Page:Karl Liebknecht - Militarism (1917).djvu/152

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MILITARISM

and mean "the maintenance of oppression," "the protection of exploitation." Whenever the proletariat exhibits an inconvenient animation and power, militarism at once attempts to scare it back by the rattling of the sabre, that militarism which, ever present and omnipotent, is behind every action the forces of the state undertake against the forces of labor, and gives to such action the ultimate, still invincible weight. That weight is, however, not merely reserved, behind the vanguard of the police and constabulary, for important occasions, but is also constantly available for the clearly understood purpose of aiding in the everyday work and of strengthening in a sustained guerilla warfare the pillars of the capitalist society. It is just that restlessly and craftily employed versatility that characterizes capitalist militarism.

SOLDIERS AS THE COMPETITORS OF FREE
WORKERS.

As a functionary of capitalism militarism fully understands that its greatest and most sacred task is that of increasing the profits of the employing