Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 25 September 1944 — Page 10

PRET Ts Sir 5.90 2 \ LECKRONE MARK FERREE (A SCRIPPS-HOWARD NEWSPAPER)

¥ W. HOWARD

states, 75 cents a month; others, $1 monthly.

% RILEY 8551 Give Light end the People Will Find Their Own Way THE PRESIDENT STRIKES BACK ; FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT'S stature as a statesman o. -cannot be truly guaged by his contemporaries: We are too close to the events of today to fit them into the froad pattern of world history, but the test of leadership dargely lies in the fruits of the following years—years avhich can be assayed only by a generation that is removed from the passions and partisanships of the moment. 8% But there can be no question of the President's pregminence in one field. Even those who oppose him most bitterly will readily concede that he is the master politician of our time. : If there was any doubt on this score, it was removed by his speech to the dinner of the International Teamsters’ Eo Union in Washington on Saturday might. Not.only was it, —.....a8 one listener phrased it, “the perfect after-dinner speech,” but it was a demonstration of the campaigning skill which ~~ has earned him the title of “the champion.” The old warforse of the political battles. of the last 12 years is just as deft, just as skillful, just as persuasive as ever. In this field, certainly, he’s notsslipping.

\ o A . ” # ! MR. ROOSEVELT pulled out all the stops, and, as Mr. Dewey has pointed out, he abandoned the pretense ~ that he would not eampaign “in the usual partisan sense.” or this speech was frankly political. { It was an acknowledgement of the effectiveness of the Dewey campaign to date, for much of the speech was devoted to counter-punching. What little encouragement the Republicans can take from ‘it lies in the realization that they have Mr. Roosevelt on the defensive. He even felt called upon facetiously to defend his dog, Falla, in. the mood of Champ Clark's famous theme, “You gotta quit ickin’ my dog around.” And since Mr. Roosevelt mentioned that Falla’s Scotch soul was enraged at the rumor that his truancy in the Aleutians cost the taxpayers “two r three or 20 million dollars,” it might be to the point to k in the same facetious vein what Falla thinks of the Mwo or three or 20” billion-dollar goings-on around Washington in the last 12 years. Besides, we didn't know Falla : pu on the ticket. : ¥ ti

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IT IS NOT the purpose of a political speech to be imial. All's fair in love, war and politics, and a skillful paigner presents only one side of the picture—his side. ere always are some significant omissions. Thus Mr. Roosevelt attacked Mr. Dewey on the basis of some of his Supporters. He played up the fact that there are isolafionists in the Republican camp, but he neglected to men-

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quarter. It was not Republicans who picketed the White House against the passage of the selective service act or plastered the country with the slogan “The Yanks Are Not Coming” or sabotaged production in the ‘plants that were preparing the country for war—the ones who did that were the Communists, who now are the most vocal supporters of the fourth term. And as Mr. Roosevelt said, “The people of this country know the past too well to be deceived into forgetting.” ; Mr. Roosevelt also neglected to point out that his wai program and defense preparations were supported in con-

of the country above partisanship for the duration. This war has not been fought by one man, or one party, but you.can hardly expect that fact to be acknowledged during a political campaign, - ioe

” 8 - FOR THE most part, the President’s speech looked backward. It dealt largely with the past, even as far back as 1920, Of his program for the future, little was said— though that may develop in later speeches. The most concrete declaration was: “The keynote of all that we can prope do in reconversion canbe found in one word— jo Ss. ” 3 That has been Mr. Dewey's theme, also, and it is a hopeful sign that the two candidates agree on this, ] Which leaves one basic question for the electorate to decide: Who best can provide those jobs? S——i————— us

NO POLITICAL PRESSURE?

R OBERT J. BULKLEY, member of the board of appeals

Eom, visa cases, says no political pressure was exercised in behalf of Mrs. Raissa Browder, wife of the Communist leader, whose entry into this country the board has legalized. (She has been here illegally since 1933.) No political pressure? Well, what was it then? Did the facts of the case change since 1940 when Attorney General Jackson ordered Mrs. Browder deported on the basis of her own testimony? - D¥ the facts change since a board consisting of representatives of the state, war and navy departments, the FBI and the immigration service voted 5 to 0 against granting Mrs. Browder a visa? Lid the facts change since a review board of repre-

sentatives of those same departments voted 4 to 1 against giving her a visa? hn

= the case that escaped the six other government agencies that have handled this case in the last four years? And if the facts didn't change, what caused the board

of appeals to reverse all the others? Somebody ought to speak up. red |

— a i RUG-GED DIET A CAPTURED Nazi document angrily refutes the pre- ~~ Vvailing notion that Der Fuehrer “tears down curtains, bites the carpet in his rage, and rolls in ‘convulsions on the flor” when things upset him. It isn't hard to believe that Adolf has given up the unsanitary habit of rug-munching, now that those nice

from the front are constantly pro- bool

fresh to chew on.

