Evening star., 1940-06-07

We have just had a terrible
object lesson, and it is to be
hoped that we may take it to
heart.
We have seen two great and
rich powers taken by surprise,
defeated in the first battle of a
great war and placed in a posi-
ton Of the gravest jeopardy by
another power far their inferior
In material and human resources,
but far their superior in imme-
diate striking force. We have
seen what co-ordinated plan
ming and co-ordinated execu-
ton Of plans, coupled with bold
ness, can do in modern war,
even with comparatively mod
est resources.
We are great and rich
power, too. We have even
greater resources, material and
industrial, than either of the
defeated ones. But we are weak
when it comes to the transla-
ton of those resources into fight
ing forces. and we are weak very
largely because we have no CO.
ordinated plan for defending
ourselves. OF course, the Army
has plans, and the Navy has
plans. There is even a make
shift affair called a Joint Board,
which occasionally gets together
and does little collective plan
ming, but its members are all
busy men with many other
pressing duties. Nowhere is
there an organization or an
agency which has nothing else
to do but to consider the broad
general outlines of our national
defense as a whole, to deter
mine what we can defend, what
we must defend and how we are
going to defend it.
Need Intelligent Policy.
What we need is to formulate a
comprehensive and intelligent
military Dolicv Greirr t-n -----'I
military in its broadest sense)
which, taking into account our
geographical position. our re-
sources, our needs and the char
acter of our people, our relations
with other powers and our vital
interests, will form the basis for
all our organization and expendi-
ture for national defense, and
will serve as a general directive
for co-ordinated, efficient, eco
nomical military planning.
We do not have such a policy
now, or anything resembling one.
There are dozen serious and
indeed acutelv dangerous con-
tingencies with which we might
be confronted next week, next
month, next year. to east, west.
north or south which we have
not the means to meet, and
which we could not even begin to
anticipate eficiently-simply be-
cause we have not thought
things through, or rather, have
not told of a few experienced
and able men to think things
through for us.
We have, it is true, just chosen
certain men to plan the indus
trial basis for our armed
strength. to organize our re-
sources to provide the material
of war; but We have not chosen
men to plan how this material
is to be used, how our armed
forces are to be organized. what
purposes they are to serve-in a
word. what we mean to defend.
can defend, must defend-and
how best to defend it. Such
planning falls rather within the
province of the soldier, the sailor
and the diplomat than within
that of the industrialist, the
economist and the politician. It
is obvious that neither the voting
Of great sums of money, nor the
organization of material and in
dustrial resources, will serve to
keep us secure unless these
monies, these resources are
translated into fighting forces,
and unless these forces are of
such size and are so designed,
based and organized as to give
full support to our foreign poll