The Daily Worker Newspaper, September 12, 1930, Page 4

Published by New re and Page Four mai? at 26 At THE ECONOMIC CRISIS IN THE) UNITED STATES | | By G. WILLIAMS. From a speech delivered at the Seventh Convention of the C. P. U. S. A. Continued) x the crisis is deepening. Marx also established these typical features of economic crises, such as the sharpening of the fall in production, growing unemployment, so-called “easy” or “cheap” money, etc.—a sharp period of the decline of cap economy, then a period of stagnation, so-called economic de- pression. If we take the present economic we must say that all these typical fe: s of a Marxian economic crisis are here; e sharp fall of production, unemployment, everything is here. The characterization of this ¢ as a cyclical crisis in the Third Per- iod of the general crisis of the capitalist sys- tem, is absolutely correct. Even the C. I. spoke of this crisis as a “cyclical” crisis. In , it is important to explain and try ce the comrades, and not merely show mething in print. ne comrades say, “Show me in print and believe it.” If Comrade Smith wants me to show it in print, I could show that even in many responsible documents of many re- sponsible comrades of the CI, the same expres- sion of a “cyclical” crisis has been used. In fa January the CI issued a special number of its magazine, “The Communist International,” on the question of the world economic crisis, and an editorial in that issue declared that a crisis had taken place at the end of 1929 in the United States which has all the features of a “normal,” cyclical crisis of capitalism, and is the result of the inner development of American capitalism as well as the result of world capitalism, In the last issue of the “Inprecorr,” Comrade Varga gives an economic analysis of the world situation and declares that for the first time since the war, we can trace a uniform and uni- versal phase of an industrial cycle. But in my opinion, he exaggerates the uniformity of the cyclical crisis and forgets the uneven develop- ment. But the analysis of the crisis as a cy- clica] crisis is correct. The State Planning: Commission, a very re- sponsible institution in the Soviet Union, is- sued a special book on the economic crisis in the United States, and in the first article, one of the leaders of this very responsible insti- tution of the Soviet Union declared that the present crisis in the United States is a regu- jar “cyclical” crisis. In the same article, it is said that the present cyclical crisis in the conditions of the Third Period will accelerate the destruction of the capitalist system. If some comrades want to see it in print, and only after that be willing to accept it, I hope I have convinced them. What is the conclusion of this? The present economic crisis could not be understood cor- rectly otherwise than as a cyclical crisis of the whole world capitalist economy on the basis of the general crisis of world capitalism. The crisis is caused or produced by the main con- tradictions of capitalist society. It is modified in some respécts under imperialism and even more in the present period of the decay of capitalism, but all these secondary modifica- tions do not change the main nature of the crisis which is a typical cyclical crisis of capi- talist economy. To deny this would be to deny that in the capitalist system, which has its age, which is growing, decaying, dying, | throughout its whole life, its main contradic- tions, the economic crisis, remains, as well as more causes producing these crisis. Leftist Tendencies. At the same time some leftist tenJencies were manifested at this convention. Concern- ing the liquidation of the crisis, it was ob- jected, how can we speak of the liquidation of the crisis as our perspective, when the more the bourgeoisie tries to liquidate the crisis, the more the failure of the bourgeoisie deepens the economic crisis? In the elaboration of this conception, the bourgeoisie is represented as a factor which rules and plans the decline of the crisis, which smells too much of a theory of organized capi- talism. The bourgeoisie does not determine capitalist production but is driven by capitalist production. There was indicated too much of @ conscious policy on the part of the bour- geoisie. In our perspective we must see a very im- portant factor—the proletariat and the class struggle. The proletariat is not only a poli- tical factor determining, with its political fight, strikes, demonstrations, etc., the course of crises, the course of events; the proletariat is an important productive force, as important as machinery and many other things. It is an iaportant factor in capit ‘ist production, and the political and economic force of the pr tariat give conscious development to the eri We have to reject the theory about revolu- tions happening without political crises. Com- rade Bukharin, in the “Transitional