The crisis of capitalism is hitting poor countries hard. After hikes in interest rates over the past two years, the debt collectors are knocking on the door. As a result, imperialist institutions are now forcing draconian austerity measures and tax hikes on the poor in so-called developing countries. This is provoking anger and mass protests worldwide.
The outbreak of the First World War in August 1914 left Lenin practically isolated politically, and in exile with very few contacts with the party in Russia. The Second International had solemnly voted at several congresses to oppose the imperialist war, and in the case of its outbreak to use all means at their disposal to accelerate the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism. Instead, all the major parties collapsed into social-chauvinism, each defending the interests of their own ruling class in the war.
Written in 1916, in the middle of the First World War, Lenin’s Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism is an essential work for understanding the phenomena of war and imperialism today.
