Page - 288 - in Otto Bauer (1881–1938) - Thinker and Politician

288 chapter 7 3 BaueronaFutureArmedWorldConflict:Fears,Hopes,andPlans By the early 1920s, the living conditions of the Austrian working class had heavily deteriorated: inflation, prices, and unemployment rates all rose. At the same time,MichaelMayr’s government, newly formed in the autumnof 1920, stopped all social and political reforms. From 1921 onwards, therewas an increase in terrorist activities conductedby so-called ‘movements for the defenceof the fatherland’ against the ‘redperil’. Their orientationwas recog- nisably fascist. In Italy, the fascist movement that would soon seize power consolidated itself. In thispoliticalclimate, thecentristcircles in theworkers’ movementstrovetoreunitetheSocial-Democraticparties inordertopreserve thegains thathadbeenwonandpreventanotherwar.At the1923congress in Hamburg,theSocialDemocratsbroughttheLabourandSocialistInternational (lsi)intobeing,whichcontinuedthereformistorientationoftheSecondInter- national.Thisorganisationcameaboutthroughtheunificationoftheso-called GenevaandVienna internationals andcomprisedmore than40partieswith over6millionmembers. Like theSecond International, itwasa looseassoci- ationofpartiesintendingtoconstructthesocialistmovementasaplacewhere informationandexperiencemightbeshared.Rather thanhavinganabsolute character, theresolutions itpassedweremeresuggestions for theactivitiesof theindividualparties.DiscussioninHamburgfocusedonthedangerofwarand thepossibilityofpreventingit.Aresolutionpassedbycongress, ‘Theimperial- istpeaceandthetasksof theworkingclass’,demandedthatvigorousstepsbe takeninordertopreservepeaceandstopimperialistpoliciesandmilitaryalli- ances.Evenbythatperiod, thelsihadalreadyrepeatedthesamemistakesas the former international: it didnotproffer any guidanceonhow to fulfil the agreeddemands,andtherewasamiscalculationontheactual strengthof the workers’movement, its ability to co-operate in the case ofwar, and chances toput thedemands intopractice.Whenappearingat theHamburgcongress, Bauer remindeddelegates of the inglorious past of the Second International andarguedthat itwas impossible toconduct trueanti-warpoliticsbypassing resolutions.Insteadofmereverbaldeclarations,hesuggestedconveningaspe- cial foreign office staffed by experts to analyse the political situation in the respective countries and to establishmeasures toprevent international con- flicts fromescalating into aworldwar.Against Bauer’swarning, the lsi con- fineditselfatsubsequentcongressestopassinganti-warresolutions. Inthemeantime, theoffensiveofbourgeoisandfascist forceshadgathered strength inAustria.ParamilitaryHeimwehrunitsassumedcontroloverenter- prises,while its battalions attackedworkers at demonstrations.Attaining in- creasing influence in the Christian Social andGreater German parties, they