fianapolis Times

fion that not all the isolationist sentiment came fronrthat:

gress by the Republican leadership which put the welfare |-

What did the two-member board of appeals learn about |

‘co-operated with congress for the

Reflections

By John W. Hillman

chilly days have reminded us that ‘ere long the fall and winter heavy-thinking season will be upon us. , Sogyi the voice of the forum will be heard in the land. Already the librarians are dusting off the non-fiction shelves and are casting apprehensive glancés at the women's clubs’ study programs for the year. The mystery thrillers are being sent to the bindery to prepare for the ravages of another summer. The question now is | not “who done it?” but “who’ll do it?” . ‘This.year, as we approach the season of cerebration, the air in Indianapolis is thick with post-war planning. And that's something differen the air is just thick. : A Our post-war planners are busy preparing a brave new Indianapolis which will be so streamlined and chromium-plated that most of us won't f a bit at home. And if the planners aren't they'll plan themselves out of a job, for there won't be any more problems left to solve. There hasn't been such a flurry of improvement hereabouts since grandma first was sold on the virtues of indoor plumbing.

Decentralization Is Civic Problem

ONE OF the things that seems most to concern the architects for the city of tomorrow is the present trend toward urban decentralization and the disintegration of the downtown district. It might be mentioned that since some of the most ardent planners also own downtown real estate, they take a dim view of this trend. Not that, during the soft coal season in Indianapolis, a dim view is anything out of the ‘movement away from the center of town is a social and economic problem. Every major city has seen part of its population move away from the inner residential areas, leaving segments of run-down buildings and vacant lots for which there is no profitable use. This exodus undermines the tax structure of the central city, and as the population moves farther and farther away, the total cost of public services in the metropolitan” area for highways, police and fire protection, sewers, water and other utilities is greatly increased. : The post-war thinkers are plagping to combat this tendency by streamlining the street system, in order to relieve downtown fraffic congestion and to make access to the central area more convenient,’ If their dreams come true, there'll be so many. belt boulevards, superhighways and arterial thoroughfares that we'll spend the rest of our life trying to find our way out of a cloverleaf intersection.

Just Ask Any Suburbanite

THIS IS all to the good. There are too many bottlenecks where an internal combustion age struggles to conform to a city pattern of horse-and-buggy vintage. But the hundred-foot right-of-way is not the complete answer, f If you don't believe this, ask any suburbanite why he moved to the country—or, better still, ask his wife. She'll tell you that it’s because she likes to have clean curtains, : Smoke, then, is the most active force in driving these people out. If you can control the smoke, you can successfully plan the rehabilitation of large downtown areas for a variety of purposes, including apartments attractive to people who work in the center of the city. But you can’t persuade people to live in an atmosphere that is choked with smoke and soot—not when there is clean air and sunshine a few miles farther out in the country. Smoke abatement has other advantages—economy of fuel and reduction in the rate .of. respiratory diseases, particularly tuberculosis which has a higher degree of frequency in Indianapolis than in almost any. other city of comparahle size. But as a factor in Improving the residence desirability of the so-called blighted areas, it is mosf important. That’s something that the post-war planners ought to be thinking about—if they aren’t already. If they don’t, those wide thoroughfares won't make much difference. Streets run both ways.

World Affairs

By Ludwell Denny -

- WASHINGTON, Sept. 25.—Of all the roads to war and aggression the surest is an enslaved press. Future peace wil] not be secure for long if foreign governments can prevent the flow of news at home and abroad. Democracy cannot function, nationally or internationally, without a free press. No matter how peaceful or intelligent any people may be, they are a pushover for vicious: governs ment propaganda if their news sources are poisoned. All of which is so obvious to Americans that they took it for granted and were not greatly concerned—until shortly before this war. Then they observed that the pattern of foreign dictatorship and war-makers was always the same, that control of the press was the first essential. Americans now understand the direct connection between Hitler's early use of,the press to poison most of Europe and the ease with which his armies then conquered his confused neighbors.

