The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1932-12-23


SANDERS and wild lies which he and
Journalists" the now flooding into tn
Levine, author of the anti-Soyiet
book RED Smoke" and one of
Hearst's Berlin and Riga specialists
on the Soviet Union for the last six
years, had the negative side of the
question, "Is the Five Year Plan a
Success?" The debate which took
place last night was under auspices
of the John Reed Clubs OF U. S. A.
In the end, he rushed in confusion
from the platform rather than either
answer or hear answered a question
from Sender Garlin, member Of the
Daily Worker staff, as to why he
put over that particularly nauseating
piece Of propaganda in the Scripps
Howard papers, the insinuation that
Stain murdered his wife.
Freeman in summing up the CUES
tons. fixed on Garlin's query about
Levine's SANDER in regard to Stalin's
wife as the key TO the whole posi-
ton Of Levine. Levine got that "in-
formation" from the white guard
press of Paris, Freeman pointed out,
and mercilessly lashed the jackals
of capitalist journalism who even
when in Moscow get their news
Of the Five Year Plan from the
Polish and Japanese embassies.
The debate opened with Freeman,
author of 'The Soviet Worker" and
editor of The Masses, stating: "A
debate on the Five Year Plan is a
debate on the Revolution itself" He
presented a mass of evidence-facts
and figures admitted by all respon-
sible capitalist journalists and their
financial organs, not those for work
ers but the ones the business men
read themselves.
Freeman pointed out that planned
national economy is inseparable
from the revolution and from rule
by the workers and farmers. Only
the civil war and intervention held
back until 1928 the beginning Of the
first Five Year Plan. 1t is not a
product of scientists alone, but of
the whole people. They voted for
it in meetings. but they voted in
most unanswerable form by carrying
1t out.
Hoover and The Plan.
1t corresponds exactly in time Qe28
to 1882 with the "Hooverian Age"
in America, and while disaster and
famine marked the years Of Hoover,
the Soviet Union plunged ahead, to
two and a half times greater in
dustrial output than in 1927, and
three times greater than in 1913,
Freeman said The money wage of
each of the enormously increased
number of industrial workers in the
Soviet Union went up AZ per cent,
but also the benefits Of social in
surance went up three fold
Thirteen per cent of the popula-
ton of Russia could read and write
in 1918, but IS per cent in 1926 and
now over 80 per cent are hterate,
Freeman pointed out. Originally it
was planned for compulsory educa-
ton for the children entering the
first year Of school in 1884, but so
overwhelmingly did the workers and
farmers respond that compulsory
education for eight years Of school
ing Is a fact in 1882.
There are a million students In
technical institutions in 1852 as
compared with 10000 in 1915. The
newspaper circulation is 100000
now, ten times increase.
Originally meant to collectivfae
the Five Year Plan has collectiivized
quarter Of the farmers by 1888,
two thirds in 1892.
Rising Standards.
The first Five Year Plan was to
establish a base of heavy industry,
of machines that make goods and
other machines, preliminary to the
enormous expansion of light industry
and goods that people consume,
which will come now. Even so, con-
sumers goods, shoes, clothing, food,
etc, multiplied while the heavy in
dustry base was being built, Free
man showed. There is shortage in
some sections OF consumers goods
production, mostly because of the
enormous expansion of the wants OF
the workers and peasants, no longer
satisfied with low standards. 1.-THE
shops in New York are better filled
than those in Moscow" said Free
man. because workers can not get
the things on sale Move the stores
of New York, Berlin, and London to
Russia, and they would be cleaned
out in no time"
He quoted Sidney webb, Lord
Passfeld. no friend Of Communism,
but admitting the fact that the
Soviet Union worker Is better OF
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