Evening star., 1933-09-10
mot SOCIALISM," SAYS
THOMAS OF NEW DEAL
'It Is State Capitalism Declares Party
Leader-Sees Disaster, Fascism
or Socialism. $500

fighting ships though we have not even
begun to solve the problem of housing
our people now living in slums and
shacks! History may yet record that
this shift Of the Roosevelt admtnistra-
tion to nationalism set in train events
far more powerful for evil than the
provisions Of the industrial codes for
good
Catastrophe Postponed.
In this article I cannot enter upon
that speculative field, but shall speak OF
our domestic policies. The Roosevelt
program postponed catastrophe by set
ting up, I repeat. not Socialism, but a
somewhat liberal State Capitalism
which he calls partnership. Its avowed
purpose was not to Danish absentee
ownership of land and natural re-
sources and the great means of produc-
ton: not to substitute production for
use for production for profit, but to sta
olllze the profit system, to set up kind
OF partnership under which. somehow
or other. landlord and tenant. mort
gagee and mortgagor, stockholder and
worker, speculator and producer would
be fed out Of the same dish and all
grow fat.
II Is an impossible task. What gives
value to the new deal. so far as it has
value. Is not its purpose or vision, but
the machinery 1t has set UP for sweep
ing away some of the debris of indi-
vidualistic capitalism and for giving
the workers a chance to 60 forward in
orderly fashion. If they do not 20 for
ward. inevitably we shall all go back
ward.
Broadly speaking. there are three DOS
sipillties and three possibilities only
which arise out of the working of the
Natlona! Recovery Administration and
tne agricultural act. The first posi-
bllity Is new collapse and worse disaster
than we have known. The second is
some form Of Fascism which inevitably
Will lead to tragedy. The third Is a
steady approach to the Socialist idea
OF the cooperative commonwealth, or.
better. federation of cooperative COM
monwealths. Let us examine these DOS
sibilities.
Mira Up to Production.
l. Disaster. There Is no chance for
even temporary success of the God
dess Mira, as her wiser devotees admit.
unless under her dispensation the total
spending power Of the masses Is greatly
increased. If production increases
raster than Unemployment and purchas-
~.
We are doomed. At present there is no
such increase in spending power as the
situation requires. and the rate of in
crease was checked in July. The busi-
ness OF great chain grocery stores actu-
ally fell off.
Possibly the elimination of waste, the
correction Of some of the worst abuses
Of the older capitalism and some cur
tallment OF profits may temporarily
enable Mira to do the trick. This is
not certain as --et, even for a short pc
riod. 1t is impossible over any long
period, If we keep the profit system. I
am not quite prepared to accept the
extravagant praise Stuart Chase has
recently given Bassett Jones' ahstruse
and difficult mathematical formulas
in his new book on Debt and Produc-
ton" am not sure the situation
admits the rigidity of mathematical
formulas and analysis of conclusion
which Mr.. Jones gives us.
But what he says only emphasizes
what others have been saying in diff
ferent form-namely, that the rate of
production is slowing, while the rate of
debt increase forges ahead. This means
that we cannot produce enough to pay
our debts under the present system Of
debt, prices and profits. It Is an omi-
nous fact that even now the debts
pile up and that the Government is
getting its money for public works by
borrowing, without resorting to the
capital levy which have advocated or
to any other device for wiping of this
mounting Indebtedness.
Credit Still Manipulated.
Our credit is still being manipulated
for speculative ends, as the stock mar
ket records abundantly show. Brokers
loans, Prof. Rautenstarch has recently
pointed out, increased about $500 ,000,-
900 in 10 weeks. This meant q diver
sion Of credit to speculation, with no
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