Page - 195 - in Otto Bauer (1881–1938) - Thinker and Politician

the ‘thirdway’ to socialism 195 what tangibleadvantagesofSocial-Democraticpoliticsmightbepresentedto themiddleclasses.Thespecificproposalsformiddle-class-friendlypolicieswill betoucheduponwhendiscussingthequestionofalliances.Fornow,theturnto thestruggleoftheworkingclassforstatepowertakesprecedence.It is import- ant to emphasise that at the outset the change in tactics announced by the partywasnotcommensurablewith thepoliticsofSocialDemocracy.Thetwo mainpoints in theprogrammedemanded toeducate theworkingclass tobe faithfultoparliamentarydemocracyandtoinstigateaproletariandictatorship if the foundations of the republicwere under threat. These demands effect- ively rendered thedocumentaprogramme for theprotectionof the republic rather thana fightingprogramme for statepower.Worse still, inpractice the programmeofLinzwasnotatallbeneficial for theworkingclass,but instead paved theway for the political enemies of Social Democracy and their anti- democratic activities. Further weaknesses were erratic analyses and assess- ments,especiallyofthesocialcompositionandstrengthoftheworkingclass.66 The tactic contained in the programmeof Linz referred back to a couple of earlierworks of Bauer’s, namelyDieGrundlagenunserer Taktik (ThePrin- ciplesofOurTactics, 1913)andDerKampfumdieMacht (TheStruggleforPower, 1924),whichwere influencedbyEngels’s essay ‘Socialism inGermany’ (1892) andKautsky’sTheRoadtoPower (1909).Theirbasic ideasarebestsummedup asfollows: ‘Theproofisinthenumbers:withinafewyears,wecanconquerthe majoritybyballot and thuspower in the republic, the ruleover the republic’ (our translation).67 In 1924,despite the failedsocialisationprogramme,Bauer believed that thepossibility of captivating themiddle classeswas absolutely certain. Thiswas also expressed in theprogrammeofLinz. Its strategicprin- ciplewas thatworking-class powerwould be seized democratically through parliament,i.e.therewouldbeastruggle‘fortheheartsofthemajority’conduc- tedbythetwomainsocialclassesagainsteachotherbyparliamentarymeans. Instead of regarding the simultaneous existence of objective and subjective factorsastheconditionforrevolution,thedelegatesofLinzthoughtthatgain- ingsocial legitimacythroughthesupportofprogressiveanddemocraticforces for socialismwould suffice. This section in the programmealso justified the parliamentarypracticeofthesdapinretrospect. to socialism, and the future tasks of SocialDemocracy focusingonwinning themiddle classes.SeeBerchtold1967inDocuments,Programmes,Protocols,pp.248–56. 66 CompareLeser1968,p.386. 67 ‘DieZahlenbeweisenes:WirkönneninwenigenJahrenmitdemStimmzetteldieMehr- heit unddamit dieMacht inderRepublik, dieHerrschaft über dieRepublik erobern’ – Bauer1976g,p.25.