La Triste France

In Algeria, juridically still part of the French nation, there now exists the classic revolutionary condition of “multiple power.” Three rival sovereigns exist simultaneously in the same locale: the National Liberation Front (FLN), operating in the name of the “Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic” (GPRA); the Secret Army Organization (OAS); the de Gaulle government. (The Communists, who have lately stepped up activities, represent a fourth sovereign, though they now work through the FLN and the de Gaulle institutions.)

Now it is impossible for several sovereign powers to coexist very long in the same community. There must, in the last analysis, be only one source of public order, one final authority over access to the streets, one chain of command for police, prisons, army and through these for the citizens. If there are two or more distinct and rival powers, one of them must prevail, or the community will divide.

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James Burnham

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In Algeria, juridically still part of the French nation, there now exists the classic revolutionary condition of “multiple power.” Three rival sovereigns exist simultaneously in the same locale: the National Liberation Front (FLN), operating in the name of the “Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic” (GPRA); the Secret Army Organization (OAS); the de Gaulle government. (The Communists, who have lately stepped up activities, represent a fourth sovereign, though they now work through the FLN and the de Gaulle institutions.)

Now it is impossible for several sovereign powers to coexist very long in the same community. There must, in the last analysis, be only one source of public order, one final authority over access to the streets, one chain of command for police, prisons, army and through these for the citizens. If there are two or more distinct and rival powers, one of them must prevail, or the community will divide.