Period,” stated that in the situation of the decay of forces of production, a situation of the break- ing down -of productive forces, there is no Possibility for a real recovery of industry. Comrade Lenin stated that it could be so pro- viding the proletariat would break it and thus * break industrial relations. The Theory of Catastrophe. “There is no escape from the crisis.” This “lulling to sleep” theory is a kind of oppor- tunist theory which rejects in practice the nec- essity of organizing the proletariat for strug- gle; rejects in theory our estimation of the destruction of the capitalist system as a con- scious action of the proletariat, which de- pends on the class consciousness of the prole- tariat. The Party must be prepared, the Party must Prepare the working class for this perspec- tive. Of course, the economice risis creates a very favorable condition for the development of a revolutionary situation, as was correctly stated in the thesis, and the present economic erlsis will bring, among many things, the im- mediate revolutionary situation in many coun- ‘tries. In his speech at the Plenum, Comrade Manuilsky correctly declared, that the econo- mic crisis opens tremendous perspectives for the transformation of the present revolution- ary tide into a revolutionary situation in the most advanced capitalist countries; that the struggle of class against class will bring about @ revolutionary situation. But, a revolutionary situation is not a revolution yet, and without the preparation of the proletariat the revolu- tion will not be brought about. So, comrades, it is necessary to carry out the dynamic estimation of the perspectives, Uneven Development. ome of the Detroit comrades replace the “nevga development of the crisis, with an un- even liquidation of the eri For them it is not developing but liq ting unevenly this connection, mrades, we have very sharply for our conception of the uneven development of the crisis. First of all, it is important for us to deter- inine whether capitalism will recover from the } crisis and how, or whether it will not. If you | have a perspective of the recovery of capital- | ism from the crisis and not a perspective of | the deepening of the crisis, you have to strike | out our thesis prepared for this convention, | strike out the resolutions of the last Plenum of the Comintern, and write another thesis based upon the perspectives of such liquida- tion, the recovery of capitalism from the crisis. t is easy to guess how such a thesis would look. Role of Capitalist Economists. What is the meaning of the prognosis of capitalist economists, the perspective of the so-called liquidation, the r ery from the | crisis? As correctly stated in the Resolution | of the C, L, our perspective is the perspective of the deepening of the old contradictions in | the Third Period, and the coming of a revolu- | tionary situation in the most advanced capi- | talist itries and colonies. tion of the the The social func- ans an the theories of the various bourgeois economists—beginning | with Hoover, who long ago declared that in sixty days” capitalism would recover from the crisis and ending with Ellsworth, a ser- ious economist from the “Annalist,” with his theory of from peak to peak, 36 months, and from valley to valley, 40 months—their gen- eral task is to keep among the American work- ers the illusion, about the soundness of capi- talism, about prosperity which will return very soon, and thus disarm the proletariat in the face of the deepening crisis. They, of course, | do not understand the nature of the present economic crisis, probably they don’t under- stand even the nature of the cyclical economic is. crisis. Because without Marxian theory, it is | impossible to understand anything in the | crisis. And, of course, they do not and can | not understand the importance and _perspec- tives connected with the crisis as a crisis tak- ing place in the situation of the general crisis of capitalism. And if the bourgeois economists think that a liquidation of this crisis means a real re- covery, means that capitalism will return to the situation which existed before the outbreak of the crisis, the situation of May and June of last year—what is our estimation of this recovery? A recovery in what sense? In the sense that the present phase of the crisis can be and will be replaced by a period of sharp, quick decline in production. This last week steel production fell from 3 to 5 per cent following the continued silent stock exchange crash which is now taking place. And it will be replaced by a period of deep-going depres- sion. But even in this acute phase of the crisis and in the period of a deep-going de- pression, it will be transformed. Does this mean that capitalism will “re- cover,” will return to the pre- situation? Not at all, because this crisis sharpens tre- mendously all the contradictions which existed before