ridiculously proletarian. It must be As the magazine goes to press the National Ex- admitted that the Bolshevist government, under ecutive Committee is heard from. The declaration the leadership of Lenin, Trotsky, Kamenev, Zino- comes too late to have the influence that should be viev, not only brought its plan of action into the exerted by such an important appeal of our Party. fullest accord with socialist theory, but that they Edited by Tim Davenport. Published by 1000 Flowers Publishing, Corvallis, OR, 2007. • Non-commercial reproduction permitted. http://www.marxisthistory.org.