The Durant news. (Durant, Miss.) 1882-1985, 1941-01-16
THROUGH
n E L
( Y ( S
g
BY
Hazel Brannon

sN foe ~
fine speech on the necessity for de-
Tense. Congress responded and gave
him the billions he asked for. Then
he proceeded to waste seven months
of priceless time with a defense
machinery setup which could not
work and which he was told could
not work when it was announced.
He now denounces ~"defeatists" and
"appeasers." Yet he named to high
position in the administration men
who spread the doctrine of defeatism
and are still doing it,"
Thus speaks columnist Frank r.
Up until a few days ago only Mr..
Roosevelt had any authority in say
ing what lines our defense program
would follow. He seemed too jealous
of his power to delegate any of it
to anyone else. This has been re-
medied now TO a certain extent.
But Mr.. Roosevelt should not be
too impatient with the rest of the
country if they don't seem to fol-
low his lead with as much speed as
he would like. The country doesn't
always know what Mr.. Roosevelt is
thinking, planning and doing. Since
last July when he kept the Demo-
cratic national convention suspended
in mid-air for three days waiting TO
hear whether or not he vas going
to run for a third term, Mr.. Roose-
welt has not seemed to care a great
deal what the people of the country
think. 1t seems that the only persons
he care to listen to are those who
hold his own views. He doesn't seem
to care or attach any importance 70
the opinions Of those who do not
think as he does.
In his more recent speech to Con
gress on the state of the union the
President assumed the attitude that
those who do not agree with him
on his foreign policies are slackers
and he questioned the patriotism OF
those who do not plunge headlong in
to carrying out his wishes on aid
to Britain.
Mr.. Roosevelt's speech was strong
enough lndI veteran tOIk ISSoiiSh
who have been in congress many
more years than Franklin ID. Roose-
Welt has been in politics, hesitated to
voice their real views on his message
for fear of being misunderstood.
America has ceased to be a de-
mocracy when every individual can
not express his honest views on ques-
tions affecting the welfare of tho
country without fear of intimidf-
ton.
This year every single person max
ing over SIC per week and every
married person making over 500 per
week, regardless of exemptions and
deductions, must file an income tax
return.
We have a striking situation in
this country when some persons on
relief have to file an income tax
return. The WPA scale Of wages in
some of the eastern states twhere
they have both Democrats and Re-
publicians) run as high as SIG a
week anu even nhoIt'
Of course the Federal government
doesn't pay that much money to per-
sons on relief in the south where
everybody votes Democratic anyway.
The small wage Garner and salaried
man will pay a very small amount,
if any, income tax now. But the
time isn't very far off when the
man or woman who makes as much
as a thousand dollars a year will
really be paying an income tax ev-
cry year. Exemptions are going to
be few and far between.
Somebody is going to have to pay
for the billions of dollars worth of
munitions Mr.. Roosevelt has said this
country is going to give (loan or
lease) Great Britain and all the 9TH
err nations of the world that are
fighting our battles, fighing to save
the democratic way of life.
Yes, somebody is going to have to
pay for all those planes and tanks,
guns and ammunition, ships and 9TH
er of war the u. ). Is
going to manufacture so that we can
police the world and be prepared
to use force, if necessary, to see
that our Democratic way of life sur
wives.
The people who are going to have
TO pay for all the promises Mr..
Roosevelt has made in this respect
are the people of the United STATES
You and you and you. Every wage
Garner, every small-salaried man and
every business and professional mar
and Don't forget that
Even so the people of the u 5.
might not mind footing the bill Tor
England and China and Greece y
we were assured that we wouldn't
have to furnish manpower as well.
But in his last speech Mr., Roose-
welt left off his famous short Of
war" phrase. He now implies that
he will send men as well as muo
tions.