Lenin and Trotsky Write on the October

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in the struggle against the growing power of the Stalinist bureaucracy in 1923-4. The passage be from The Lessons of October, included (on pages 251-3) in the Pathfinder volume The Challengi In conference during the Civil War: left to right, M. V. Frunze and S.I. Gusev Opposition, 430pp, £2.95.

There has been some talk lately in our press to the effect that we are not in a position to tell through what channels the proletarian revolution will come in England.

Will it come through the channel of the Communist Party or through the trade unions?

Such a formulation of the question makes a show of a fictitiously broad historical outlook; it is radically false and dangerous because it obliterates the chief lesson of the last few years.

If the triumphant revolution did not come at the end of the war, it was because a party was lacking.

This conclusion applies tu Europe as a whole. It may be traced concretely in the fate of the revolutionary movement in various countries.

With respect to Germany the case is quite a clear one. The German revolution might have been triumphant both in 1918 and in 1919, had a proper party leadership been secured.

We had an instance of this same thing in 1917 in the case of Finland. There, the movement developed under exceptionally favourable circumstances, under the wing of revolutionагу Russian and with its direct military assistance. But the majority of the leaders in the Finnish party proved to be social democrats, and they ruined the revolution.

The same lesson flows just as plainly from the Hungarian experience. There, the communists, along with the left social democrats: but • were conquer power, handed it by the frightened bourgeoisie.

The Hungarian revolution -triumphant without a battle and without a victory-was left from the very outset without a fighting leadership.

The Communist Party rused with the social democratic party, showed thereby that it itself was not a Comquence, ing spirit of the Hungarian workers, it proved incapable of keeping the power it had obtained so easily.

Without a party, apart from a party, over the head of a party, or with a substirute for a party, the proletarian revolution cannot conquer.

That is the principle lesson of the past decade. It is true tnat the English trade unions may lecome a mighty lever :: :: goletarian revolution;

::e: *a. or instance, even (ERE place of workers under. certain Bela Kun, Alfrea suster, srutoni dition that communist influence becomes the decisive influence in the trade unions.

We have paid far too dearly for this conclusionwith regard to the role and importance of a party in a proletarian revolution-to renounce it so lightly or even to minimize its significance.

Consciousness, premeditation, and planning played a far smaller part in bourgeois revolutions than they are destined to play, and already do play, in proletarian revolutions.

In the former instance the motive force of the revolution was also furnished by the masses, but the latter were much less organised and much less consicous than at the present time.

The leadership remained in the hands of different sections of the bourgeoisie, and the latter had at its disposal wealth, education and all the organisational advantages connected with them (the cities, the universities, the press, etc.).

The bureaucratic monarchy defended itself in a hand-to-mouth manner, probing in the dark and then acting.

The bourgeoisie would bide its time to seize a favourable moment when it could profit from the movement of the lower classes, throw its whole social weight into the scale and so seize the state power. The proletarian revolution October Revolution was Trotsky's starting point ireaucracy in 1923-4. The passage below is taken the Pathfinder volume The Challenge of the Left is precisely distinguished by the fact that the proletariatin the person of its vanguard -acts in it not only as the main offensive force but also as the guiding force.

The part played in bourgeois revolutions by the economic power of the bourgeoisie, by its education, by its municipalities and universities, is a part which can be filled in a proletarian revolution only by the party of the proletariat.

The role of the party has become all the more important in view of the fact that the enemy has also become far more conscious.

The bourgeoisie, in the course of centuries of rule. has perfected a • political schooling far superior to the schooling of the old bureaucratic monarchy.

If parliamentarism served the proletariat to a certain extent as a training school for revolution, then it also served the bourgeoisie to a far greater extent as the school of counterrevolutionary strategy. Suffice it to say that by means of parliamentarism the bourgeoisie was able so to train the social democracy that it is today the main prop of private property.

The epoch of the social revolution in Europe, as has been shown by its very first steps, will be an epoch not only of strenuous and ruthless struggle but also of planned and calculated battles-far more planned than with us in 1917. examine the lessons of the first ever successful proletarian revolution.

Lenin wrote Left Wing against both sectarianism al the booklet which sets out delegate at the Second Con! edition, pp 6-7 •Would it not be better if greetings in honour of Soviet power and the Bolsheviks were more frequently attended by a profound analysis of the main reasons why the Bolsheviks were able to build up the discipline the revolutionary proletariat needs?

As a trend of political thought and as a political party, Bolshevism exists since 1903. Only the history of Bolshevism during the whole period of its existence can satisfactorily explain why it was able to build up and to maintain under most difficult conditions the iron discipline needed for the victory of the proletariat.