No Longer Academic or Incidental

THEREFORE, THE ISSUE of international freedom of the press is no longer an academic or incidental issue to America. It is at the very heart of the problem of future peace. Reflecting this public opinion, congress by unanimous action has instructed our government to seek an international agreement to obtain: and protect the free flow of world news. Its demand is brief, but to the point: “That the U. 8. congress expresses its belief in the world-wide right of the exchange of news by newsgathering and news-distributing agencies, whether individual or associated, by any means, without discrimination as to sources, distribution, rates or

s Bb Unfortunately, our enemies have not -been the only offenders. Some of our biggest allies are ine volved, and not only dictators. There are two familiar forms of discrimination. One is the direct or indirect government subsidy of an official or semi-official agency, of which pre-war France was anh example. The other is the favorite British device of discriminatory internatidnal cable or wireless rates, Obviously monopoly or discrimination either in access to news sources or in transmission and distribution is destructive of a free press

American Press Gives Solid Support

. THE PROBLEM now is to get the American principle and practice—and this is one case in which we have practiced what we preached—-accepted abroad, and in colonial areas no less than elsewhere. Virtually all of the representative organizations in this cotintry—including the American Newspaper Publishers Assn; the American Society of Newspaper Editors, the U. P., the A. P, the I. N. S. agencies and others—

passage of its resolution. ; 3

Hugh Baillie, ‘president of the United Press, who is now abroad discussing free access to news, reports

Czechoslovakia, France, The Netherlands and Norway.

THE FROST isn't on the| . pumpkin yet, but a few almost- |-

But there is a more fundamental reason why the |

charges; and that this right should be protected by | | . international compact.” - . “Fes

a sympathetic attitude-on the part of Belgium, | But nothing short of an international compact, as |

EM

2 everyone

| Voice Strong and Confident ~~ = | . THE GONG sounded 6:30 then there adinot

and tumult from the dining room in Washe It went on and on, interminably. Those in

ington.

fog-horn in sea, He finished. Then that

ther voice for which strong, confident and

* The line of the poet, “A Voice in the Wilderness Singing,” came to mind, but Lord Byron was writing of love, and this was no love feast going on there over the radio. Not on your life,

The Hoosier Forum

1 wholly disagree with what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it.— Voltaire.

“HERE IS WHAT HE ACTUALLY SAID” By J. E, R, Indianapolis, The sage of Roosevelt ave, Mrs. William (Holy Cause) Shipp, in her search for the “power of truth” treats the readers of The Times with the usual hooey of distorted demagogery and didactic claptrap that you can expect from the New Deal lovers. She misquotes Mr. Roosevelt’s “again and again” speech incorrectly and commits numerous other errors concerning cause and effect. Here is what he actually said in Boston on October 30, 1940: “And while I am talking fo you, fathers and mothers, 1 give you one more assurance. I have said this before, but I shall say it again and again and again—your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars.” In that speech he did not say one word about “unless we are attacked.” That phrase did appear in both the Democratic and Republican platforms, but how many people read those platforms? He knew very well when he made that statement that war was inevitable, So on that basis alone that “promise” assumes the aspects of premeditated duplicity on his part. The “quarantine” speech was a laugh in itself without Mrs, Shipp’s exultations that “the world would be at peace today” if we had “rallied to the President.” I suppose none of the following FACTS have anything to do’ with it. 1. Japan had been ravaging China for three years without protest. : 2. That speech was just the thing needed to distract the voters’ attention from the then recent appointment of the very strange Mr, Hugo Black to the Supreme court, 3. Only a year later F. D. R. was prepared to forget all about quarantines and stand for peace at any price in Czechoslovakia so that he could share in the world spotlight on the “aggréssor nations.” It might interest Mrs. Shipp to learn that there were over 40 wars fought between world wars I and II. Do you think that blast of buffoonery in 1937 could have stopped any of them or prevented the cur-

{Times readers are invited to express their views in these columns, ‘religieus controversies excluded, Because of the volume received, letters should be limited to 250 words. Letters must be signed. Opinions set forth here are those of the writers, and publication in no way implies agreement with those opinions by The Times. The Times assumes no responsi bility for the return of manuscripts and cannot enter correspondence regarding them.)

