Capitalism and its World Wars

[p007] CAPITALIS M AND rts WORLD WARS For many decades Socialists have explained just how and why modern capitalism generates predatory wars at periodic intervals as a necessary consequence of the mono- _ polist development of the profit system and the fierce com- petition among the big capitalist powers. Since 1914 these inter-imperialist conflicts have inflicted two terrible world Wars upon US. The projected world war must be viewed as the logical extension of these capitalist struggles. But a new war will not be a mere duplication of its predecessors. The _ telation of forces among the world powers and between the classes in society- have shifted ‘considerably as the — result of world-shaking events connected with the first - two wars. - ne . What are some of the most important of these changes? _ First is the indisputable supremacy of the United States, ; which. emerged from the last war with overwhelming . superiority in almost all fields—industrially, financially, — diplomatically, militarily. But that 1 1S s only one aspect of the situation. Although the United States is far stronger, the other _ ~ major capitalist Countries are much weaker than before. fe _ TheN.E.C. document itself acknowledges that “Britain has — # been weakened economically by two world wars.’” What has happened to Britain is only a small part of the damage an suffered by the capitalist structure the world over. a - From 1914 to 1952 the system of capitalism on a world — ~ scale has grown less stable and strong. It has lost its balance oe : and» is Subjected to recurrent violent crises. Its leaders —

[p008] are no longer very confident about its capacities to survive. Historically viewed, capitalism is a declining and disinte-_ grating social order, reeling to its doom. _ The task of the working class and the goal of its Socialist leadership is to recognize the complete hopelessness of this system and its infinite capacities for harm. We must do everything in our power to hasten the end of this bank- _ Yupt class society, which is such a menace to mankind. Workers in other parts of the world have already taken immense steps forward along this line. Imperialism had to pay for its first world war with the Russian Revolution i which eliminated capitalism and landlordism from one- sixth of the earth’s surface. The Second World War helped make the Soviet Union the second world power and the first military machine in Europe and Asia. It also resulted in the destruction of capitalist property rela- _ tions in Yugoslavia and the countries of. Eastern Europe while the same process is now going on in China. The — Second World War gave a mighty impetus to the move- _ ments for independence throughout the colonial world which have still ‘further undermined imperialism. - The downfall of fascism, that terror-machine for sup- pressing organized labour and bolstering capitalist rule, released irrepressible forces of the working class throughout Europe headed by Communist or Socialist parties. A powerful labour and Socialist movement, embracing _ millions, appeared for the first time in defeated J apan. And here in Britain Labour came to power. . _ All these developments have further weakened and dis- _ eredited capitalist rule. Except for North America, the — peoples of the world no longer have much faith in its promises or its prospects. _ Thus, an enfeebled capitalist structure today finds itself confronted with mighty anti-capitalist forces which are pressing forward against it and are increasingly determined to abolish it. No matter what kind of leaderships they may have, _ these anti-capitalist forces are regarded by Big Business 5

[p009] and High Finance as an intolerable threat to their power, privileges, profits, and possessions. That is why the U.S. imperialists have been obliged to organize their offensive on a global scale in a massive effort to halt and hurl back the advancing legions of labour. This is the class origin of the ever-growing conflict, the social source of the ever- sharpening tensions, between world capitalism, organized and directed by imperialist America, and the non-capitalist sectors of the world which include the liberation move- ments in the colonies as well as the labour movements in the capitalist countries.