War—What For?

by George R. Kirkpatrick

With these three primary facts of present society clearly in mind let us proceed.

In addition to their powerful position as capitalist OWNERS OF THE MEANS OF PRODUCTION, the capitalist class have three special advantages over the working class in this class struggle:

(1) The capitalist class are more class conscious than the working class are—at present. That is, the capitalists more distinctly realize that, as capitalists, they constitute a class—with class interests to defend.

(2) The capitalists, because they are more class conscious, are, naturally, more class loyal than the working class are—at present. In obedience to the biological law of self-preservation, a class, as well as an individual, will defend themselves, as a class—that is, will be class loyal—in proportion as they are class conscious, or in proportion as they are aware of and understand the interests of their class. Tho’ the capitalists understand that they are a class with class interests, they are always cooing softly to all workers who are ignorant enough to listen, cooing sweetly about “no classes,” “all in the same boat,” “harmony of interests,” “Capital and Labor are brothers,” etc.

(3) The capitalists study tactics of class warfare—tactics of industrial struggle, far more than the working class do—at present. Being more class conscious and therefore more class loyal and consequently more eager, as a class, for self-defense, the capitalist class naturally study more patiently the ways and means for their own class defense. And because they do study more they really know more—at present—about politics, about the game called the class struggle, about the art of self-defense, class defense in industry.[^[307]]

In all the modern forms of this unhappy class struggle, one phase of which is called war, the capitalist class are awake and watchful, united and victorious—seated in the saddle of power at the head of the procession; and the working class are drowsy and confused, divided and defeated—limping afoot and ridiculous at the tail end of the grand march of the world’s affairs.

All great military leaders in all wars—in all struggles—in all time have always used the two following tactics:

First: Divide the enemy, if possible, and have them crush one another; or,

Second: If circumstances hinder the first tactics, then divide the enemy and crush them one part at a time.

And the captains of industry, the capitalists, right now employ these tactics with success. They themselves band together, but they divide and rule the working class. More class conscious, more class loyal and more studious of the ways and means of struggle than the working class are, the capitalist class proceed as follows: