Mao - September 7, 1937
We stand for active ideological struggle because it is the weapon for ensuring
unity within the Party and the revolutionary organizations in the interest of
our fight. Every Communist and revolutionary should take up this weapon.
But liberalism rejects ideological struggle and stands for unprincipled peace,
thus giving rise to a decadent, Philistine attitude and bringing about
political degeneration in certain units and individuals in the Party and the
revolutionary organizations.
Liberalism manifests itself in various ways.
To let things slide for the sake of peace and friendship when a person has
clearly gone wrong, and refrain from principled argument because he is an old
acquaintance, a fellow townsman, a schoolmate, a close friend, a loved one, an
old colleague or old subordinate. Or to touch on the matter lightly instead of
going into it thoroughly, so as to keep on good terms. The result is that both
the organization and the individual are harmed. This is one type of liberalism.
To indulge in irresponsible criticism in private instead of actively putting
forward one's suggestions to the organization. To say nothing to people to
their faces but to gossip behind their backs, or to say nothing at a meeting
but to gossip afterwards. To show no regard at all for the principles of
collective life but to follow one's own inclination. This is a second type.
To let things drift if they do not affect one personally; to say as little as
possible while knowing perfectly well what is wrong, to be worldly wise and
play safe and seek only to avoid blame. This is a third type.
Not to obey orders but to give pride of place to one's own opinions. To demand
special consideration from the organization but to reject its discipline. This
is a fourth type.
To indulge in personal attacks, pick quarrels, vent personal spite or seek
revenge instead of entering into an argument and struggling against incorrect
views for the sake of unity or progress or getting the work done properly. This
is a fifth type.
To hear incorrect views without rebutting them and even to hear
counter-revolutionary remarks without reporting them, but instead to take them
calmly as if nothing had happened. This is a sixth type.
To be among the masses and fail to conduct propaganda and agitation or speak at
meetings or conduct investigations and inquiries among them, and instead to be
indifferent to them and show no concern for their well-being, forgetting that
one is a Communist and behaving as if one were an ordinary non-Communist. This
is a seventh type.
To see someone harming the interests of the masses and yet not feel indignant,
or dissuade or stop him or reason with him, but to allow him to continue. This
is an eighth type.
To work half-heartedly without a definite plan or direction; to work
perfunctorily and muddle along--"So long as one remains a monk, one goes on
tolling the bell." This is a ninth type.
To regard oneself as having rendered great service to the revolution, to pride
oneself on being a veteran, to disdain minor assignments while being quite
unequal to major tasks, to be slipshod in work and slack in study. This is a
tenth type.
To be aware of one's own mistakes and yet make no attempt to correct them,
taking a liberal attitude towards oneself. This is an eleventh type.
We could name more. But these eleven are the principal types.
They are all manifestations of liberalism.
Liberalism is extremely harmful in a revolutionary collective. It is a
corrosive which eats away unity, undermines cohesion, causes apathy and creates
dissension. It robs the revolutionary ranks of compact organization and strict
discipline, prevents policies from being carried through and alienates the
Party organizations from the masses which the Party leads. It is an extremely
bad tendency.
Liberalism stems from petty-bourgeois selfishness, it places personal interests
first and the interests of the revolution second, and this gives rise to
ideological, political and organizational liberalism.
People who are liberals look upon the principles of Marxism as abstract dogma.
They approve of Marxism, but are not prepared to practice it or to practice it
in full; they are not prepared to replace their liberalism by Marxism. These
people have their Marxism, but they have their liberalism as well--they talk
Marxism but practice liberalism; they apply Marxism to others but liberalism to
themselves. They keep both kinds of goods in stock and find a use for each.
This is how the minds of certain people work.
Liberalism is a manifestation of opportunism and conflicts fundamentally with
Marxism. It is negative and objectively has the effect of helping the enemy;
that is why the enemy welcomes its preservation in our midst. Such being its
nature, there should be no place for it in the ranks of the revolution.
We must use Marxism, which is positive in spirit, to overcome liberalism, which
is negative.
A Communist should have largeness of mind and he should be staunch and active,
looking upon the interests of the revolution as his very life and subordinating
his personal interests to those of the revolution; always and everywhere he
should adhere to principle and wage a tireless struggle against all incorrect
ideas and actions, so as to consolidate the collective life of the Party and
strengthen the ties between the Party and the masses; he should be more
concerned about the Party and the masses than about any private person, and
more concerned about others than about himself. Only thus can he be considered
a Communist.
All loyal, honest, active and upright Communists must unite to oppose the
liberal tendencies shown by certain people among us, and set them on the right
path. This is one of the tasks on our ideological front.
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