Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1941-05-15
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Spanish; from the first World war
to the second, from the Fourteen
Points of Wilson to the Four Free
doms of Roosevelt the idealist has
held sway. We formed the League
of Nations, we demobilized our arm
les, we sank our battleships, we made
pacts of non-aggression.
But the kind of democracy we
fought for in the last war doesn't
exist today, even in our own country.
Except for England, we have in
Cured the antagonism of every ma
jor military power in both Europe
and Asia.
And all this has been done in the
name of democracy, peace and civil
ization. AS matter of fact, the
idealists themselves seem to be about
all we fought for in the last war
that remains intact.
Want War Again.
Now, they want us to 60 to war
again, to save the world by means
of some new idea.
Speakers from England are tour
ing our country today, as they did a
generation ago.
Our college presidents are shouting
for war, just as they did before. If
only we send our armies abroad once
more, they tell us, if only enough
people in Europe can be starved and
killed, we will be able to spread
peace, and democracy, and our way
of life over the entire earth.
People who have been pacifsts all
their lives are now saying that peace
must be brought by war.
Ministers are preaching that Christi
anity must be spread by famine.
Our government asks us to pre-
serve democracy abroad by creating
a dictatorship in our own country.
And all this in the name of ideal
ism.
Save Democracy Here.
But there are many people in the
nation who have ideals of another
kind. There are many of us who be-
lieve that the place to save democracy
is right here in America.
We do not accept the claim that
Christianity will thrive on famine, or
that our way of life can be spread
around the world by force We be-
lieve it is possible for man or ma
ton to be self-reliant, to be practical,
to be successful, even to be tolerant
and still have ideals of the highest
type.
We, in America, have learned some
thing since the last war. We know
more about propaganda. We have
heard of the secret treaties of Europe
We have watched England and France
wrangle through an entire genera
ton, until new war came tumbling
down upon their shoulders.
Must Withstand Propaganda.
i The question is whether we have
learned enough to Withstand the
barrage of propaganda to which we
have been subjected ever since this
war began; and whether, if we can
Withstand that barrage, we will be
able to impose our will upon the
government in Washington.
There was once time in America
when we could impose our will by
vote. Candidates brought political
issues before us, and stated clearly
their stand. After an election was
over, responsibility to the voters re-
manned. That was what we once
called principle of democracy.
Candidates Pledge Peace.
Many of us thought we were still
operating under that principle at the
elections last November.
Both political parties had adopted
platforms against intervention in this
war.
Both political candidates spok e
constantly of peace.
Many a sincere Democrat and Re-
publican voted with full confidence
that his man, if elected, would keep
the country out of war.
But it now seems doubtful that
we even had two parties last No
vember, at least as far as the presi-
dental candidates were concerned.
The people of this nation were not
given the chance to vote on the great
est issue of our generation-the issue
of foreign war.
And yet we are now told that we
must 60 to Europe to fight for the
very principles of democracy that
were denied to us in our own nation
last November.
II Charged With Disloyalty.
We have been asked to fight abroad
for the -Four Freedoms"
But there are other freedoms our
president did not mention.
One is the freedom to vote on vital
issues. Another is freedom of infor-
mation-the right of a free people
to know where they are being led
by their government.
| doubt that any country in Europe
has been less informed about the
intentions of its government than we
have been here in America.
i doubt that any country there has
been more misled about the actual