The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-06-20
Liberal Viewpoint

DERHAPS the most persuasive argument OF
l. decade for social and economic radlcallsm
was John Stracheys 1.-THE Coming Struggle for
Power"
Shortly after the volume was published, the
author made a trip to the United States in order
to study the Roosevelt New Deal and come to
conclusion as to whether it offered any real
nope of averting what Mr.. Strachey had deemed
to be the inevitable struggle between Fascism
and Communism
He now has published a special chapter on
the United States to be added to new edition
of his work.
Mr. Strachey doubts the ability of President
Roosevelt to restrain predatory piracy and to
steer successful middle course between the
extremes OF Fascism and Communism
This opinion will not surprise those who are
familiar with Mr. Strachey's volume. 1t is
doubtful whether anything Mr. Roosevelt could
do would alter Mr.. Strachey's already pretty
firmly fixed convictions.
Those who do not share his views as to the
hopelessness of the New Deal will, nevertheless,
find most instructive Mr. Strachey's trenchant
summary of European Fascism He blasts the
guided romance which has been disseminated
by American reactionaries and shows Fascist
Europe in its stark reality. We recommend the
following paragraphs to those who rant for an
American Mussolini:
"XXTHAT' then, would Fascist world be like?
w There is little difficulty at any rate for
a European, in answering that question. For
Europe today is predominantly Fascist CONT
nent. Nor should there be much need to remind
the American reader of what Europe is like to-
day.
This motherland of modern civilization is
split up into over twenty sovereign states, the
great majority of them maintaining the power
of the capitalist class by an open and ruthless
dictatorship. Trade is stifed by an almost in
credible system of tariffs, quotas, licenses and
controls.
"Censorships are maintained over every form
of human thought and expression. Some Fascist
states impose heavy penalties on those who
doubt the SuperStitionS of the middle ages; some
compel conformity to the new, far more barbara
Gus and fer less beautiful racial myths of the
twentieth century,
Science, art and letters necessarily must Ian
guish and doing so visibly; spiritual despair
and material want are alike Selling the intellec-
tual classes.
Each and every one of the Fascist states
suffers from incurable and violent economic dis
orders; it's workers are decmated by unemploy-
ment; its peaSantry is crushed by taxation and
by debt. In each, the state finances are in dis
order, the budget is unbalanced, the public debt
is growing greater and greater.
ID UT this does not prevent each state from
ID piling even higher and higher fantastic
mountain of ornaments of conscripting more
millions of its young men, of imposing yet heav-
Ter taxation to build more and more warships,
tanks, gas containers, and bombers. For each
can see that new war is very close.
Such is the reality of Fascist Europe. 1t is
a reality which already is nothing less than the
first stage in the breakup of western civilization
into new dark age of barbarism Nor would
Fascist world be anything other than Fascist
Europe on a gigantic scale"
In my own opinion we still are far from
demonstration of the utter hopelessness of the
New Deal 1t has desperately hard road to
travel blocked in large part by those who stand
to gain Smost by its success. But it still has
fighting chance, at least for the destinies of our
generation.
1t does seem to me, however, that it is
true that the New Deal offers the only
immediate alternative to Fascism which would
be even more black and terrible in the United
States than it is in Europe. In the latter area
peoples have become accustomed to degree of
collectivisrn to which the American pirates never
would consent
When we tend to be annoyed by the relative
y trivial restraints and inconvenience which the
New Deal imposes, let us turn to Mr.. Strachey's
picture of European Fascism. The choice ought
not to be difficult for any person above the level
of sheer idiocv