THE PEOPLE'S FORUM
. . . THE PEOPLE'S FORUM . . . A Public Trial Dear Sirs: When people's toes are about to be stepped on they look for a scapegoat. It now seems that the people of the United States are to blame...
...Hugh E. Mahood Aliford Bay, British Columbia * * * Share This Issue With Friends Pearl Harbor Blame Dear Sirs: Most radio commentators and newswriters state categorically that the blame for Pearl Harbor is Hull's and his Nov...
...Civilian looting plus the Russians has left nothing of value...
...Incidentally, Barnes gets my goat sometimes with his "realism...
...Roosevelt refuse to enforce the Neutrality Act of 1936 to prevent shipment of war supplies to Japan immediately after the Atlantic conference...
...1. A rather blind devotion, as of religious fanatics...
...It is more the matter of a practical and fair method of establishing parity of seniority for the veteran in order that he can be considered eligible for employment in the present labor competition...
...Stalinism works because he's top dog, he vanquished the foe...
...I don't know how much experience you've had with the Soviet to-taiitarians...
...A replica of France last Winter, where every time you eat some starving child is watching you eat, hoping that there will be a crust of bread left...
...False propaganda in Germany...
...By approving the removal to France and Russia of millions of German men and boys, to work for years as slave laborers, this Government endorses the PRINCIPLE of slave labor...
...Yet even this bill makes no provision for the serious and immediate problem of speedy reemployment not only of displaced war workers but also returned veterans...
...The Atlantic Charter came in August, 1941...
...Well, I'll be glad to get out of it as soon as possible...
...Most people want only to hear of heroics...
...The average guy is the average guy the world over...
...The people, whom they now accuse of blame, were not told this until Jan...
...Clem Norton Member, Boston School Committee, Boston, Mass...
...In the past few years I've come to stress more and more the democratic part of democratic socialism...
...Chamberlin is a liberal, one of the few still left to us whose integrity of mind and soul stand unshaken under the impact of these terrific times...
...Churchill declared to the House of Commons some time later, in regard to the United States entry into the war, "That's what I have dreamed of, aimed at, and worked for and now" it has come to pass...
...It seems so difficult to learn...
...The people who stand accused have a right to know...
...Their opinion about privileged rank and justice would perhaps change...
...A German soldier trying to dig a garden with one arm is just as helpless as an American in the same situation...
...It is everybody for himself...
...If it works...
...This is what comes of having preconceived ideas and refusing to part with them in the face of actual developments...
...Chamberlin has a prejudice against Soviet Russia...
...food is nearly gone, except for a little black bread and a few vegetables...
...Radburn, N. J. * * * No Rabble Rousing Dear Sirs: I probably disagree with The Progressive more than I agree with it, but I give you credit for at least thinking and printing provocative articles other newspapers either refuse to handle, or bury in the ads...
...John Haynes Holmes to William Henry Chamberlin, in The Progressive of Sept...
...Perhaps it would not be so bad, but food is auctioned off to the highest bidder...
...Rather is it a prejudice, and an ineradicable one, against imperialism, militarism, power politics, tyranny, injustice, immorality, hypocrisy, cruelty, and all evil...
...However, in my opinion, halfway is not enough...
...By disarming German police empowered with the duty of protecting German civilians, this Government makes possible the pillaging and rape being done by inmates of displaced persons camps...
...Women are working in the streets, old and young...
...Marie A. Sanpord La Crosse, Wis...
...3, 1945...
...Perhaps the important thing to be learned is that without principles, basic ones, Christian ones, the whole of our society is doomed...
...Does it tie in or not...
...As for the isolationists who incidentally, according to Gallup's poll, numbered a mere 80 per cent of the American public, one might ask when they were ever consulted about Government policies under Roosevelt, or, indeed, even permitted to know what was going on in Washington...
...A big statement, that...
