Evening star., 1939-04-30


The Hunger for News.
The policy Of the United States, at any time. is
probably more dependent on that volatile thing public opinion
than that any other land That partly because OF the
system of checks and balances in the Constitution itself 1t
partly because of the size of the country which Is as big as
Europe and immense population of 13oo0oOO0 people,
Moreover country there large fluid vote-that
which is committed to and accepts the leadership OF
no party VOTE owing the universal diffusion of edu-
catior interest everything that is news in
any part the world spends amount OF time
in reading the listening to the radio and s
therefore, extraordinarily susceptible opinion expressed by
politicians editorial writer's experts, coumnists racial or
religious radio speakers and the whole paraphernaa
of modern suggestion 1t is uncommon thing for
Congress deged with hundreds of thousands of tele-
granthe outcome of single radio address some conro-
versial by expert speakers like Father Coughn
point of view therefore, public opinion in the United
like and turbulent continually being
blown hher and ther by the winds of propaganda and
debate.
On the other hand the United States also shows
remarkable stability This partly negative stability because
of the constitutional difficulty of securing legislation
change of policy except where public opinion is overwhelm
ngy favor of particular But it is also because
the older traditional elements in the American population
still the final CONTROL that after every period of
turbulent controversy their tends prevail Finally
United States policy like that of other democracies has to
conform those underlying and inescapabe facts of which
public opinion at time not be but which
finally dominate because they the facts with which policy
has to deal.
Crises Are Watched.
Today there is an overwhelming almost passionate,
interest in international affairs The newspapers and the
great broadcasng systems maintain army of correspond
every part the world where crisis exists may
arise The people of the United States certainly had
hotter Of the September crisis than other
There hourly broadcasts London Paris
Berlin Rome and Prague, and almost continuous comments
by specialists over the air. and by comnists and editorial
writer's press During the week of Munich $4,000
more automobile radio sets than usual were sold.
This interest in foreign is Nationwide. Though
there be somewhat greater sense of urgency on the
and Pacific ttoal than in the Middle West there
discussion everywhere because people realize that the
which affects them ALL that of
Opinions widely But nowadays there the
everywhere The old legend of the Indifference
of the Middle West Is dead
One consequence this deluge of news and
that very few neurals in private e Americans
being and vigorously minded people, have always taken
Sides and taken sides vigorously interna
tional controversies today Except small mnorties
opinions influenced by racial religious traditions
the American people today violently anFascist and in
particular, violently anti Hitler.
Anu-Hitler Sentiment.
There was time when a considerable admired
Hitler for the skill with which he had succeeded in revising
the discriminatory features of the treaty of Versailles force
fully without But today there is sympathy left
This partly because the sadistc brutality of the persecution
OF the revealed the spirit of the National Socialist
regme-though there plenty of the United
States this have had influence in checking anti
Htlersm is partly because of the intutiona
that military totatarianism challenges
principles upon which American democracy The
States first Oldest of modern democraces
fee-especiay since the weakness of Britain and
France was revealed last Septembeas the basic conflict
between herself the leading champion of democracy
in the worldly which it individual freedom religious
freedom the right speech and majority re-and
Hitler Germany the leader of the yrannical forces Of
darkness There is much hostility to Communism another
totataransm But this in the background Even
on the Pacific the strong Japanese sentiment is at
present subordinated the feeling that is the German
challenge which most formidable to all that the United
States holds dear
But all this vehemence of private opinion
that the United States as Nation has abandoned its pr
mary anuety-an anxiety shared by all other democratic
nationsto keep of 1t that the long and
cool vew as with other sovereign nations its policy will not
dectdsd by estimate Of what its vital interests