Evening star., 1932-06-17
American Government
is at q Grave Crisis
TO the Editor Of The Star:

TO the Editor OF The Star:
have noticed a growing tendency
to assume that the Federal Govern.
ment Is responsible for the livelihood
of the bonus marchers and OF the un-
employed in general.
This is an extremely dangerous 9-
sumption, for, if the Government is
responsible for the livelihood OF over
10 per cent of the wage earners OF the
country. 1t necessarily must control
the sources which afford those men
employment.
In the World War 1t was necessary
to have the Federal Government the
virtual dictator Of American social ana
economic life. The entire Nation itself,
not the Army, fought the war. The
Federal administration extended It's
authority to meet the occasion. The
economic machine was drafted TO sup
port the Army. Our people came to
look to Washington as the supreme
power. II anything was to be done
the proper thing to do was TO ask
Washington to do 1t. The Federal
Government ceased to be responsible
"to" the people in the States and be-
came responsible for" the people at
large.
The assumption has its background,
then, in the extraordinary conditions
induced by our entry into the war. Its
supporters declare that the conditions
today are the equivalent OF war IN dan
ger to national security.
1t IS q recognized fact that in q war
freedom must be suspended and In
dividualism abolished. Our war ad-
| ministrations became Fascist dictator
ships.
We have found from experience that
the quest for normally" is an ex-
tremely difficult one Centralized
power Is very hard to dissolve for two
reasons. First, it Is wanted by power
full interests who are better able to
control concentrated power than de-
centralized power. Secondly once the
power has been removed from local
agencies those local governments lose
their responsibility, and with 1t their
dignity and capacity. often their hon
esty. and become unfit for the exercise
Of authority. The power, once CEN
tralized therefore tends to remain so.
The men who chartered the Ameri-
can political system had hate, fresh
IN their minds, for such a government.
They distributed the power so as to
guarantee local self-government. This,
in turn, would automatically insure
freedom and security. This was the
lie. liberty and pursuit OF happiness"
which was the ultimate end Of govern
ment.
Their government was a government
| OF men. Men remain the same through
out the ages. Government Is not for
machines, it is for humans.
There Is rising a great challenge to
free government. A struggle no less in
| magnitude than the Civil War now
looms upon our horizon. Americans
must realize this. They must see the
| question and make the decision.
With the growth of mass production
the gap between producer and con-
| Sumer has become wider Its width
has now made it unmanageable by the
individual. Either the Government
| must control it, which means COM
| munlsm or fascism and sacrifice of
freedom. or else the gap must be mar
! rowed by decentralizing industry and
| increasing the security and self-de-
pendence Of the community and the
| individual
Today that gap, ever widening. be-
tween consumer and producer Is badly
clogged. Freedom and security or
wealth and slavery-the decision must
be made. JOHN COURT