COMMENT
173
scoped into one. The distinction between war and politics as impe–
rialist techniques, or between war and peace as ways of life under
capitalism, this has been broken down, and war has been fused
into the normal everyday structure of existence both of the State
and the individual.
IDEOLOGICAL
WARDROBES
The rise of the "Free State" also throws light
on the other great surprise of the war to date:
the Nazi-Soviet alliance. The bureaucracies
running the various governments have a freedom from class pres–
sure unexampled in the history of capitalism. This is, of course,
especially true of totalitarian states like Germany. It is also true
of the U.S.S.R., where the bureaucracy, faced with a contradiction
between its own interests and the interests of the nationalized form
of economy which is at least as explosive as those of modem capi–
talism, must likewise suppress the class struggle or perish. The
result is that both Hitler and Stalin have a freedom of ideological
maneuvering which would have seemed fantastic before 1918.
Thus it was possible for Stalin and Hitler to engineer their
pact·with such swiftness and secrecy that their own "Fifth Col–
umns" in this country were taken by surprise. The turnabout was
accomplished overnight, by administrative fiat, with almost no
ideological preparation-and yet there apparently were no serious
internal repercussions. There was no doubt some grumbling among
the Moscow workers, and in Germany a Thyssen broke with the
regime that had "betrayed" his class, but the "Free State" was
indeed "free in relation to its citizens" and the 180 degree turn
was made in each nation with very little friction.
IS THERE A
THIRD CHOICE?
"With all humility," wrote Stephen Spender
in our last issue, "I am on the side of the
Chamberlain system against Fascism. The
fundamental reason is that I hate the idea of being regimented and
losing my personal freedom of action." This is the classic liberal
note on this war, struck whenever liberals, English or American,
feel compelled to justify their support of British imperialism in
its struggle to crush its German counterpart. Most of them are
not so honest as Mr. Spender, wh6 speaks quite frankly of losing
his
own
freedom of action. Most of them prefer to talk of the
