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who, in the second century B.C., kept Hannibal at bay by wearing
down his army with delaying tactics, endless maneuvering, and
avoiding confrontation wherever possible. Unlike the Marxists who
were in a hurry to come to power through direct confrontation with
established governments, the Fabians were willing to take their
time, to come to power without direct confrontation, working
quietly and patiently from inside the target governments. To
emphasize this strategy, and to separate themselves from the Marx-
ists, they adopted the turtle as their symbol. And their official
shield portrays an image of a wolf in sheep s clothing. Those two
images perfectly summarize their strategy.
It is now 1884, and we find ourselves in Surrey, England
observing a small group of these Fabians, sitting around a table in
the stylish home of two of their more prominent members, Sydney
and Beatrice Webb. The Webbs later would be known world wide as
the founders of the London School of Economics. Their home even-
tually was donated to the Fabian Society and became its official
headquarters. Around the table are such well-known figures as
George Bernard Shaw, Arnold Toynbee, H.G. Wells, and numerous
43
The Chasm The Future Is Calling
others of similar caliber. By the way, the Fabian Society still exists,
and many prominent people are members, not the least of which is
England s Prime Minister, Tony Blair.
H.G. Wells wrote a book to serve as a guide showing how collec-
tivism can be embedded into society without arousing alarm or
serious opposition. It was called The Open Conspiracy, and the
plan was spelled out in minute detail. His fervor was intense. He
said that the old religions of the world must give way to the new
religion of collectivism. The new religion should be the state, he
said, and the state should take charge of all human activity with, of
course, elitists such as himself in control. On the very first page, he
says: This book states as plainly and clearly as possible the essen-
tial ideas of my life, the perspective of my world& . This is my reli-
gion. Here are my directive aims and the criteria of all I do. 8
When he said that collectivism was his religion, he was serious.
Like many collectivists, he felt that traditional religion is a barrier
to the acceptance of state power. It is a competitor for man s loyal-
ties. Collectivists see religion as a device by which the clerics keep
the downtrodden masses content by offering a vision of something
better in the next world. If your goal is to bring about change,
contentment is not what you want. You want discontentment.
That s why Marx called religion the opiate of the masses.9 It gets in
the way of revolutionary change. Wells said that collectivism
should become the new opiate, that it should become the vision for
better things in the next world. The new order must be built on the
concept that individuals are nothing compared to the long
continuum of society, and that only by serving society do we
become connected to eternity. He was very serious.
The blueprint in The Open Conspiracy has been followed in all
the British dependencies and the United Sates. As a result, today s
world is very close to the vision of H.G. Wells. A worship of the god
called society has become a new religion. No matter what insult to
our dignity or liberty, we are told it s necessary for the advance-
ment of society, and that has become the basis for contentment
under the hardships of collectivism. The greater good for the
greater number has become the opiate of the masses.
8 H.G. Wells, The Open Conspiracy (New York: Doubleday, Doran and Co.,
1928), p. vii.
9 There is disagreement over the correct translation from the German text. One
translation is opium of the people. It s a small matter, but we prefer opiate of
the masses because we believe it is a more accurate translation and is more
consistent with the fiery vocabulary of Marx.
44
Love-Hate Between Fabians And Leninists
Love-Hate Between Fabians And Leninists
Fabians and Marxists are in agreement over their mutual goal of
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