...The English department of every college in America should study the above descriptive English, for its sheer beauty of context all around, grandeur of expression...
...There are certain essential features...
...Is it all good because it is great...
...Otherwise, I think you have an excellent magazine there, and I was particularly interested in such articles as those on TVA and Columbia River salmon...
...Mrs...
...All people are susceptible to it, off hand...
...Whatever Stalin does and Barnes agrees with...
...By approving the removal of Sudeten German families from their ancestral homes, this Government endorses the PRINCIPLE of expelling peoples from their rightful homeland...
...Why not to the Pacific defense...
...By consenting to the removal of all German property of any worth, parcelling it out to various greedy nations, we are creating a situation in which one entire nation of 70 million souls has no way in which to earn a living...
...For the life of me I can't see that we owe so much to the practical realism of some of our greats...
...5. Honest self-criticism is totally unknown...
...Roosevelt and Secretary Hull, who knew this, do to ready our Pacific defense...
...Freedom to have access to information, to criticize, to dissent, to change, to remove from office, to organize with others—these plus job security, advancement, education, equality, etc., etc., are the test of an advancing civilization...
...J. C. R. Kearns, Utah Corruption Of Power Dear Sirs: The more I read of Harry Elmer Barnes' historical observations of the past 30 years, the less he impresses me as an objective historian...
...3 People's Forum, "Socialism Precedes Fascism", from R. H. Crum, Mid-dletown, Conn., is one of the most stupid and untrue letters I have read in a long time...
...During this year, war equipment went to Europe via Lend-Lease...
...We have tremendous social and economic problems ahead of us and I hope we can solve them with a minimum of rabble rousing from Right, Left, or Center...
...The old business of our not bombing hospitals, etc., discount...
...hospitals or anything in the way disappeared...
...It now seems that the people of the United States are to blame for che Pearl Harbor tragedy...
...Address: Socialist Party, 303 4th Ave., New York 10, N. Y. Price 10 cents...
...A very rare man if he has not...
...If so, how long must one wait to judge...
...and grant seniority based on military service...
...This is not the old hate of men for their officers, but goes beyond that...
...then waiting to reach in the garbage pail to take the food home...
...No military man should be allowed to sit on or make up a board of peace...
...Democracy is thrown out the window and the antedated system "the military way" prevails...
...2. A lack of ability to understand democracy...
...The Morgan bank which financed Mussolini's African campaign, the Standard Oil and other business concerns which supplied Hitler, Mussolini, and Japan with war equipment are the ones who can be be charged with the responsibility for the use of ni-tro-glycerin, TNT, and the atomic bomb for destructive purposes...
...Respect for truth regardless of consequences is non-existent...
...THE black market is flourishing...
...C. William Elbow, Jr...
...2. Produce for export trade only (except power) aluminum, motors, farm machinery, chemicals, etc., in order to control the extension of credits abroad...
...Emma Dasch Colfax, Wash...
...Most soldiers, perhaps, started out with some ideals, but they are crushed out in the military life...
...Oddly enough, most of the people are well dressed, but this is mostly the clothing of those who are dead and who have fled...
...Believe me it is time and past time for the opposition to speak up against the outrages being commit ted in the name of the people...
...Without idealism the world is lost...
...Russia...
...All that with the tacit approval of this Government...
...Russia has picked Germany clean of every article, even to typewriters and sewing machines, according to newspaper reports...
...everyone who can is trying to get rich...
...It is doubtful if any one can give a description that would cover the horror of all this business...
...Lend-Lease was begun...
...he has lost the viewpoint of Christian culture...
...We cannot believe it is the will of the people of this nation that our Government lends its approval to the perpetuation of human slavery...
...David Dallin has described him as 'one of the best if not the best American authority on Russia.' It is charged that Mr...
...The Bill Smiths and Mary Wilsons have no desire to blow themselves or their neighbors to bits...
...The truth is a bit too rough...
...Roosevelt and Mr...
