Evening star., 1936-10-01
The President on Isms.

The President on Isms.
1t is not believed that many intelligent
American citizens regard the President
as a communist or think of him as in
sympathy with Communism any more
than they believe the members of Con-
sgress who voted for the measures he
advocated are communists. 1t was not
necessary for the President to cite at
Syracuse his own fine record as useful
American in order to bury as he puts it,
the red herring of Communism. And II 1t
be true that many communists are sup
porting the President in his campaign
for reelection, not as an end but as
means to an end, the President chose
the only Immediately available method
Of disavowing such embarrassing mani
festations of aid from the comrades by
q vigorous and unqualified reputation
of their support.
The President really came closest to
discussing what many people regard as
the communist issue, or the isms
issue in his simple yet sound def1i-
milton of Communism as mani
festation of the social unrest which
always comes with widespread economic
maladjustment." The same definition
applies with equal truth to Fascism and
to the various other iSmS which we like
to regard as alien. But the soil In
iok, ic
sarily alien. 1t may produce Com
munism or Facism or Nazism but it is
fundamentally the same soil.
The Presidents thesis is that the
Democratic party, under this admin
istration, is improving the soil IN
America by process that makes it less
apt to sprout these detested alien ideas.
The administrations motives, in this
respect may be considered as above
reproach. But its methods come under
attack. The President is correct in say
ing that there is no difference between
the two parties as to what they think
about Communism" But there Is
fundamental difference of opinion over
the most effective methods of sterilizing
the soil, preventing the growth OF COM
munism or OF some American form OF
ism as yet unborn and unnamed.
There are a great many people, Tor
instance, who fear the increasing ex-
pansion of government its steady growth
in authority and functions and its ten
dency toward competition with the pri-
yate enterprise of its citizens. The
President may say with all sincerity at
Philadelphia that I'VE seek not merely
to make government mechanical i'm
plement, but to give it the vibrant, per-
sonal character that is the embodiment
of human charity" But there are others
who prefer what they regard as George
Washington's more realistic view that
Government is not reason, is not elo-
ouence-it is force Like fire it is
dangerous servant and fearful master;
never for a moment should 1t be lett
to irresponsible action" The leaders IN
Fascist Italy, Naz Germany or Com
munist Russia doubtless regard govern
ment there as the embodiment Of all
human wisdom and charity, exercised
for the common good But that does not
make it So
To heap responsibility upon govern
ment is to clothe it with increasing
power and force, exercised not only
through regulatory powers but through
the expenditures of vast sums of money.
There are many who see such eXpendi-
lures authorized in the name of suffering
humanity who have difficulty in dis
tinguishing suffering humanity from po-
litical expediency, designed to strengthen
the force of government and reliance on
government. Entirely aside from the
occasional policies which might be
leniently construed as trying to kill Com
munism with dose Of its own medicine,
fiscal policies of the government have
created doubt and uncertainty simply
because those policies If continued un-
changed can only end in calamity-and
they continue unchanged.
Economic ualadjustment" may re-
suit from long continued depressions.
continued extravagant governmental
expenditures, destruction of private en-
terprise through taxation or over-regu-
lation, It may come from bitter indus
trial strife, fomented by unwise promises
or appeals to prejudice. 1t may result
from other causes. There is no issue in the
desire to prevent continued economic
Embellishments and its Accomplishments.
The method to be chosen makes the issue.