Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1938-10-20
AGAINST $3.50 A WEEK. PLAN

Editor ASkov American: ar. Ef2p1
l have received a pension plan
adopted by the Minnesota unit Iof the
California pension plan and I'd would
like to say little about tin the
Opinions of Others column to the
leaders of it. 1t starts with: "Life
begins at fifty with $50 week for
life to every Minnesota citizen SO
years of age or over -. without
takes" y,
To the leaders of said pension plan:
Your pension plan may sound de-
lightful to people who are ignorant
and can. not think, but for one thing
it is. in contradiction to the Consti-
tuition of the United States. I will
come to that later. J..
There are many things said in
your "Foreword" to your plan which
we all should know to be the truth
but why do you cite this foolish state
ment of Roger Babson from two
years ago-"We will have prosperity
for another two years and then God
help U.S." That can not understand
We are in the last part of said two
years, and a depression started 1C
years ago and has lasted continuously
up to today without intermission by
prosperity. You admit that by say
ing:1u "Our people are paralyzed with
fear because they see no way out. y
There is way out but not the way
you are trying to show us by your
plan, but by abandoning the taxing
of the living expenses, and tax the
surplus income to the full ability
to pay, instead of borrowing that from
the people who have such incomes
they have the many millions to loan
to the government for the people to
pay interest on. The rich people are
taking all those millions out of what
there should be paid for labor, and by
that be kept in circulation, as there
can not be paid larger sum for
products than there is paid for pro-
ducing and handling it from producer
to consumer. When some persons
have an income of many thousands
or millions in year, then they are
holding that much buying power
They have no use for it, it has been
taken out of the producers buying
power and then they are that much
short, but the people having it car
not consume such an amount of pro-
ducts as that will pay for, so they
lay it aside until they can loan it tc
the government to draw more profit
Then it is said that there is an over
production so there must be produced
less, when the trouble is that the
profiteers are holding the buying
power, but that is in conformity with
the Constitution of the United States
but it would also be in conformity
with the 18th amendment to it, tt
tax all net cash incomes to the full
ability to pay. That is the only way
out. The Townsend plan, California
plan or Minnesota plan will not helI
if we could get them. There is moth
ing in any of that to check the pro-
fit system, and as long as that is tt
flourish no plan will solve the prob
lem.
Now few words about the Min
nesota plan. One shall be registered
voter to be entitled to old age pen
sion. It is not enough to be a citi-
zen if he or she has neglected tc
register and vote. Your plan woulc
be less liberal than to qualify for ole
age assistance where it is enough t.
be citizen, or have lived in the
United States the last rs years; bu
in one way it would be easier be-
cause by your plan it is only to make
the statements, but under the exist
ing pension law it shall be proved tc
be the truth. Thirty dollars per week
as in your plan, to all, rich as well
as poor people, in the age of so OF
over, is several times as much as e
person needs to have comfort, ano
could not be used when used eco
nomically.
The next question is: What is e
warrant? In this case it is defined
in Webster's dictionary, "a writing
which authorizes a person to re-
ceive money or other things" By