And first of all the question arises: how is the discipline of the revolutionTrotsky wrote the article Parisian revolutionary youth. It a Comm d oppi to dra ress of ary party of the proletariat maintained? How is it tested? How is it reinforced?

First, by the class consciousness of the proletarian vanguard and by its devotion to the revolution, by its perseverance, self-sacrifice and heroism.

Secondly, by its ability to link itself with, to keep in close touch with, and to a certain extent, it you like, to merge with the broadest masses of the toilers-primarily with the proletariat, but also with the non-proletarian toiling masses.

Thirdly, by the correctness of the political leadership exercised by this vanguard, by the correctness of political strategy and tactics, provided that the broadest masses have been convinced by their own experience that they are correct.

Without these conditions Lenin (centre) with I. 'Lessons of October' for the French ippears in Trotsky Writings 1935-36, Pa Messrs. sceptics might say: but in the end the October Revolution brought the triumph of bureaucracy. Was it worth making?

A separate article or perhaps two should be devoted to this question. Here let us say briefly: history goes for.

ward not along a straight line but along a devious one; attes a gigantic jump forward there follows as after an artillery shot, a rebound.

Nevertheless history goe forward. No doubt, Sovie bureaucratism is an ugiy ulce threatening both the con quest of the October reve lutior and the wer:

DIC 213-31 3.: SER == Lenin discipline in a revolutionary party that is really capable of being the party of the advanced class, whose mission it is to overthrow the bourgeoisie and transform the whole of society, cannot be achieved.

Without these conditions, all attempts to establish discipline inevitably fall flat and end in phrase-mongering and grimacing.

On the other hand, these conditions cannot arise all at once. They are created only by prolonged effort and hard-won experience.

Their creation is facilitated by correct revolutionary theory, which, in its turn, is not a dogma, but assumes final shape only in close connection with the practical activity of a truly mass and truly revolutionary movement. rotsky (left) and Kamener (right) paper Revolution, the organ of the athfinder 1970.

economy, collectivization of agriculture which, despite the monstrous harm of bureaucratism, lead the country forward economically and culturally while the capitalist countries are moving backwards.

The October revolution çan be freed from the vise of bureaucratism only by the development of the international revolution, the victory of which will really assure the building of 3 socialist society.

Finally-and this is not insignificant-the Octote:

revolution is important al because it gave the inter natiora =:: 23032

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March in support of the EGA occupation WE DEMAN ANI IMMEDIA (HIN PHOTO: Jo TO THE N,I John :2500 : 31 A WE DEMAND Baf Mating on the fight for Transitional he fight Demands emands SET inadequate.

The limited growth of the health service since 1948 has corresponded to the requirements of capitalism.

The result has been that expensive emergency services, which are out of the question for private practice, have been built up at the expensé of preventive and community medicine, the care of the elderly, the handicapped and the mentally ill.

With public expenditure cuts it is again these services, which are of most benefit to the working class, that suffer.

In order to give a perspective for the development DHSS controls a massive bureaucratic machine compromising 14 Regions and 102 Areas in England and Health Boards in Wales and Scotland. On average there are at least two Districts to each Area and the Districts control up to five or six sectors.

Family Practitioners Committees are mainly appointed by the Regional and Area Health Authorities, but local medical committees of GPs have considerable influence.

Appointees are usually retired army officers, local entrepreneurs and other representatives of the bourgeoisie. "Workers participation"

Token trade unionists are included following the recommendations of the 1974 Labour government in a paper entitled 'Democracy in the Health Service' This joint representation is a form of "workers' participation"

The FPC's controlling general medical and dental practice and pharmacy (the Chemist shops) are the only authority to have an open ended budget.

This is not unconnected with the fact that the vast majority of their expenditure is on prescribed drugs and therefore intimately connected with the profits of the drug companies.

To enforce the cash limits that the health authorities have so willingly accepted for hospital and in-patient and out-patient services would immediately bring the Lib-Lab coalition into confrontation with the multi-national capitalists of the drug Fundamental Workers' control of the health service therefore raises such matters. As they begin to gain knowledge and esper. ience they will increasingly become organs of dual power. directly challenging management locally and on an area level.

To achieve such a policy. starting from present closures and cutbacks in service, a programme of mass action is necessary • to defend the Health Service with occupations wherever closure is Workers must expose the cynical refusal of the health authorities to maintain services.

This is a period in which the health authorities will fully demonstrate their ability to serve only the bourgeois state, their private suppliers and the drug industry.

Workers must therefore expose these connections, and challenge the competence of those individuals who sit as members of the authorities.

Health workers must take up the demand 'Open the books of the health authorities' and destroy the secrecy of the health authorities' decision making.

Fi.:

They must link up nauceally with workers in IC= drug, supply and consire:.

tion industries, to demare the nationalisation under workers management of al the resources on which ice