p The imperialist bourgeoisie is seeing with growing clarity that a direct confrontation between the two ideologies is spelling out its defeat. Hence the shift from an ideological defence of its social system, of its principles and institutions, to anti-communism.

p As a policy and as an ideology, anti-communism is not something new. Back in 1848 Marx and Engels wrote that 130 "all the powers of Old Europe... Pope and Czar, Metternich and Guizot, French Radicals and German police-spies" had united to attack communism.  [130•*  The stronger communism grew the more forces and means were thrown against it by the old world.

p But the anti-communist campaign has reached unprecedented proportions today. "The chief ideological and political weapon of imperialism,” states the Programme of the CPSU, "is anti-communism, which consists mainly in slandering the socialist system and distorting the policy and objectives of the Communist parties and Marxist-Leninist theory. Under the false slogans of anti-communism, imperialist reaction persecutes and hounds all that is progressive and revolutionary; it seeks to split the ranks of the working people and to paralyse the proletarians’ will to fight. Rallied to this black banner today are all the enemies of social progress: the finance oligarchy and the military, the fascists and reactionary clericals, the colonialists and landlords, and all the ideological and political supporters of imperialist reaction. Anti-communism is a reflection of the extreme decadence of bourgeois ideology."  [130•** 

p In a certain sense the entire policy and ideology of the modern bourgeoisie is anti-communist. But when it is interpreted in this light we lose sight of anti-communism’s specific as a policy and ideology directed against communism, while the concept itself becomes a synonym of bourgeois policy and ideology.

In our view, and from the standpoint of both theory and politics, it is important to distinguish, above all, between the “non”-communism intrinsic to the bourgeoisie and the petty bourgeoisie and the bellicose “anti”-communism of the most reactionary and aggressive circles of imperialism which finds expression in a system of political and ideological actions spearheaded against the ideals of communism, against the communist movement and the socialist countries. Today these actions form the chief element of the official policy and propaganda of the principal imperialist powers.

Moreover, it is important to distinguish anti-communism as purposeful and organised activity on the part of imperialist reaction from the anti-communist moods and prejudices which still influence a certain section of the working masses, the intermediate sections of bourgeois society and certain circles of the national liberation movement.