the outbreak of the crisis. To lose this connection between the economic crisis and the general crisis of world capitalism, will result inevitably in a repudiation of the per- spective of the Third Period. An analysis and criticism of the superficial theories of the bourgeois economists, also of those predic- ‘tions of “liquidation” of the economic crisis, cannot and must not be taken without con- sideration of the proletariat as a telling eco- nomic factor in connection with world capi- talism. The “Theoretician” Lovestone. Of course, you have to fight against theories of “uneven” Jiquidation of the cr (Detroit, Milwaukee, ete.), as an opportunistic under- estimation of the crisis. I am sure that in a few months, this theory will be brought by Lovestone as a general theoretic ‘basis for his attacks. “The economic cris said Love- stone, “did not come as a result of the gen- eral crisis of world capitalism. It came as a result of the very strength of the capitalist order.” Probably in a few months—as yet he speaks about a serious depression, a serious economic situation, and does not, even in his last thesis, give an analysis of the economic situation as a part of the world erisis—very soon he will take the theory about the recoy- ery of capitalism from the cris He will re- | peat his old estimation of American capital- ism. In the same article, he speaks about the development of American industry in fabulous terms. We must be warned against this theory of “liquidation,” of “recovery” of capitalism from the crisis, because it will inevitably lead to this conception of unheard of development, fabulous quantities, etc. So, comrades, in my opinion, regarding the economic crisis and the present situation which determines all our perspectives, we have to fight on two fronts, against leftist theories of catastrophe as well as against the perspec- tive of the “recovery of capitalism from the crisis and not of the further development of the crisis. Hands Off China! The Philadelphia branch of the All America Alliance of Chinese Anti-Imperialists have is- sued a manifesto detailing the victories of the Chinese Soviet Ahmies. The manifesto hails the working class revo- lution in China and hails the victories of the Chinese Red Army. It appeals to American workers to support the Chinese Workers and Peasants Revolution and demands a hands-off China policy from the American capitalist government, The manifesto concludes with the stogans: Down with imperialism! Hands off China! Greet Soviet China! The Daily Worker is the Party’s best in- strument to make contacts among the masses of workers, to build a mass Communist Party. Tammany grafters go free—the Unemployed Delegation is in prison—Vote Communist! Write as you Become a worker | correspondent, fight! 28 Union Weriy NY Daily THE WATCHDOG Strike Strategy By JACK JOHNSTONE. Article 10. re preparations for strike struggle, cannot be seriously thought of without major at- tention being given to the unemployed workers. Unemployment is and will be a major factor in all strikes. Not the same factor that un- employment played in the strike that occured during the previous crises, when capitalism was in ascendency, therefore expressing the growing pains of capitalism, when capitalism was able to dissolve the large army of un- employed with the overcoming of the crisis. through the development of new markets and new industries. This type of recovery of the present crisis is preluded by the fact that every capitalist country has entered this phase of capitalist over-production, where they find themselves with an industrial machinery developed far beyond the needs of the world’s capitalist mar- ket where the limits of extending that market has been reached and where the very process of wage cutting and speedup still further deep- ens the crisis. zWorker’ Central OnfomaNinc oS Rprynit Porty U.S.A. ‘Musteites’ Wolt Hide Shows Thru Fake Unemployment Scheme It is precisely in this period wwhen, for the | capitalist there are too many workers (to give work to, but not “enough” workers to sell their gocds to), that the potential industrial work- ing class grows more rapidly in numbers and becomes more poverty stricken, their ranks being swelled with the ruined petty bourgeois, the poor farmers, and the agricultural work- ers that formerly depended solely on his living from the land. In revolutionary strike strategy the perman- ancy of a large army of unemployed number- ing millions at the peak of capitalist “pros- perity” expresses an important ph decline of world capitalism—stabilization of industry at the expense of the workers—ex- presses the enlargement and not a dimin ing of this permanent army of unemployed and the deepening of the crisis of capitalism It is precisely this difference between pre- war and post war erises that must be under- stood and considered in revolutionary strike strategy and in the