Voice of action. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1933-1936, 1934-09-21
BY Hark Howells

lhtii tilPiidHiN tidA liiNpaANh
ness is merely a guarantee of
peace. High ranking officers con-
tinue to mouth their empty
phrases about the peace loving
nature OF professional militarists.
One and all they brim with milk
and honey which slops over into
the pages of the capitalist press,
vs. their pictures gum up tn,
rotogravure sections with shots
of sham battles at sea, in the air,
on land-war games, new equip
ment, new guns, planes, ships
all showed simply to stress the
pacifist dispositions of our army
officers and their pals, the in
ternational munitiOns-manufac.
turers.
Speaker Dishonorably Discharged
Anyone who dares speak OF
peace as IL he really meant II
(who dares criticize the world
wide peaceful" preparations for
bloody horror in the next war;,
risks the extreme displeasure of
these high-minded gentlemen in
uniform.
Frank Dimmick. with nearly
five years service. three and half
of which were as a first-class pri-
vate. spoke at a public meeting
in Portland, called to organize
the Portland branch of the Am
erican League Against War and
Fascism. He was prom pit ly
thrown into the guardhouse. A
board of officers convened. The
court martial meted out to DIM
mick dishOnorable discharge,
under Section VIII. Army Regu-
lations 615-360-a form usually re-
served for imbeciles and degen.
crates. Not content with venting
their ehagrin and anger upon a
subordinate who dared expose
the beastly plan to militari2e
our youth, these fascists in uni
form stopped to eXecrate and hui
initiate and permanently black
EN- Dimmick's previously spot
less record-simply because in
addition to being an intelligent
man and a soldier. he had the
bravery to speak out.
Militarist CMTC Camps
Describing the military organ
izatiOns of youths in CMTC
camps into platoons, companies
and batallions. Dimmick told
how boys picked for officers were
promised higher positions of COM
mand for returning after the sec
ond summer to complete their
course.
Boys glory in giving COM
mands and having them obeyed
unquestioningly. So they glory
in the thing for which these
camps train them; thew glory in
war!" said the speaker.
If these boys parents are rich
enough to send them to college
they are considered good mater
ial to become Gentlemen Offic-
ers.' Thus they are sent to the
Reserve Officers Training Camp,
with Sam Browne belts, boots
and spurs. they strut their stuff
Only a trained eye can distin-
guish them from regularly COM
missiOned officers and they be-
gin to feel their importance-IN
CASE OF WAR.
RoTC-CCC Alike
From college and the ROTC,
these boys graduate into the Of
ficers Reserve Corps. Here during
their early training period, they
wear the same uniform, rank the
same courtesies and receive the
same pay as regular officers.
There being no lack of college
graduates in this world, these
men may be ditch diggers, or do
ing other mental labor, but for
two weeks out of the year they
are treated like tin gods on
wheels. Such an officer receives
the saluteS is spoken to in the
third person, and has attention
called when he appears among
a group of soldiers. At last he
is somebody. And he longs for
something to arise to make this
condition exist throughout the
year instead of for two weeks. He
wants WAR;
Boys Ready for War
The CCC was organized by the
regular army and is modelled on
the army. 1t may be true that a
man in the CCC does not under
stand the intricate manner in
which a soldier takes a rifle
from his right shoulder and
places it on his left; and the
graceful way soldier removes
the rifle from his left shoulder
and places it on the ground may
be one of LIES mysteries to him.
BUT he is Organized by the army