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Title: The German Crisis
Author: Mikhail Bakunin
Date: 1870
Language: en
Topics: Germany
Source: Retrieved on 8th August 2021 from http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/anarchist_archives/bakunin/writings/German.html

Mikhail Bakunin

The German Crisis

Whosoever mentions the State, implies force, oppression, exploitation,

injustice-all these brought together as a system are the main condition

of present-day society. The State has never had, and never can have, a

morality. Its only morality and justice is its own interest, its

existence, and its omnipotence at any price; and before its interest,

all interest of humanity must stand in the back-ground. The State is the

negation of Humanity. It is this in two ways: the opposite of human

freedom and human justice (internally), as well as the forcible

disruption of the common solidarity of mankind (externally).The

Universal State, repeatedly attempted, has always proved an

impossibility, so that as long as the State exists, States will exist

and since every State regards itself as absolute, and proclaims the

adoration of its power as the highest law, to which all other laws must

be subordinated, it therefore follows that as long as States exist wars

cannot cease. Every State must conquer, or be conquered. Every State

must build its power on the weakness or, if it can do it without danger

to itself, on the destruction, of other States.

To strive for international justice, liberty, and perpetual peace, and

at the same time to uphold the State, is contradictory and naive. It is

impossible to alter the nature of the State, because it is just this

nature that constitutes the State; and States cannot change their nature

without ceasing to exist. It thus follows that there cannot be a good,

just, virtuous State. All States are bad in that sense, that they, by

their nature, by their principle, by their very foundation and the

highest ideal of their existence, are the opponents of human liberty,

morality, and justice. And in this regard there is, one may say what one

likes, no great difference between the barbaric Russian Empire and the

civilized States of Europe. Wherein lies the only difference ? Russian

Tsardom does openly what the others do under the mask of hypocrisy.

Tsardom, with its undisguised political method, and its contempt for

humanity, is the only goal to which all statesmen of Europe secretly but

envyingly aspire. All States of Europe do the same as Russia, as far as

public opinion, and especially as far as the reawakened but very

powerful solidarity of the people allow them-a public opinion and

solidarity which contain in themselves the gems of the destruction of

States. There is no “good” State, with the possible exception of those

that are powerless. And even they are quite criminal enough in their

dreams. He who wants freedom, justice, and peace, he who wants the

entire (economic and political) liberation of the masses, must strive

for the destruction of the States, and the establishment of a universal

federation of free groups for Production.

As long as the German workers strive for the establishment of a national

State-however popular and free they may imagine this State (and there is

a far stop from imagination to realization, especially when there is the

fraternization of two diametrically opposed principles, the State and

the liberty of the people, involved)-so long will they Sacrifice the

liberty of the people to the might of the State, Socialism to politics,

international justice and fraternity to patriotism. It is clear that

their own economic liberation will remain a beautiful dream, looming in

the distant future.

It is impossible to reach two opposite poles simultaneously. Socialism,

the Social Revolution, presupposes the abolition of the State; it is

therefore clear that he who is in favor of the State must give up

Socialism, and sacrifice the economic liberation of the workers to the

political power of some privileged party.

The German Social Democratic Party is forced to sacrifice the economic

liberation of the proletariat, and consequently also their political

liberation- or, better expressed, their liberation from politics-to the

self-seeking and triumph of the bourgeois Democracy. This follows

unquestionably from Articles 2 and 3 of their program. The first three

paragraphs of Article 2 are quite in accord with the Socialist

principles of the International, whose programming they copy nearly

literally. But the fourth paragraph of the same article, which declares

that political liberty is the forerunner of economic liberty, entirely

destroys the practical value of the recognition of our principles. It

can mean nothing else than this:- —

“Proletarians, you are slaves, the victims of private property and

capitalism. You want to liberate yourselves from this yoke. This is

good, and your demands are quite just. But in order to realize them, you

must help us to accomplish the political revolution. Afterwards we will

help you to accomplish the Social Revolution. Let us therefore, through

the might of your arms establish the Democratic State, and then-and then

we will create commonweal for you, similar to the one the Swiss workers

enjoy.”

In order to convince oneself that this preposterous delusion expresses

entirely the spirit and tendency of the German Social Democratic

Party-i.e.,their program, not the natural aspirations of the German

workers, of whom the party consists-one need only study the third

article of this program, wherein all the initial demands, which shall be

brought about by the peaceful and legal agitation of the party, are

elaborated. All these demands, with the exception of the tenth, which

had not even been proposed by the authors of the program, but had been

added later-during the discussion, by a member of the Eisenach

Congress-all these demands are of an entirely political character. All

those points which are recommended as the main object of the immediate

practical activity of the party consist of nothing else but the well

known program of bourgeois Democracy; universal suffrage, with direct

legislation by the people, abolition of all political privilege; a

citizen army; separation of Church and State, and school and State; free

and compulsory education; liberty of the Press assembly, and

combination; conversion of all indirect taxation into a direct,

progressive, and universal income-tax.

These are the true objects, the real goal of the party! An exclusively

political reform of the State, the institutions and laws of the State.

Am I not, therefore, entitled to assert that this program is in reality

a purely political and bourgeois affair, which looks upon Socialisam

only as a dream for a far distant future ? Have I not likewise a right

to assert that if one would judge the Social Democratic Party of the

German workers by their program of which I will beware, because I know

that the real aspirations of the German working, class go infinitely

further than this program-then one Would have a right to believe that

the creation of this party had no other purpose than the exploitation of

the mass of the proletariat as blind and sacrificed tools towards the

realization of the political plans of the German bourgeois Democracy.