preparations for strike struggle in this period. The organizing of unemployed councils is a prerequisite to the preparation of strike strug- gle. It should be made clear to the unem- ployed worker that there is very little hope, if any, of finding a job in other cities or in- dustries, that where he is, is the place to stay and fight it out by organizing into industrial unemployed councils and to fight jointly with the employed worker. This is the major or- ganizational task of the T.U.U.L. and the revo- lutionary unions, The unemployed workers m»st be drawn into every leading strike committee, on to the picket line, they must be made to see and feel ‘hat they are part of the strike. Specific demands should be made and slogans raised to meet the needs of the unemployed. The 17-hour, 5-day week, unemployed insurance, immediate relief for the unemployed, mass struggle against evictions, free lodgings for the workers with- out a home, ete., must be brought forward in the preparations for the strike, and unem- ployed relief measures forced through both in the preparation and during the strike. In this important field the T.U.U.L. is far behind the fighting mood of the workers. March 6th and Sept. Ist showed that the Party and the T.U.U:L. have the ideological leadership of large sections of unemployed workers, still the organizing of unemployed councils progress- as at a snail’s pace, The unions and leagues are not giving suf- ficient attention to this important task. ‘The Needle Trades Workers Industrial Union which is now preparing for a strike in the dress sec- tion of the industry, While speaking almost se in the | * struggle, Manhattan and Brows / Sy mail everywhere: One year $6 New York ¢ SUL NATH » which are: One yr $8: Wo months $1: excepting Kore ghs of six mons $4.50 By J. BARNETT. Lr was to be expected that the Musteites would bring out an unemployment insurance bill, but instead of the usual camouflaged stab in the back, their proposal amounts to an open slap in the face of the workers. Let us see how the Musteite “progressives,” the Conference for Progressive Labor Action, plan to carry on their “militant” fight for the jobless. According to their proposals, the unemployed worker is to get no more than 49 per cent of his prevailing wage if he is single, or if he has a wife and two or more children, no more than 60 per cent is to be given. This would mean that a worker used to making for instance $20 per week, must not get more than $8 per week insurance or if married, with two or more children, not more than $12 per week. But this is still too bountiful for the Musteites, so they say that “in no case,” is insurance to be paid for more than 26 weeks in the year. Thus for example, if you have been making around an average wage of $25 per week and are thrown out of work, you would not be allowed to get any more than $260 insurance per year on which to live, or if married, with two or more children, you could not get more than $390 per year. These “progressive” labortories might ask some un- employed workers whether this isn’t still too much! It's a Sham. What does such a proposal mean? It means that these Musteites are not really interested in the workers getting a living. They are to let them starve even if by slower degrees. Who could seriously think that a family of four or more could begin to live on $390 per yeer, and in millions of cases of lower wages, it would mean much less. Perhaps the Muste- ites figured on soup and night shirts only Their ridiculous proposals clearly show that the role of the “progressive” laborites and the socialist party, with whom they cayort, is nothing but that of betrayers of Jabor, not will- ing to even propose steps to do away with the primary miseries of the unemployed. Sut most important is the fact that, as their record shows, they will not fight for even this. miser- able insurance; even if it were for only five cents, they would not put up a real militant struggle for the unemployed. They are merely using this scheme to help out capitalism. It is for the purpose of fight- ing the Communist Party ‘n the coming elec tions. Abraham Epstein, their Great High Priest and insurance Oracle, says that suc social legislation is a “cheap and effective so cial stabilator,” it is usefui to ward off ‘in- ternal upheavals during troublous times,” and states significantly, it is effective in counter- acting revolutionary movements. But the perfidy of the above proposals, limit- sing so drastically the amount of insurance which unemployed could receive, seems insig- nificant in comparison withstheir scheme for the administration of this insurance. Ao be certain that the workers would be cheated out of most of their little amount of insurance if the bill were passed, the administration of it is to be turned over to bureaus of the boss- controlled State Department *of Labor, and these state Lureaus are to be advised by bcss- controlled advisory boards composed of two daily to meetings of thousands of unemployed clothing workers, have only a skeleton of an unemployed council, ‘To underestimate the importance of organiz- ing unemployed councils by, industries as an essential part in the preparations for strike means that revolutionary strike strategy is not understood at all. ace employers’ representatives, one representative of the public, and two representatives of labor. What does the “public” stand for? It stands for the employers in disguise. It stands for the boss-controlled press, church, school, etc. Labor has discovered by painful experience that these “public” men always “stick” with their masters whenever it comes to a contest between laborers and employers. As if this were not enough to protect the capitalists, the Musteites propose that no in- surance shall be had except by the passage of state laws—48 state laws to be passed before it would cover the whole country. And em- ployers ust pay into the insurance fund for 12 months before the workers can get any in- surance. Perhaps the Musteites expect the unemployed to live on air in the meantime. But that apparently does not worry the Muste- ites at all. Next year, two years, five years, seem to make very little difference in their minds. Are they interested in ever getting any action! And there is no provisition for in- surance unless you already have a job from which to be fired. Evidently they expect the millions now without jobs to be taken care of by starvation. Still they are not satisfied. These proposals are to be sent to “bill draft- ing experts.” If the Musteites have forgotten anything, these bill experts will find it, and for good measure put in a few extra loop-holes. This outrageous farce would be presented to the unemployed by only tle most hardened in such despicable roles, as that of betraying workers while parading as “militant” leaders. | Spark. By JORGE Borneo Discovers Sunday Well, the erisis is like the ill wind, which— as everybod_ knows, must blow somebody good. We learned this when we read that the poor devils who have been working 16 hours a day, seven days a week for 10 cents and a few kicks, in the rubber plantations of Borneo, are for the first time in their lives getting Sunday off. Perhaps Bill Green will get Mattie Woll to demand that rubber from Borneo be stopped at the customs, as being produced by labor which “forced” to take a y off. This “compulsion” won't go with us “free” men. British Uplift in Borneo Speaking about Borneo, reminds us that the League of Nations Anti-Opium Commission, has a chairman that is an Englishman, and he says, after seven years’ investigation, that stopping the dope trade is “very complicated” and that perhaps in another years may make a report. Yet when this writer visited British North Borneo three years ago, at the port of Sand- akan, with the British flag flying high over the administration building, he found the fol- lowing: Right in the/center of the town, as central a point as Times Square, you could walk into a wide open door that has the sign over it: “Opium Smoking Farm” (a “farm” is a concession) and if a pipe there didn’t suit you, you eould walk up the block and buy any amount of opium you wanted by pay- of ticket window. You seven he ing for it at a sort could take it away and smoke it, or take it to *riseo or Hamburg, or where you pleased. Near the “Opium Smoking Farm,” and right on the main corner was the “Gambling Farm,” with all sides open to the tropical air. The floor was filled with fan tan and acrowd of all races—but the white. The British are sticklers on Jim Crow cus- toms. It would be immoral to gamble with the darker races, so the gambling hell for the “superior” white folks was upstairs! With Chinese dealers at the tables. An American chap along with me went into a saloon, and had the barkeeper set out two quarts of real stuff, one of “Black and White” and one other brand I’ve forgotten. “Too much!” he replied when asked $1.60. for both. Outside, I protested that. it was dirt cheap. “Oh, I didn’t want it anyhow,” he said. “I just wanted to write back to the States that I turned down an offer like that!” You see, | the British keep the “backward” races doped and drunk to keep them “backward”—also to keep them enslaved. The whole country is run by “the company.” On the money is printed: “One Dollar; Brit- ish North Borneo Trading Company.” The government is the company and the company is the government, and don’t make any bones about it. It’s the same here, only there’s a lot of companies, and they hire Hoover to gen- erally supervise things and call it a “republic.” Republic, my eye! It’s one big company town! ‘ * & It Happened in Sheboygan And it wasn’t half bad, though t’was sup- posed to be so awful bad that the American Legion, which was holding a convention in the town, where the officials