Lenin CW-Vol. 23.pdf - From Marx to Mao

214V. I. LENINreduced to naught, or carried out with police and reactionaryrestrictions that will rule out the very possibility of theproletariat using them in a repeated fight for the revolution.(f) Socialists must make a serious effort to bring to realityKarl Liebknecht’s slogan. The popularity that name enjoysamong the masses is a guarantee that revolutionary activityis both possible and likely to succeed. The attitude ofScheidemann and Co., Kautsky and Co. towards thatname is an example of hypocrisy: in words they swear bythe “Liebknechts of all countries”; in deeds they combatLiebknecht’s tactics.Liebknecht broke not only with the Scheidemanns(Renaudels, Plekhanovs, Bissolatis), but also with theKautsky trend (Longuet, Axelrod, Turati).Liebknecht declared, as early as October 2, 1914, in hisletter to the Party Executive:“Ich habe erklärt, dass die deutsche Partei, nach meinerinnersten Überzeugung, von der Haut bis zum Mark regeneriertwerden muss, wenn sie das Recht nicht verwirkenwill, sich sozialdemokratisch zu nennen, wenn sie sich diejetzt gründlich verscherzte Achtung der Welt wiedererwerbenwill.” (Klassenkampf gegen den Krieg! Material zum“Fall Liebknecht”. Seite 22.) (Geheim gedruckt in Deutschland:“Als Manuskript gedruckt”.)*All parties should take up Liebknecht’s slogan and itwould certainly be ridiculous to even think of being ableto turn it into effect without ridding the party of theScheidemanns, Legiens, Renaudels, Sembats, Plekhanovs,Vanderveldes and Co., or without denouncing the policy ofconcessions to the trend represented by Kautsky, Turati,Longuet and Merrheim.* * *10. We therefore suggest a conference of Zimmerwaldsupporters to discuss the following proposals:* I have declared my deep conviction that, if it does not want toforfeit the right to call itself a Social-Democratic party, if it wants torestore its prestige in the eyes of the world, now so thoroughly undermined,the German party must be regenerated from top to bottom.(Class Struggle After the War! Materials in the “Liebknecht Case”,p. 22.) (Printed secretly in Germany: Published as a manuscript.)—Ed.