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From New International, Vol. VIII No. 7, August 1942, p. 221.
Transcribed & marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for ETOL.
“To imagine that a social revolution is conceivable without revolts of small nations in the colonies and in Europe, without the revolutionary outbursts of the petty bourgeoisie, with all its prejudices, without the movement of non-class-conscious proletarian and semi-proletarian masses against the oppression of the landlords, the church, the monarchy, the foreign yoke, etc. – to imagine that is tantamount to repudiating social revolution. Only those who imagine that in one place an army will line up and say, ‘We are for socialism’ and in another place another army will say, ‘We are for imperialism’ and believe that this will be the social revolution, only those who hold such a ridiculously pedantic opinion could vilify the Irish Rebellion (Easter Day Rebellion) by calling it a ‘putsch.’
“Whoever expects a ‘pure’ social revolution will never live to see it. Such a person pays lip service to revolution without understanding what revolution is.” (The Discussion on Self-Determination Summed Up, Collected Works, Vol. XIX)
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