Polemic on General Line of International ... - From Marx to Mao

ut also on the preparations and efforts made by the subjectiverevolutionary forces.It is “Left” adventurism if the party of the proletariatdoes not accurately appraise both the objective conditionsand subjective forces making for revolution and if itrashly launches a revolution before the conditions areripe. But it is Right opportunism, or revisionism, if the proletarianparty makes no active preparations for revolution beforethe conditions are ripe, or dare not lead a revolution andseize state power when a revolutionary situation exists and theconditions are ripe.Until the time arrives for seizing state power, the fundamentaland most important task for the proletarian party is toconcentrate on the painstaking work of accumulating revolutionarystrength. The active leadership given in day-to-daystruggle must have as its central aim the building up ofrevolutionary strength and the preparations for seizing victoryin the revolution when the conditions are ripe. The proletarianparty should use the various forms of day-to-daystruggle to raise the political consciousness of the proletariatand the masses of the people, to train its own class forces, totemper its fighting capacity and to prepare for revolutionideologically, politically, organizationally and militarily. It isonly in this way that it will not miss the opportunity of seizingvictory when the conditions for revolution are ripe. Otherwise,the proletarian party will simply let the opportunity ofmaking revolution slip by even when a revolutionary situationobjectively exists.While tirelessly stressing that no revolution should be madein the absence of a revolutionary situation, the leaders of theCPSU avoid the question of how the party of the proletariatshould conduct day-today revolutionary struggle and accumulaterevolutionary strength before there is a revolutionarysituation. In reality, they are renouncing the task of buildingup revolutionary strength and preparing for revolution on thepretext of the absence of a revolutionary situation.393