Evening star., 1940-06-17
Change of Heart

ago to assure the Nation that mo
one wishes to attack us and no one
Is IN position to do so," appears to
have changed his mind on that score.
For II We are in no danger of attack
he could hardly consider it neces-
sary, whatever our decision may be
in regard to Europe" to start now
to build up our defenses," to ask
that the men of our country give a
year OF their lives to military train
Ing" to insist upon military bases
Wherever they are needed for our
safety-regardless of who owns the
territory involved"
If there is need-and The Star
holds that there has long been OBJ
vlous and urgent need-for defense
measures, there is danger of attack
upon our national interests. Those
interests extend far beyond our own
SOIL, reaching in multiple and complex
forms to every corner OF the globe.
AND II those interests are not only
IN danger OF attack but are actually
being attacked today, which is the
case, the ignoble and myopic sur
render OF our world interests to Hit
ler and company without taking such
steps as we can to preserve them is
intolerable.
1t is this perverse insistence bv
Colonel Lindbergh that the present
death grapple in Europe and Africa
is outside our field of interest that
outweighs what merit resides in his
belated recognition Of the need for
arming ourselves against direct at
tack on this hemisphere.
colonel Lindbergh holds that it
should be no concern of ours whether
Germany and Italy or England and
France win this war. He says, as
Hitler said few days ago, that if we
demand that foreign nations refrain
from interfering in this hemisphere.
we should not interfere in theirs.
And he asserts that the policy of
placing our industrial strength at
the disposal of the democracies is
batting of the trap of war by inter-
ventionists who seek by indirection to
embroil us in the present phase of
the battle and put our troops in
France.
This is undiluted distortion of the
actual truth.
such help as we have given to the
Allies, Colonel Lindbergh to the con-
trary Notwithstanding, is an integral
part of our effort to defend ourselves.
The Star believes, because a ,tri-
umphant Germany under Hitler
would be the greatest menace which
this country could conceivably face in
the world today, that if we were Dos
sessed ofs an Army and Navy ade-
quate to prevent that menace from
ever materializing we should before
this have declared war upon Hitler
and brought about his defeat while
allies stood at our side. Lacking
such an Army and Navy, aid to the
Allies was belatedly extended, to the
end that the danger which Colonel
Lindbergh partially recognizes might
be arrested if possible, and, If worse
comes to worse, at least postponed as
long as possible. Capitulation of
France now may mean that this aid
came too late and in insufficient
quantities and kinds. We must now
proceed even faster to bring our own
defenses to the necessary strength
and efficiency.
During discussion of the repeal of
the arms embargo eight months ago,
when Germany was armed to the
teeth extensively and defensively and
the Allies had nothing to attack with,
Colonel Lindbergh said that he, for
one, was in favor of supplying Euro
pean nations with all the defensive
weapons that we could spare. On
Saturday, when it became clear that
France and England were fighting a
purely defensive battle with their
very existence at stake, he would
withhold any assistance-defensive
or otherWiSe-from them.
Colonel Lindbergh has the right to
change his mind and heart, but it is
highly unfortunate that his public
expressions tend to discredit the de-
tense program which depends so
much on unity of thought and action.