The daily Nome industrial worker., 1916-10-21
"CIVILiZATION."

Doubtless such an allegory as the motion picture play Civilization is the last word in the art of picture making. If it is, it shows that ill undertaking such ambitious specta- cular productions, the dramatic art of the screen is still artificial and crude. Depending of course upon terrific scenes of great human i'm mensity that occur not Q ten and when they do occur involving the sacrifice of property valuable be- yond words, even a many millioned man would have to shrink before undertaking such tremendous spec tacle in perfect replica as the sink ing of the Lusitania. And an effort to initiate this collosal tragedy must show signs of artificial crudity con- taining more bathos than impressive ness. Any imitation must be i'm perfect.
 Moreover the failure of the Amer ican picture makers to realize the closeness of actual living conditions in Europe to those in America is nowhere more clearly manifested than in novels, plays or movies which are concerned with the TO- mantle conceptions of European di plomatic. political and social life
 The civilization that is manifest in America and that is manifest in Europe is identical. Civilization is international. We call that civiliza ton which represents the most ad- vanced human progress. There is 10 other.
 It is a huge mistake that in any country except sections of Russia the people are merely the pawns oi the crown, except as the crown re presents certain economic interests which happen to be predominant al the time ill the various countries. In all proba bility it is true that Franz Josef, Kaiser Wilhelm and the rest
  puppets in the terrific drama Of the Great War which is but half enacted in Europe. and which is still repro duced i'll the form of an allegory in Civilization. The landed estates, the great manufacturing concerns, com merce and land holding interests in
 1rI In n n a n tors in all the states of Europe, quite regardless of the figure royal ty cuts in our every day conception of affairs in those several nations And it is more likely true that Krupps, the coal barons and the great manufacturing and landed in ing and investing interests, the commercial and munitionist inter- ests in Great Britain, had more to do with the war than either Kaiser Wilhelm or King George.
 In the very beginning of the play an educator claims that the war Is  have never been accepted honestly by the peoples therein engaged. We are afraid that idea is wholly insuffi- cient Christ's teachings have had nothing whatever to do with the war, and the war is possible not be cause His teachings are accepted not hn under conditions where it is not possible to accept them in any way.
 It is the positive fact concerning our capitalist civilization that Christ's teaching cannot be accepted at all. It is wholly unadjusted to this world today just as it was not adjusted to the Roman Empire, and the very fact that a sort of teaching which dubbed itself christianity proved itself acceptable to the state, proved also that it had nothing in common with the iconoclastic teach ings which originated with the Ma zarene How it is possible to fatten upon the labor of others and to af- feet for those whose labor is thus despoiled of it's product, love pure and sincere as the love for oneself, may be possible of explanation to some casuist or some double minded individual, but it is certainly against every common glimmering of sonse and reason. To make it good busi- ness to render assistance to those ill need in a searchingly scientific man. ner is not very much like the in junction not to let ones right hand know what ones left hand doeth. To amass wealth beyond the dreams