The Washington times., 1934-11-15

were the usual $*= s:ss
"buy now &
drives. Then -
our "leaders" -
tried to hold S|==
up wages, buy -. ,I.n.-
unneeded ma
terials, and otherwise to "create
purchasing power"
Then came the RFC, to carry
assets that business men could
not carry. At the same time,
the security of our money was
weakened to allow the substitu-
ton of government credit for
gold (Glass7Steagall BilD.
Then we plunged on, to go
off gold entirely. And in addi-
ton, we adopted the NRA-AAA
set-up in order to give farmers
and laborers more credit money
for less work.
All the time, we have tried to
"carry" excess products and plant
capacity at inflated prices, by a
free use of Government credit
Farm Loan Board, RFC, Crop
Loans, Hole, etc.
The Federal Reserve System has
been turned into a pawn shop for
the Government, enabling it to
increase its debts so that its
citizens can stay in debt.
Now the FERA threatens to be-
come the national woodpile, where
these out of work can go and saw
instead Of producing for sale.
Thus we have succeeded in pre-
venting a cure. We have stayed
in debt.
Depresions are the remedy for
the Indigestion and fever Of
boOms. In the past they have
come so fast that they have
worked their cure through liqui-
dalton before we could get set
to eight" them. After q short
period of collapse, we have been
on the way out. Recovery in.
evitably follows cure.
This time, we would not take
our medicine. We can't "take it"
Instead, we have developed an
unparalleled technique of "bor-
rowing ourselves out of debt.
Thus we have kept the patient
alive without curing him.
We keep the fever down by
using the RFC icepack. We ctim-
ulate him by hypodermics of
Government credit, for which we
have dozens of needles" We
give him artificial nourishment
through make work" schemes,
PWA, etc.
The result is that he is going
to be a permanent invalid, if we
don't watch out. Everybody will
be living off the Government, and
business" will become politics.
BY the same token, politicians
villa become business leaders.
Government taxes and spending
will replace business buying and
selling.
The folly Of business leaders
and nd-mOney advocates, has
been that they have not had
the courage to stand for their
principles from the beginning,
and to face a showdown. To.
day they are still following the
Pied Piper, and are talking
confidence" and credit, and
proposing to initiate wages by
making work.
"Relief'' is mixed up with bus
ineSS, and unsound Stimulants
with recovery, in a grand show
Of Cooperation"
In all this, they are surely
killing business by turning it into
politics, and making it a means
OF initiation and relief.
The EPIC idea is one result,
and there is real danger that
FERA will become the national
EPIC. If we adopt the old Slo.
gan Of "the right to work." and
turn the nations business into a
national woodpile for the sake Of
relieving unemployment" there
will be no business" in the good
old sense.
Instead, the Government will
become the great work provider
in the EPIC sense.
The question is, Is it too late
for those who believe in indi.
Vidual initiative, a definite none.
tary standard, and an economic
efficiency which counts the cost
Of productions it too late for
them to make a stand?
Or would they rather go on
hugging their equities in and
controls over inflated values and
overcapitalized properties?
To preserve business, I think
deflatiOn is necessary. If bus
mess men can't take defla-
ton. will the Government not