...Sgt...
...The Murray Bill is evidently the only concrete expression in government circles which approaches the whole employment problem with any degree of realism...
...That is the advantage of being away from the nearness of war...
...A candy bar brings only $10, with the mother and father debating if they can afford it to keep the child alive...
...Besides the many other excellent writers, you have the incomparable trio—Ernest Meyer, Milton Mayer, and Harry Elmer Barnes...
...4. Apply this loss as a veterans' subsidy in lieu of soldiers' bonus, unemployment payments, or any other provision for supporting veterans during the transition to a self-supporting status...
...How about mighty America...
...A carton of cigarets brings about $200, coffee $600...
...We object to some of the things being done by the Government supposedly elected to serve the will of the people...
...Short—is the only American way to settle this...
...By consenting to the occupation of Germany by Berber tribesmen, this Government endorses the outrages committed by hoodlums who know nothing of occupation duties...
...I am glad to . . . pay tribute to (William Henry Chamberlin) who is on occasion so shamefully abused in the correspondence columns of The Progressive...
...Full Employment Dear Sirs: Throughout the country people are aware of the confusion of plans to put people to work and keep them at work in order to achieve full employment...
...The people are accused of aiding in bringing on the Pearl Harbor disaster by the people who deliberately kept the truth from us and through well aimed propaganda directed our attention toward Europe...
...Pvt.— Berlin, Germany Human Slavery Dear Sirs: I have written the following letter to our Secretary of State: This letter will bring you a protest from my family...
...We sent troops to Greenland and 7,000 planes, 3,500 tanks, 195,000 motor vehicles to Russia...
...What is your test...
...The same fears, however, were expressed when nitro-glycer-ine and TNT were invented, but de-spite all of those fears, these instruments of destruction have been used for constructive purposes except by those who derive private profits from warfare...
...Ambassador Grew reported to the Department of State on Jan...
...For your information, I consider myself something of a Marxist, depending on one's interpretation, of course...
...Since both Mr...
...What did Mr...
...It would be an improvement to follow the idea through to public enterprise and cooperative socialism, more in line with the CCF program in Canada...
...5. Encourage efforts to organize and incorporate this group into the existing union structure, since it otherwise would constitute a threat to the closed shops in private industry...
...Louise N. Wheelwright Blowing Rock, N. C. * * * Reply To Crum Dear Sirs: The letter in your Sept...
...The Russians have settled down to a pretty good job of administration, after carting away most of the city that was valuable, and after a period of rape and destruction...
...he has a knowledge of foreign affairs that makes ridiculous the vapid ignorance of most of those who so intem-perately criticize and condemn, him . . . No less a scholar than Mr...
...By allowing American soldiers to loot damaged homes, sending linens and silver and church relics to this country as "souvenirs," we place ourselves in the same category as that of Red soldiers whose policy of looting and rape is well known in the Balkan countries they have overrun...
...It is the first "pi-inciple" that once you begin kicking any individual you are on the way to kicking Everybody...
...THE wreckage of material things and of individuals finally gets you down...
...Of course, we believe that Hull could have sent his critical ultimatum without Roosevelt's knowledge or sanction just as much as we really believe that Marshall and the naval officers acted on their own sweet volition without even thinking of asking their Commander-in-Chief...
...Oust The War-Makers Dear Sirs: The devastating effect of the explosion of the atomic bombs on Japanese cities has caused widespread fear that the bombs might be used for the destruction of the entire hu-man race...
...ultimately it becomes a philosophy...
...Why did Mr...
...It is worthy of Dean Swift at his best...
...That's a rough idea...
...They spent taxpayers' money to persuade us that the war in Europe was our war...
...Why was the bulk of our fleet congregated at Pearl Harbor, when for a whole year the Commander-in-Chief had known there was danger of attack there...
