First of all let us see where comrade Zinoviev placed his omission marks. He employed them twice. Let us see what the "ABC of Communism" says in those passages which Zinoviev left out. Following the postulate that the Communist revolution can be victorious only as a world revolution, we get the following passage which Zinoviev did not quote:
"If in a certain country the working class took power while the working class in other countries was conscientiously loyal to the capitalist class, then in the last resort the former country would be crushed by the great predatory Powers. In 1917, 1918 and 1919, all the Powers were engaged in the effort to crush Soviet Russia. In 1919 they crushed Soviet Hungary. They failed to crush Soviet Russia because the internal situation in the great States was such as to make the rulers fear the possibility of themselves falling under the pressure of their own workers, who demanded the withdrawal of their troops from Russia."
Thus, in the first place, the very existence of the proletarian dictatorship in a single country is threatened unless it receives aid from the workers of other countries. Secondly—then follows the passage quoted by Zinoviev about the difficulties—but not impossibility, comrade Zinoviev!—of economic construction.
Now let us restore the second passage left out bv Zinoviev. This passage explains the cause of the difficulties: "Such a country"—we read in the "ABC of Communism"—"obtains nothing or almost nothing from abroad. It is blockaded on all sides."
Comrade Zinoviev does not quote badly, does he?
