Askov American., 1940-05-30
Conflicting


so much, it is difficult for the
layman to know just what's what.
When the excitement begins to
run high, and before we have
what might be termed war hy-
steria, it is time to do a little
checking, to keep cool, to be
calm and deliberate. The Stabil-
ity of our own domestic economy
is threatened if we shift to war
economy.
A report in the daily press a
few days ago was to the effect
that over eight billion dollars had
been spent in America on the
army and navy during the last
decade, and that there is not as
much to show for it as the gen.
eral public had thought. There
are not as many modern war
planes and war ships as was ex-
pected, in spite of the large con-
gressional appropriations. The
money has been spent largely on
salaries and wages to those in
the army and navy, and without
doubt there is luxurious living
on the part of high ranking Of
ficers. The military arm of the
government is in some respects
on a par with politicians. Once
job is created, those interested
will see to it that it is continued.
Under the caption "Just Who
is Right" the Minnesota Union
Advocate published an editorial
with plenty of contradictions on
the part of high ranking officers
in the military set-up. One thing
is certain, and that is that war
is expensive, to say nothing of
death and desolation. Reports
have it that half million Ger
man men have been lost in only
a few weeks of warfare, to say
nothing of the losses in Holland,
Belgium and other countries.
The Advocate article follows:
Just Who Is Right?
Last week Mr.. Roosevelt declared
in solemn manner that it was all
bosh that the U. S. A. could not be
attacked by a foreign enemy. He
declared in no uncertain terms that
the U. S. could be attacked from the
west, the east and the south; that
the oceans no longer constituted q
barrier against foreign invasion, and
that $4,000 airplanes will be required
annually to assure absolute security
against attack. Four or five days
later Colonel Lindbergh scoffed the
idea and talked about wild war
hysteria."
Mr.. Roosevelt's melancholy state
ments followed weeks of pickering
before congressional committees by
high ranking officers of the army and
the navy. Major General H. H. Arm
old, chief of the army air corps, testi-
fled before the senate military affairs
committee that all but So bombers
of the U. S. air force of 2,70O war
planes are obsolete.
Secretary of the Navy Edison de-
clared, upon his return from the navy
maneuvers in the Pacific, that air.
planes have superiority over bat
tleships. He stated that unless all
the U. S. battleships were radically
remodelled and new ones redesigned
the only safe place for them would
be in some snug harbor far removed
from any battle line.
Contrasted with the navy secre-
tary's opinion, consider the testimony
of Admiral Harold R. Stark, chief
of naval operations. He emphatically
declared that the war off Norway
revealed that battleships were still
able to control the seas.
To add to the confusion of con-
flicting opinions, Major Genera. Arm
old insisted that there is a general
misunderstanding about the extent o1
American airplane business with Eu-
ropean powers. Of the 1000 plane:
ordered, he said, only about $50 have
been delivered. This statement was
Immediately challenged by the de-
partment of commerce which de-
clared 1919 planes had been shipped
to the allies. Arnold also ridiculeo
the contentious of Assistant Secre-
tary of War Louis Johnson that allied
purchases have boosted plant capa-
city to $4,000 planes per year and
that a production of 10000 to 10000
planes per annum will be possible
shortly. He declared that by July
the capacity output would be 5000
and that the 3O,OOO-plane goal will
not be reached until "some uncertain
time in the future"
In the light of these conflicting
the American public GER
tainly has the right to know who is