Determination and flexibility

After Cliff's death in April 2000, a tribute called 'Tony Cliff: theory and practice' reflected on the qualities that enabled Cliff to provide effective leadership in the International Socialists tradition over half a century. Writing in the International Socialism journal, of which he was then editor, John Rees described Cliff as 'the most determined person I have ever met'. His single-mindedness and unwavering commitment to revolutionary socialism, which Dave Renton also captures in his tribute, were phenomenal.

A key aspect of this was his determination to pursue a course of action 100%. As Rees observes, it is only possible to assess any strategy or intervention if it has been done properly. After all, if it was only done with 50% effort and failed then how can you tell if it was the wrong strategy, or simply not done with enough dedication? This means it isn't sufficient to simply pick up and drop initiatives without any commitment to seeing things through.

I recall Cliff imploring us at a SWP meeting in the late 1990s, "Don't be grasshoppers, just jumping from one thing to the next thing". He was partly championing consistency and commitment, but he also meant that socialist activists mustn't intervene in various activities and struggles without also building socialist organisation. Strengthening the revolutionary party helps build bigger and more effective campaigns in future, and also increases the forces of revolutionary socialism.

Another key element was ruthless honesty - not as a moral injunction but in order to evaluate situations accurately and plot a course of action. Cliff repeatedly insisted that revolutionaries must not tell lies, either to others or to themselves. Telling the truth to yourself - seeing the world accurately, facing reality - is an underrated quality. The alternative is a distorted view that prevents us deciding on the correct approach. Such honesty was crucial in Cliff's development of the theory of state capitlaism to understand the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe in the late 1940s. He recognised that orthodox Trotskyist claims just didn't match reality, which prompted his challenge to the received wisdom.

The flipside of Cliff's determination and decisiveness was flexibility. While being unshakeable in principle, he had a gift for adapting tactics and methods of organising to suit changing circumstances. There will inevitably be occasional tactical errors, and it may take time to convince everyone of the need for change, but it is vital to grasp the key tasks for socialists at any given time and adapt accordingly. In this respect he was influenced by Lenin, who made massive tactical turns in repsonse to the pressures of events, especially in the revolutionary year of 1917 but to an extent throughout the Bolsheviks' history.

This combination of dedication, decisiveness, honesty and adaptability is necessary now, as ever, for socialists. Responding to the greatest crisis of capitalism for decades requires initative - and then commitment to seeing it through. It also means adapting how revolutionaries organise to fit changed conditions, whether that's the kind of meetings we organise, the alliances we form or the ways we use new technologies to spread resistance and disseminate ideas.