Picking the Lock

My recent comments [NR, June 24, July 8] may have suggested to some readers that I believe Eurocommunism to be 100 per cent phony. I want to correct that impression. I do believe there is a high phoniness quotient in Eurocommunism, but less than 100 per cent. Moreover, the percentage of phoniness differs from party to party: more in the French party, for example, than in the Italian, and possibly less, for the moment at least, in the Spanish than in either.

There is nothing mysterious (or should not be) about the origin of Eurocommunism. Itisaby-product of the situations in which several West European Communist parties found themselves in their struggle for governmental power—in particular, the Italian party, the French party, and in rather different, not entirely comparable ways, the Spanish and British parties.

JB

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James Burnham

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My recent comments [NR, June 24, July 8] may have suggested to some readers that I believe Eurocommunism to be 100 per cent phony. I want to correct that impression. I do believe there is a high phoniness quotient in Eurocommunism, but less than 100 per cent. Moreover, the percentage of phoniness differs from party to party: more in the French party, for example, than in the Italian, and possibly less, for the moment at least, in the Spanish than in either.

There is nothing mysterious (or should not be) about the origin of Eurocommunism. Itisaby-product of the situations in which several West European Communist parties found themselves in their struggle for governmental power—in particular, the Italian party, the French party, and in rather different, not entirely comparable ways, the Spanish and British parties.