...I repeat: I don't agree with some of the drivel you print, but I don't agree with the drivel a lot of other publications print, either, so I figure I can read most of The Progressive without gagging...
...It needs other men to put together again...
...It is true that he had a prejudice, but it is not against Russia...
...Some of our smart people who enjoy the use of power should live here for a week or two...
...In Berlin "pattern bombing" was used...
...The problem of immediate employment is not simply the determination of the ethical practices to be followed in granting job preferences to either out of work war workers or newly returned out of work veterans...
...Where Europe will get them I can't say but they will be hard to find...
...A GI Report From Germany Dear Sirs: I am writing this from Berlin on a German typewriter, just one of the many pieces of equipment that the American and the Russian troops have picked up...
...They want peace, jobs, and security...
...We appreciated very much the grand and true analyzing of Marshal Petain's trial for treason...
...Why not to the Philippines...
...The bully is a bully no matter what he has on...
...To devise a system in which a man has enough to eat can't be so difficult that you have to tear down the whole world to attain it...
...H. M. Pratt New York, N. Y. * * * Pass The Progressive Along Test Of Civilization Dear Sirs: I almost wrote "Dear Fellow Fascist" because of the influence of the letters from some of your dear correspondents whose knowledge must be obtained from Stalinist sources...
...As a matter of fact, once a revolution has been accomplished and strong measures are taken by the new powers to prevent change by popular wish, there is much less hope of a decent society than when the reactionary aristocrats held the ruins in their incompetent, corrupt hands...
...after so many years of [.Array life we have produced a fertile class of so-called adults who are potentially as able to kick people around as the best of the German SS Troops...
...Joseph Kaufman Morristown, N. J. * * * Incomparable Trio Dear Sirs: The Progressive is the greatest periodical in existence...
...All the Germans are witness to this...
...1. Provide that Government continue to operate those plants now Government-owned and employ only veterans, or give Job preference to veterans, from lowest job level to the highest possible as skills and experience allow...
...As a soldier, I am naturally greatly interested in the postwar problems confronting our nation and I feel that The Progressive will help me to discover what veterans will be up against when they return to civilian life...
...I hope to get a leave and go somewhere where life is more normal...
...It takes some digging to discover the truth in the United States...
...It was Browder's fault the last time...
...Another war, and there is plenty of hatred for another, and what we have dealt out will be given back to us...
...What is practical realism anyway...
...He, like many others who are appalled at the stupidity of modern cultures, apparently believes that a better way of life can be accomplished by violent revolution followed by a strong central government of the former revolutionaries...
...The Winter here will be horrible unless transportation is got going...
...Churchill repudiated it, just what was the nature of this Atlantic meeting...
...Frank Simpson San Diego, Calif...
...12, 1943...
...I hope this picture doesn't disgust you...
...Robert Alexander Pacific, Mo...
...It is just the sort of thing the Germans did...
...4. An oh, so decided ability to twist and turn and zig and zag on orders without the slightest difficulty...
...Jo Cantine Woodstock, N. Y. * * * Halfway Not Enough Dear Sirs: I have enjoyed reading The Progressive and would like to continue to do so...
...6. Defer all action on turning plants over to private ownership until veterans have acquired seniority ratings...
...From here it is pretty obvious that the question of fighting over who gets it is foolish...
...but compete with private industry by meeting prices and maintaining wage rates...
...Kimmel and Gen...
...D. C. Gibson Memphis, Tenn...
...Instead of serving the people's will it is our belief that this Administration is serving the will of a few men...
...Certainly nothing has been more abstractly awful than the continuous destruction of Berlin...
...At the same time I feel compelled to offer some fairly strong (though constructive) criticism, as follows: Your paper is advocating and favoring progressive ideas, and with that I thoroughly agree...
...3. A decided ability by careful training at name-calling, by lumping any critic or criticism with a Hearst or a Hitler...
...The people have been made drunk with propaganda and one must fall in line and pretend to assent—or else...
