The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-08-15
GOVERNMENTAL INCAPACITY.

Again we are confronted with the
abject and absolute incapacity of our
government for doing business, in a
business way "Red tape takes the
place of business sense in 80 per cent
of governmental dealings which are
carried on by lot of absolutely in
competent swivel chair artists, who
got their positions through political
pull' and could not hold down clerk
ship in a country gdocery, if depend
ent upon their knowledge of business
or their ability to hold the job.
l Beginning next Monday the govern
ment will offer for sale to the "con-
sumers" it announces, $120,000,000
worth of food stuffs that had been
bought for the army. 1t will also Of
fer. to Consumers" two million
blankets which the army did not need
after the war closed. These goods are
to be sold through the local post Of
fees. of which there are $4,000 in the
United States. The consumer" is
supposed to give his order to the local
postmaster and the latter will send it
to the distributing headquarters,
which, for the Pacific coast region,
will be San Francisco.
This sale begins next Monday,
August IS, yet this is Friday, Aug
ust Is, only three days before the sale
and the local post offices have not re-
ceived single blank, nor an instruc-
ton, and the post office employees
know of the plan only what they have
read in the newspapers.
, It is expected that about Sunday
night the instructions, blanks and re-
ports will be received at the post of
fees for use Monday morning. The
post office force will have no time to |
acquaint themselves with the plan and
prospective buyers will have no
chance to learn anything definite UNI
til the sale is open. The sale for this |
section will be held in San Francisco.
Bacon, which retails at 60 cents a
pound is to be sold at 81 and SO cents
by the government. How much ba-
con will the people of Moscow and this
section of the country be able to buy?
Does anyone doubt that the big firms.
dummies" buying for the
big packing plants that have hun
dreds of thousands of tons of bacon
for which they expect 80 to 60 cents
will get the bulk of this bacon and 1
thus hold up the market price?
1t will be the same way with the
goods. We are willing to bet
that 10 per cent of these foodstuffs
and blankets do not go direct to the
consumers because of the unbusiness
ike methods of the government in
this sale as it manages
'verything of a business nature.
1t was the same when the postal +
avings banks opened. The post of. lS
ices were instructed to begin receiv- e
ng money on a certain Monday morn
lg and the blanks, instructions, etc.,
cached them on the last mail the L
unday befores the opening. Is there &
ny wonder government control of r
telegraphs, telephones. r
sble lines, ETC., proved an utter and s
failure? Would any bust =
ess house wait until the sale opened q
instruct its clerks and statesmen on 10
rices and methods of selling? II
The trouble with our government n
that it is a political machine, COM n
Dsed and managed by politicians, Isl
ost of whom are honest, but who, g
.cause of our system of voting and U
stting votes, become politicians first III
ID servants of the people" second. 6|
aey are forced to put these incom- M
tents in charge of governmental de- | ~
Irtments because these incompetents 81
liver the vots by which officers are 81
ected. gl
So. q
EXT TUESDAYS CONFERENCE 10
The conference between President III
ilson and the antagonistic foreign S6
lations committee of the United I566
ates senate to be held next Tuesday uE
the White House, will be an inter 1e
ing one. 1t will be meeting of III