G. Edward Griffin - The Fabian Society

THE FABIAN SOCIETY

But there was another movement coming to birth at about this same time that
eventually gave competition to the hard-core Marxists. Some of the more erudite members
of the wealthy and intellectual classes of England formed an organization to perpetuate the
concept of collectivism but not exactly according to Marx. It was called the Fabian Society.

The name is significant, because it was in honor of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus,
the Roman general who, in the second century B.C., kept Hannibal at bay by wearing down
his army with delaying tactics, endless maneuvering, and avoiding confrontation wherever
possible. Unlike the Marxists who were in a hurry to come to power through direct
confrontation with established governments, the Fabians were willing to take their time, to
come to power without direct confrontation, working quietly and patiently from inside the
target governments. To emphasize this strategy, and to separate themselves from the
Marxists, they adopted the turtle as their symbol. And their official shield portrays an image
of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Those two images perfectly summarize their strategy.

It is now 1884, and we find ourselves in Surrey, England observing a small group of
these Fabians, sitting around a table in the stylish home of two of their more prominent
members, Sydney and Beatrice Webb. The Webbs later would be known world wide as the
founders of the London School of Economics. Their home eventually was donated to the
Fabian Society and became its official headquarters. Around the table are such well-known
figures as George Bernard Shaw, Arnold Toynbee, H.G. Wells, and numerous others of
similar caliber. By the way, the Fabian Society still exists, and many prominent people are
members, not the least of which is England’s Prime Minister, Tony Blair.

H.G. Wells wrote a book to serve as a guide showing how collectivism can be
embedded into society without arousing alarm or serious opposition. It was called The Open
Conspiracy, and the plan was spelled out in minute detail. His fervor was intense. He said
that the old religions of the world must give way to the new religion of collectivism. The
new religion should be the state, he said, and the state should take charge of all human
activity with, of course, elitists such as himself in control. On the very first page, he says:
“This book states as plainly and clearly as possible the essential ideas of my life, the
perspective of my world…. This is my religion. Here are my directive aims and the criteria
of all I do.”1

When he said that collectivism was his religion, he was serious. Like many
collectivists, he felt that traditional religion is a barrier to the acceptance of state power. It is
a competitor for man’s loyalties. Collectivists see religion as a device by which the clerics
keep the downtrodden masses content by offering a vision of something better in the next
world. If your goal is to bring about change, contentment is not what you want. You want
discontentment. That’s why Marx called religion the opiate of the masses.2 It gets in the way
of revolutionary change. Wells said that collectivism should become the new opiate, that it
should become the vision for better things in the next world.

The new order must be built on
the concept that individuals are nothing compared to the long continuum of society, and that
only by serving society do we become connected to eternity. He was very serious.
The blueprint in The Open Conspiracy has been followed in all the British
dependencies and the United Sates. As a result, today’s world is very close to the vision of
H.G. Wells. A worship of the god called society has become a new religion. No matter what
insult to our dignity or liberty, we are told it’s necessary for the advancement of society, and
that has become the basis for contentment under the hardships of collectivism. The greater
good for the greater number has become the opiate of the masses.