WILL TO POWER.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 2849, 21 February 1925, Page 4

WILL TO POWER.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF CONCEIT. During the war what was most noticable about the German people was their strange psychology. The junker conceit of “all powef- to ns” had taken hold of the whole nation so that the people wore obessed with the fanatical ii!oa of; Germany possessing the whole of the earth. The will to power was taught in her schools and colleges, ami even from the pulpits of the churches. With an insane ambition, like that of .Lucifer, they imagined that they had but to declare Germany •over all; have the will to make it so and it would he so.

What wo find of interest to-day is the fact that Ihe Socialists and Communists have adopted this same psychology of conceit. Tn reading the literature and speeches of leading socialist labourites one recognises a mentality which e is virtually drunk with ambition —We alone have the truth; oar culture is above all other; there are none with human sympathy but us; we arc the all-powerful; our success is certain and the whole world must succumb to our delerm'ination, ultimately adopting our policies and programmes. Such is the mental attitude of the people who are named socialists and the rest of mankind must either how to their domination or fight them with equal determination to their own. It is no use assuming that you can ignore this crusade and live your own life in peace. The Socialist and Communist junkers will not leave you, your country and your life alone, however much you may seek to leave them alone.

The will to power which possesses them is a will to have complete power over the affairs of everybody. In politics their policy is “No compromise with anybody but all power to themselves.” At the same time they are ready, as oc-casion-suits, to profess what is most acceptable to those who, ns electors, have power to bestow. Opportunism and camouflage are the means they favetar, as their object is power and ever more power until their dictatorship becomes complete. ACTIVE IN NEW ZEALAND.

The ‘New Zealand Labour Party,’ which is Socialist and in some degree Communist, is on the war path -for the next election. The recent speeches of its leaders are framed to impress the public mind with the idea that their is the big party which must win. It is the will to power method they are using ugain. In the industrial field the twin brother of the Red parly Alliance of Labour —played the same game of boastfulness until it was called down by the railway strike. The Alliance was going to inelnde all operatives in every service and industrially control the country. The will to power was lug in lliese Industrial Red Leaders hut somehow it did apt succeed. Now the same people think they .•an play the “big gun" game m politics. They have only been in Xew Zealand politics a little while lull in their own estimation they know more limn all the rest of the people combined. I hey expect the electors of the Dominion to have forgotten all their bad industrial breaks, silly strikes, go-slow business, council of action plans, revolutionary speeches, and to consider only their present nice, liberal, soft-pedal' professions. The people of Xew Zealand are not quite so dull ill the uptake. Mr. Holland. 51. P. is boasting that his party is going to contest 80 scats and must become His Majesty’s Opposition or Government —-he bus not decided yet, which. This' is just the will t<> power trick —to impress on the people that the party is so big that i; cannot fail. M wont work in Meoriland whore both .Maori and |>.,kdia do most of their own thinking. Mr. Holland will probably find in contesting so many -eat-. ins I mil y tin - -pread it-' bailer 100 II in. In Britain Ihe Soem li.- t I.a b our party pul forward Kid more candidate' ~1 la I election than it ), ail ill !he one preview , am! d came out with Id lower seal- in the [louse of Commons. Ihe British |w\ ehulogv, of which our people are Inigely possessed has in it a cert am strain of humour. Jn this it dillcrs ertire.lv from the Herman and Russian. Our people enjoy •taking ,i, wn a boaster hud arc really expert in the bossiness. The Xew Zealand Labour Parly is making a mistake, at tin* commencement of its campaign t<> capture the people of New Zealand, ill that it is giving full warning of the raid it has entered upon. Our people hate to he forced and are not to be easily caught. If the party in question was less eager for power and more anxious to do good for the country. it would secure (he confidence of the electors with far less effort. This would mean a mi- psychology, ceasing to he what it is and indeed becoming another party —this is not likely to take place under its present leadership which is declaredly Marxian Socialist. (Contributed by the New Zealand Welfare League.)