wer warming the boys up with speeches against the terrible “Reds” who are “destroying the home,” na- tionalizing the women” (old maids included) kept the whole affair a dark secret—as long as possible. For one night during the convention, the commander of the post, with all the little com- manders who have at their command some of the niftiest prostitutes who ever did a dance in the altogether for a joint stag party of the Chamber of Commerce and the A. F. of L., whispered one by one to each of the delegates that there was just one of those kind of “parties” on at a ritzy roadhouse just outside the city lim‘ts. The roadhouse is named “Top ’O the Morning,” and is run by a sportsman named Nichols. Nichols swears, however, that he was not collecting nickels that night, but a dame iden- tified vaguely as “a woman from Milwaukee” (a socialist town, Oi, Oi!) had bought the con- | cession “for the night,” and truly, when the | Legion boys, in legions came piling into the roadhouse, the “lady from Milwaukee” w: From open capitalist allies we expect a seli out. We must learn, also, from such damning evidence as this, the false and reformist char acter of these “under cover” allies of the bo: es, the Musteites, who do not fight for the workers, but try at every turn to blindfold them in order to lead them into the hands of the capitalists. And the Musteites are the “radicals” of the A, F. of L, and socialist | party. 5 Fight For Real Insurance. We must utilize this example to show up the social fascist character of this “Progressive | Labor” crowd, to show that the ‘Communist Party is the only Party which really fight: for the unemployed and demands insurance | equal to full regular wages and in no case less than $25 a week, with additional amounts for dependants. Our Social Insurance Bi!) is drafted to make sure that the unemployed get enough to live on, the insurance to be admin- istered by workers themselves in order to pro- tect the unemployed by seeing that they actual- ly get their insurance. The Social Insurane Bill of the Communist Party is made to give reality to the slogan “Work or Wages!” Forward to a more militant fight for the } Unemployment Insurance Bil] of the Commu nist Party! Get behind the election campaigi A Dark Broun Taste Heywood Broun, spea group of little thinkere serious ‘No one ing before remarked: in his sober senses doubts that unemployment ! presents a tragic national crisis.” The trouble is, that nobody present was in his “sober senses.” Texas Guinan, recognizing that, declared that she is joining Broun’s “socialist” cam- ! paign committee. “Texas,” they say, is riding | ‘round in a car belonging te the King of Suf- fering Belgium. The darned thing looks like an urmored cat and we was wondering whether the Latir ; American revolts had got as far az Texas when a visitor suggested that Texas was using | the armored car to protect herself-from Jimmy Walker, Really, life is getting SO complicated! at the door with other gay feminine assistants | and took $2 a piece from the defenders of American institutions. Inside, they waited for the show to start, but it didn’t. And after two hours of rather painful expectation, relieved only by playing slot machines in lieu of playing with the ladies, the bulwarks against Bolshevism bethought themselves of finding out what was the mat- ter. i Lo! And the “lady from Milwaukee,” and ' all her prospectively clotheless assistants had | vanished as complete as a Tammany judge ho } is wanted for honesty. Whereupon the saviors | of syphilization decided to save their $2 and demanded it back. “Riot, but not red, ran round the coudhouse. Nichols refused to put up, since, he was not responsible for ladies | imported from Milwaukee. Sheriff Tasche showed up, And as another ! pillar of law and order, got the bright idea that at least the slot machines were illegal, | and députized the Legion to break them open. ; Happy thought! Enough was stolen so that | 20 Legionnaires all got their $2 back. The + nation was saved! | Law 1 and order ruled once more in She- bovg * * (0) We notice that Rudy Valee has withdrawn { his motion for a bill of particulars in a breach ! of promis it for $200,000 brought against | him by a show girl. He doesn’t seem to like : “the particulars” any more than Haywood Broun. From what we observe of him. he’s about ible to be announced as a candidate of the “socialist” party. * 4% | Ah, Such a Relief! ! The State Department at Washington took ‘ two and a half columns in the N. Y, Times to ' tell how, “at the instance of the United States,” ! the International Bankers Consortium has been ' “aiding China since 1918.” And now just lool at China! The bankers have been “relieving | American farmers.” too. And the farmers are oiling up the old shotgun, ‘vhile the Chinese are making a new kind of chop suey, wilh | presbyterian missionary gravw. _ Ne ANN cea ara a se ——————— Ee