The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-02-28

lI6LlLcu tO BIGnL 1ts IL Wd6 UVll6 lbCO to grant 1t for a couple of reasons. ideal location. It's beautiful city and is centrally located so far as European countries are concerned.
 But the bigger reason is that there's really a definite ideal uh- deriving the Olympic plan. It may be as nebulous and impractical as most theories are, but it's an ideal of promoting international friend ships through pleasant athletic competition. It had been Berlin's turn back in 1916, but, of course, the World war stopped that. Ger many wasn't officially accepted back in competition until the Los Angeles games of 1882, but now the committee, anxious to show the Germans that all the war ha- treds were forgotten was happy to hand her back the games for their 1896 holding.
 Then came Hitler and his anti Jewish program.
 To begin with, he reversed him. self when he first came into power. His entire policy, of course, is one of phrenetic nationalism. T h Kaiser in his most hydrophobic moments never demanded such su- preme self dependence for Ger many, such complete exclusion of foreign thoughts and foreign inter- ests, as has this amazing opportun- ist with the Charlie Chaplin facial underbrush.
 International Games
 The Olympic games are not na- tiona1: they're international.
 Herr Hitler, not so powerful then as he is at the moment, un- leashed a blast at them just as they finished in Los Angeles, charging that they fostered an internation- alism that was repugnant to him and to his principles. The commit tee inquired if that meant that Ber- lin didn't want to go through with her 1886 plans. Hitler hemmed and hawed for awhile and finally said "No," that Germany wanted to hold them. Al. But in the orgy of anti-Semitism that followed, several Jews, long prominently and worthily identified with German track athletics in ex- ecutive capacities, were ordered to resign, and in other ways it was made clear that Jews were no more welcome to the Nazis in the field of sports than they were in other activities.
 The Germans in the meantime have sent out their official invita- tions and have announced that vis- iting Jews not only will be treated with politeness, but that German Jews may compete for their own team. It's up to the various coun- tries to notify Germany of their acceptance of the invitations. This is ordinarily routine procedure, but now it has the best sporting minds of all countries guessing. The American committee will probably accept and if it does the rest will, but the fact that it didn't the other night has led some watchers to the opinion that there must be some dissenters. The decision is ticklish, but in my humble opinion, the American committee should de- cline the invitation on the grounds that the political situation is so tense in Germany that an interna- tional gathering of this sort might easily lead to complications en- tirely foreign to the entire idea of the games-which, after all, is one OL IuIl ana ITdLeTHty.
 America can decline purely on a matter of principle. As it chances there isn't a Jewish athlete in sight at the moment who looks like prospect for her 1886 team, al- though one, or a dozen, may turn up before then. As 1t chances there was only one Jew on the last American team. He was Sol Furth rf onlr s.1r
 No Compromise
 But America can't make any compromises, nor gamble upon the born athlete of any given extrac- her. It's foolish to attempt to tell the Germans how to run their own business. We may not agree, but after all it's their business, and there seems to be enough of them who want to run it that to maintain majority at any rate.
 But we can run our own busi- ness, and part of it isn't to subject any of our citizens to discrimina. ton, insult or worse. Herr Hitler nay promise that visiting Jews will be treated respectfully, but one doubts very much if he can enforce 1t. The throngs that will fill the vast stadium they're building in the celebrated Black Forest will be almost 100 per cent Germnn, which means, one supposes, Nazi.
 Regulating their boohing, or whatever is the German equivalent of that scoffing salute, will be prac- tically impossible. Of course, two years may bring a softening; 1t may even bring a change in power but the decision has to be made upon early 1894 evidence and that evidence is foreign, both to our na- tional ideals and those that govern the running of this celebrated car- nival.
 If were Jewish athlete, I wouldn't demean myself by even competing for a team that was be- ing got together to invade land where was admitted under what amounted to an armisticc. If were a Gentle athlete in such a land on such a mission and the crowd boohed or offered some more direct insult ot my Jewish teammate sim ply because he was Jew, if they assaulted him, I'd feel compelled to go to his assistance. If they Ieered him, I'd feel compelled to leave the track with him. There'd be no pleasure in competing any more, and I wouldn't.
 Plenty of young Americans are going to feel the same way about 1t fin 1888. In there is the makings of plenty of trouble. maybe Q gang fight, possibly killings.
 Tho whole thing Is so complete. ly nt variance to the entire ideal of the games that, forgetting any idea of mixing into German trou- bies. it's just plain common sense lead m the way in trsnsferring the affair tc--weli. say Tokyo. They | don't liiko Americans oyer there | it's all Americans, not just ono of our innnmorable racial lFFnll ma fflhaf fnak0a n G0nnldGFnDio