The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-05-08
Liberal Viewpoint
by DIR. HARRY ELMER BARNES

TINE balmy spring air in Chicago seems TO
l. have been too much for Irving Fisher. HIS
recent speech in Chicago before large conven-
ton of advertising men admirably illustrates
the reason why the professional class Is not nelo
in too high esteem by informed and realistically
minded Americans.
AS reported in the press, this address repre-
sented an amazing comedy Of errors. On issues
which are purely a matter Of opinion the pro-
fessorS views may be as good as or better IMAM
mine But there are certain things which are
not merely matters of opinion but can De
checked by reference to obvious and easily avail
able facts.
In the first place Professor Fisher made 1t
clear how deeply he suffers from what Francis
Bacon called THE idol of the theater," or sub
servience to hobbies and single-track reasoning
He required once more to his monetary obses-
sion. He contended vigorously that the depres-
sion was not caused by industrial anarchy or
overproduction. He held that it was due to false
monetary policies before 1929 He maintained
further that the depression was prolonged ny
monetary mistakes and that if we escape from
it it will be primarily through monetary reform
THOSE who remember back to 1929 will not
i be likely to take Professor Fisher too seri-
ouSly as an authority on the causes OF the
depression. Right on the eve OF the great crash
he maintained that the United States had reached
permanent high level of prosperity and that no
depression was in sight We heard little from
him then with respect to dubious monetary poll
cies that threatened to throw the country into
an industrial and financial collapse.
Personally 1 believe that Professor Fishers
monetary policies, taken by themselves alone, are
on the whole sound and useful, But he does
the country and his felow-citizens grave dis
service by eXaggerat1ng monetary matters out OF
all proportions to reality. The fundamental
causes Of the depression were social and eco
nomic rather than monetary and any permanent
cure will have to be found in social and economic
remedies.
But we can forgive Professor Fisher on this
point more readily than we can excuse his
literally cheap clap-trap about the Roosevelt
adminlstra ton and Communism. DR.. Writ may
not have known better than to make such
charges and insinuations but Irving Fisher GER
tainly knows that he is talking through his hat
in delivering himself of any such reactionary
baloney.
MOT content with deriding the new deal as
~ alphabet SOUP" Professor Fisher accused
the Roosevelt administration of turning toward
Communism. He drew an onlinous comparison
between what he called the American way" of
economic life and the Russian way"
He charged that Roosevelt and his associates
have been moving dangerously far along the
Russian road of the state control of industry.
He asserted that Colonel Lindbergh has appeared
in the role of the American Horatius and has
sounded the alarm through his noble call to
halt in the air mail controversy. The professor
maintains that we will never get back on our
feet unless we return to the American way" of
doing things
This was strange assertion for man who
has been widely known as a PROFESSIONAL Social
lSt.
For years Professor Fisher has urged the
most extensive intervention of the state with
respects to controlling our health and bever-
age tastes. He was perhaps the most fanat
ical academic defender of prohibition He
even has firted with the idea of curling our
use of tobacco.
A man who holds such notions hardly
should shy off the effort to produce planned
economy.
Professor Fisher knows as well as any one
else that, compared with Russia today, the
new deal is almost literally industrial and
financial anarchy If it fails it will be because
of the lack of adequacy and expedition in put
ting over a planned economy.
AS for the American Way" in the sense in
which it is used by Professor Fisher, we do not
have to rely upon any gueSswork as to where
that leads us. All we need to do is to think
back through the winter of 1928.