The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1941-07-23
By "UNCENSORED"

Though it will be news to all geo
graphy students, the Western Hemis
Understanding to current interven
ZIONIST strategy II is shaped like {
mushroom. The top of the mush-
room extends to Iceland on one side
and on the other side 1t reaches east
ern Siberia where some alarmists
would like to have u. S. air and naval
bases to meet the Panzer divisions
lmomentarily expected from Minsk on
their way to Miami. Presently, the
Western Hemisphere would resem-
BILE half a tomato since U. S. bases
would be required in Dakar and Singa-
pore. Finally the Western Hemis-
phere would be indistinguishable from
the globe.
| This all seems great fun and is ap-
parently so regarded by the president
of the United States. 1.-THE president
made something of a joke of attempts
to define the Western Hemisphere
rigidly," says the New York Times
report of the presidents press confer
ence on July 8. when someone re-
called that the president himself had
marked the area on a previous coca.
sion, and that his line then left most,
If not all, of Iceland in the Eastern
Hemisphere, the president repeated,
with a chuckle, that 1t all depended
on what geographer one talked to
last"
= n a Dnnonnalt of f0a lltr
pledged eight months ago that he
would never send any part of the
armed forces Outside of the Americas
except in case of attack" and since
the move into Iceland is supposed to
come under the heading of Hemis-
phere defense, the presidents gayety
about Hemisphere limitations is I'M
derstandable. But millions of seri-
GUS Americans have taken the phrase
Hemisphere defense" seriously They
have been told that defense of the
U. S. required defense of the Hemis-
phere and they have supported the
most extraordinary measures to
achieve it, They are not likely to see
the presidents little joke.
Shooting Gallery
In giving his reasons for moving |
into Iceland the president said that |
Its possible occupation by Germany
would be threat both to the north
ern position of North America and to
The steady flow of munitions to Brit
ain. But neither hemisphere defense
nor aid to Britain has ever meant
into total war to assure the
of the British Isles. The Ice
and move is a definite invitation to
shooting. Iceland is within the war
March rs. While the president stated
hat U. s. would replace British forces
here, Churchill has announced that
lie will keep his men there to cooper
tie with the Americans and his men
ire obviously subject to attack from
he nazis. A move involving such
hangers means that the president has
iecided to go to war now if it were
necessary to help protect British mer-
'hantmen. Such is the present status
# aid to Britain Short of war"
To regard a nazi-occupied Iceland ;
8 serious threat to North America {
5 far-fetched but barely tenable. Ice
ands capital and chief port, Reyk- I
avik, is about $50 miles past Julien 6
aab on the southern tip of Greenland
yhere U. s. troops already are sta t
loned. Juleinhaab is 1000 miles past G
t. Johns, Newfoundland, where more s
!. S. troops are stationed. st. Johns r
! 1850 miles from New York. By t
irect, great circle route, Reykjavik b
! 1884 miles from New York. On Y
he other hand, Iceland is only $40 Y
lilies from Scotland, 600 miles from c
'orway. n
But there would be no threat at /
Il from Iceland unless the nazis were A
lere. In his message to congress the {
resident did not suggest the likeli- :
ood of such an attempt by Germany. L
t his press conference he refused to
ate whether he had acted upon ac-
Ial information Of any projected at e.
ok. Unless the British were going v
abandon the island, a nazi attack Ii
! Iceland would have been fantastic. al
rete was assaulted from air bases II