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

372V. I. LENINintroduced a revolutionary agrarian bill demanding the nationalisationof all lands and their distribution by localcommittees elected on the basis of complete democracy.Such a revolution would not, in itself, be socialism. Butit would give a great impetus to the world labour movement.It would immensely strengthen the position of thesocialist proletariat in Russia and its influence on theagricultural labourers and the poorest peasants. It wouldenable the city proletariat to develop, on the strength ofthis influence, such revolutionary organisations as the Sovietsof Workers’ Deputies to replace the old instruments ofoppression employed by bourgeois states, the army, theFROM MARXTO MAOpolice, the bureaucracy; to carry out—under pressure ofthe unbearably burdensome imperialist war and its conse-⋆quences—a series of revolutionary measures to control theproduction and distribution of goods.Single-handed, the Russian proletariat cannot bring thesocialist revolution to a victorious conclusion. But it cangive the Russian revolution a mighty sweep that would createthe most favourable conditions for a socialist revolution,and would, in a sense, start it. It can facilitate the rise of asituation in which its chief, its most trustworthy and mostreliable collaborator, the European and American socialistproletariat, could join NOT the decisive FOR battles.Let the sceptics despair because of the temporary triumphwithin the European socialist movement of such disgustinglackeys of theCOMMERCIALimperialist bourgeoisie as the Scheidemanns,Legiens, Davids and Co. in Germany; Sembat, Guesde,Renaudel and DISTRIBUTIONCo. in France; the Fabians and the Labouritesin England. We are firmly convinced that this filthyfroth on the surface of the world labour movement willbe soon swept away by the waves of revolution.In Germany there is already a seething unrest of theproletarian masses, who contributed so much to humanityand socialism by their persistent, unyielding, sustained organisationalwork during the long decades of European“calm”, from 1871 to 1914. The future of German socialismis represented not by the traitors, the Scheidemanns, Legiens,Davids and Co., nor by the vacillating and spinelesspoliticians, Haase, Kautsky and their ilk, who have been enfeebledby the routine of the period of “peace”.