The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1940-02-28
YOUTHS RIGHT
BY BEN BUCKLEY

| have been reading editorials on the
waywardness of the youth of today.
1t seems as though the youth congress
that met in Washington to petition
the government for jobs and careers
for the youth of today had some ideas
of their own in regards to politics and
the running of government that did
not seem to set so good with some
that are in charge of the show now
According to one writer they did an
unforgivable thing. These youths de-
manded an opportunity to earn liv-
ing, a decent living. They demanded
the right to have a house to live in
with electric lights and fuel to burn
to keep them warm. They demanded
the right If they cared to get mar
ried some day and raise a family not
to have to raise it like they were on a
| WPA subsistence handout, but to have
real opportunity to consume some
of the wheat and cotton that is plowed
under every year. They demanded
the right to get a chance to put on
their tables some of those vegetables
and fruits that are dumped in piles
as high as a mountain and destroyed
The majority of those youths were
matured on the simplest and cheapest
diet that could be figured out by the
overlords of a profit system. Their
opportunities as children to receive
the joy of living has been curtailed
not only by the profit system but by
every ham and egg actor in the United
States with their wonderful sense of
humor at the misery of the workers of
WPA and some of our humorous col
umnists that are damn sight better
on handing out misery jokes than they |
would be at taking them. These youths |
had no part in their Introduction to |
this old world of ours. If they had |
am sure that there would have been |
lot of them that would have re-
fused the invitation. But they have |
been condemned by some of our great |
intellectual column writer's that never |
missed a meal in their lives, not a |
drink either If they were around where |
they didn't have to raise their elbow |
off the bar to consume it. Condemned |
because they refuse to accept condi-
tions as they are, refused to believe
in the promises of the so-called
fathers of our country. Promises that
were made to their great grandfathers
and have never been fulfilled, prom
Uses that are made by politicians only
for the moment. These youths are
condemned because they are not gull |
lible prey to the politician and 1t
makes it harder for the big interests |
to put in their favorite fixers. If |
the majority of youths of the United |
States were endowed with the art of |
self-thinking as those of the youth |
congress there would be hard days |
ahead for the politician. His old time
worn tactics of campaigning would
have to be changed kissing the baby
with the remark presidential timber
some day" wouldn't be acceptable to
the voter. A common-sense, workable
program to be fulfilled would have to
be substituted for the old time-worn
promises and jokes with long, grey
whiskers. These youths were con-
demned because they have no respect
LOT the dDulty VI lutlI tlucIb DIS W
the setting up and maintaining of
government for the benefit of it's peo-
pie as whole.
Why should the younger generation
be asked to idolize age just because
It is age? What about an individual
that has proven himself worthy of
respect in old age? Yes, he will al ;
ways be respected by youth, not of
one generation of youth alone but of
generations of youths to come. But {
now about these hundreds of thou |
sands that are growing into old age {
every day, that don't even dare to
lie as they won't have any place to s
go? Shall youth get down on their {
1nees and do homage to those degen- |
crates just because they are of yes l
erday? If that would be fact, then '
Mother Nature had better stop the {
process of evolution and let the human &