...I am still on my old Army job...
...Most soldiers ultimately fall to the level of the system they are in at the moment...
...Evidently he knows little and cares less, of the corruption of power, and the unwillingness of politicians to relinquish their privileges and prestige even though they must maintain a vast military machine, huge concentration camps, and an army of secret police to hold the status quo...
...The smell of the dead still prevails...
...our military life has become here pretty much a life by rank, which means privileged...
...it's very easy to make $1,000 a week...
...Economic justice seems" simple after seeing things over here...
...The 1,460 generals in the American Army with the countless numbers of admirals and minor officers in the Army and Navy are the ones that used these lethal weapons for destructive purposes...
...Churchill stated in Commons that, at the Atlantic Conference, Roosevelt had pledged "he would get us into war whether or not we were attacked...
...This man makes a sickly effort to give his article a cultural cast, and he follows the same line as Fried-rich Hayek in his anti-labor and anti-Socialist book, The Road to Serfdom, which all well posted persons know to be utterly untrue...
...A public trial for the men who still stand accused—Adm...
...The one thing that they did was to protect the mothers and the children...
...It is curious that Barnes' wisdom and cynicism with regard to power politicians in France, Britain, and the U. S. should permit him any optimism when it comes to "Uncle Joe" and his band of cut-throats...
...and could not be proved, but the military life for most of the soldiers is a brutal lot...
...Holmes' Tribute Dear Sirs: It is too bad to let die the beautiful tribute paid by Dr...
...The following program is one way of indicating Government help in solving the problems which the country faces as it strives for full employment...
...Brimstone and fire is a mild description...
...26 ultimatum, certain Army and Navy officers, and, finally, the indifferent and "isolationist" public, etcetera—ad nauseum...
...Maybe Barnes has no objection to ruling classes as long as they are not composed of aristocrats, which of course reveals a personal bias...
...3. Recognize the cash loss involved in production by veterans who will be unsuited emotionally or physically for steadily high work performance...
...That is perhaps the greatest crime of all the crimes be ing committed...
...Japan...
...They've gotten so good at it that there are many explanations to fit the occasion...
...Then Pearl Harbor occurred...
...How about British imperialism in its heyday...
...Plain Talk Dear Sirs: Have you noticed how President Truman stands up four square to the mike and says what he has to say in plain, short, and easily understood "common" language...
...By consenting to obliteration bombing of German homes and by inaugurating a policy of semi-starvation for German civilians, this Government confesses its purpose of destroying the German people as a nation, meanwhile denying that such is its intention...
...For the Germans it is now a question of survival...
...It is as plain as daylight that R. H. Crum has never given the whole problem of the Marxist philosophy and Democratic Socialism an hour's honest study...
...Humility is one of the many things the Army doesn't tolerate...
...Crum and all those who are in the dark on this great problem should by all means, read the splendid pamphlet, "Democracy Is Not Doomed," by Norman Thomas, Ju dah Drob, and Clavers Clement...
...27, 1941 that there were reports Japanese military forces planned a surprise attack upon Pearl Harbor...
...It seems apparent that since neither industry nor organized labor has as yet been able to produce a workable plan to establish this parity, there is good reason for Government to assume a responsibility, for with Government still in possession of a great quantity of plants it has the means to save jobs, and by saving them save purchasing power, which is the most essential element in stimulating the peacetime productive capacity of the country...
...The only thing that is good about it is that at home there is still the moral energy and strength to produce some solution...
...When the Bill Smiths and Mary Wilsons oust the war-makers from the control of the Government and the war-making powers, these explosives will be used for constructive purposes and the human race will be safe and free from fear...
...Few understand that the«^only thing we have to offer the world is some food, much kindness, and some system of getting a little justice...
...Meanwhile, Administration prop aganda would have us believe all these measures justified and indeed necessary...
...Mr...
Vol. 9 • October 1945 • No. 39
