The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1939-1949, 1939-11-23
m;.e Western Radio that there Western Auto Supply
FOR u

has been advised repeatedly and
in various ways that it must consid-
er itself at the beck and call of its
government in event of war. And
that is thoroughly sound. But how, I
wonder, can these two things go
hand and hand; how can business
be encouraged to make itself ready
in case of national emergency and
go about that job Fundamentally
while the same government, suppos-
ed to be operating as a unit, is at
lacking and seeking to destroy the
very machinery which the national
defense requires demands?
used the Aluminium company
only as an illustration, and it hap
pencils to be good one. There are
something like so army officers,
concerned with inspection, consulta-
ton, guidance, in the various plants
of the Aluminium company. There
!! are dozens more, yes, several hun
dreds of army officers and naval
officers doing like work in scores of
other great manufacturing plants.
You can see them crawling all over
skeletons of ships in shipyards. They
have to make inspections to make
sure the specifications are met. They
are to be found in experimental lab
oratories, using private funds and
private facilities for tests looking
to improvement of the various
things used in war. All of which is
fine; it is a cooperation business
ought to give, but again, there is
posed that question of how can
government get all of these things
done while a group of theorists, paid
by the same taxpayers. devote their
time to prosecution of the most
flimsy Interpretation of law VIOLA
ton?
When I was digging around on the
list of pending government prosecu-
tons I found the so-called 'big
three" Ford, Chrysler and General
Motors, in the automobile field, were
being prosecuted for alleged VIOLA
ton of antitrust laws in automo-
bile installment financing upon
what surely is a strange basis. When
the suit was started it was simply a
charge of unfair competition in the
matter of financing. The thing has
simmered down now, however, and
the issue actually is whether it is
violation of law for using methods
of financing installment buyers In
a manner that results in less cost
to the buyer.
Hold It's Wrong to Provide
For Cheap Auto Financing
That is to say, the present issue Is
whether 1t is a violation Of law to
set means of cheap financing. From
all Of the facts I have been able to
gather, our government, through its
department Of justice, actually Is
asserting in court that it is wrong
for the automotive companies to
maintain financing corporations
which will result in saving to the
purchasers of motor cars. IF that Is
not silly, then I have q cock-eyed
mentality.
One ought not pass over the tenn
porary national economic commit
tee which has been sitting, off and
on, for more than year. The COM
mittee IS supposed to be leading
the way to a new national economic
policy, q new method of doing bust
ness in the United States. It may,
but I doubt 1t. Thus far, about the
most tangible results certainly, the
most important effect-of the in
vestigation and hearings Is the OPP
portunity that has been accorded
government theorists to expound
their ideas. For them, it has been
a great opportunity. Dozens of them
have been able for the first time In
their lives to see their opinions set
down in printed form in the COM
mittee record of the hearings.
OF course in referring to the T. n.
F. c., one surely ought to call at
tention to the great number Of wit
nesses from commerce and indus
try and the gouging and sniping of
them that has been going on by a
group of thinkers" who serve as
lawyers for the committee. One
ought to mention also to the half
baked testimony presented in q
number of instances by witnesses
whose chief grippe semed to be that
they or their businesses were not
making money. Lastly, reference
should be made to the effort that
has been made throughout the hear
.ings to discredit every line of BUSH
ness that has grown big.
Lollypop Industry Actually
Is Under Investigation
have no way of knowing what
the government is spending in all of
these trials and investigations. Nor
is it possible to know what the cost
to business has been. The T. N. E.
G. has had half a million dollars
and it will get some more. The
department Of justice has been hir-
ing lawyers by the bagful. The
e.