rent one? I don't remember any “champions of democracy” protesting the rape of China before it became politically profitable to do so. I think it is about time the intelligent voters in this country gave

the Phoney Deal the boot and put some men in office who will give a

little more thought to defending

democracy at home for a change. td ® » “INFLATION IS HERE” By Walter C. Reese Sr., Shelbyville. So far, Mr. Dewey has not touched on the regimentation of the people by the New Deal OPA. It is a known fact that so far as food is concerned we do not need the office of the OPA. It is another WPA to take care of thousands of white collar workers. : This country has enough food to take care of it and the empire of Great Britain.’ During world war I the farmer received $20 per hundred for his hogs, $3 for wheat, and $2 for corn. Now, by reason of a planned society and under the process of regimented prices established by the OPA, the farmer has been cheated out of a decent price for his produce. But to quiet him, checks have been handed out. He has been deprived of the right to contract at a greater price than the ceiling price even though he and the buyer agree. Just where is the provision of the Constitution that says that no law shall be made

Side Glances—By Galbraith

|challenge this time as he did 12 years ago. ' How about it, Mr.|

which impairs the obligations of contracts? The reason that such

as unconstitutional The issues in much deeper think. "It is

3

twice or three times when the pellars like the autumn leaves. We

vent. The New Deal sits up nights worrying about inflation. No, Mr. New Dealer, inflation is here,

2 2s = “IS NORMAN THOMAS A SOCIALIST?”

By Charles Ginsberg, jalist Labor Party.

Is Norman Thomas a Socialist? Some say yes; others say no. While many persons were, no doubt, aware of the fact that there were two organizations in the United States using the name Socialist and that these two organizations nominated each their candidate for President of the United States, it was not until the army's rebroadcasting program for troops overseas included the two organizations that the vast majority of the people of the United States fully realized that there were two organizations bearing the name Socialist. It is axiomatic that there cannot be two genuine Socialist organizations in any one country at any one time. Obviously, then, one of the two, the Socialist Party’ or the Socialist Labor Party, is not a genuine Socialist organization, Norman Thomas is- the Socialist party’s candidate for President; Edward Teichert is the Socialist Labor party’s candidate for the same office. Here, 100, it is obvious that only one of the two candidates is a genuine Socialist candidate for President uf the United States. I understand that the Socialist Labor party's candidate for President challenged Mr. Thomas to debate publicly this very question. The voters of the nation, including those in the armed forces, who may desire to Vote the Socialist ticket (the number would be very difficult *o estimate at this time) have a right to know the difference between the

tate Secretary, Se-

Socialist party and the Socialist} {Labor party, The latter has formally expressed| -

its willingness to bring these dif~ ferences to the attention of the nation's voters. The responsibility for making that possible now rests with Norman Thomas and his organization. And it is to be hoped’ that Mr. Thomas will ‘not choose to ignore the Socialist Labor party's

Thomas?

DAILY THOUGHTS

Follow not that which is evil, but that which 1s good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God. Losi ~III John

ni, 81,

gotta start figuring how to reduce the number of gove ernment employees as soon as the war's over. Thereby the President, in office, gets credit for a beautiful assist at cutting down federal expenditures. The President signs the G. 1 Bill of Rights, and’ his administration gets credit for being good to the

soldiers. As commander-in-chief, the President goes to Africa, the Middle East, Hawail, Alaska, He sees the troops in those places, and without kissing = single baby or giving away one cigar or cigaret he makes his presence felt and thus appeals to a few hundred thoue sand potential voters, which his opponent cannot do,

And There Are the Appointments

HE CAN throw in, along with a list. of deserving promotions of career diplomats, the appointment of a former Democratic national committeeman, Charles Sawyer of Ohio, to be ambassador to Belgium, and he can thereby pay off a political debt. He can make reports to the ernment” and he can make naval bases on the west coast politics, while at the same time giving you every as surance that you are now getting the best deal of all. : } He can send messages to congress tional service legislation, higher sidies to keep down the cost sage makes him a great

F

the cost of living is too high, as who Without a word from him, a bureau

istration can in the normal course wages raised. And you know

“for that. :

Poor Tom Has to Have a Train Wreck

HE CAN ATTEND conferences with Nimits and - MacArthur in Honolulu, with Churchill in Quebec, Chiang Kai-shek in Cairo and Joe Stalin in Teheran,