Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-04-16
Consumption
Of All Labor
In U. S. Seen
Must Come to Defeat
Axis, PeeIer Says
By WESTBROOK PEGLER


whole American people face
a development in the national
war effort which would abolish,
temporarily. at least. one of our
own great, traditional freedoms.
Inevitably we shall have q
form of CONSUMPTION of labor
and this will mean that the gov
eminent will assign millions OF
men and women to jobs in fac
tories and mines and ON farms
and that workers will have to
go where they are sent. stay put
and put in days work every
working day.
II is no sufficient objection
to say that this is the way the
Nazis do il.
1t goes without denying also.
that when this compulsion is
adopted. it will apply also to
property.
The motor industry. for ex-
ample. would have been COM
Wandered if the management
had not voluntarily abandoned
automobile production 10 con-
vert its great plants TO war
work.
WE ARE a very independent
w people, as individuals. ac-
customed TO travel at will and
TO jump the job for a better one
or just to go fishing.
We have not realized how i'm
portant to us this freedom and
independence has been because
nobody ever threatened TO cur
tail or revoke it, and the curtaii-
ment or revocation will be
accepted gracefully.
The proposal will be bitterly
debated, not only in Congress
but all over the land, but ! am
one of those who believe il must
be adopted as a sacrifice and a
measure of insurance against
the horrors of such slavery as
Hitler has imposed on the people
of conquered Poland and con-
quered France.
Slavery is a word that has
been idly misused to describe
the condition of free workers in
company towns, office help and
even baseball players. and so has
lost some OF the terror which Is
in the true meaning of the word.
Under Hitler. slavery is liter
ally slavery.
TVIE. man who shrieked about
Il Aryan racial purity and
wept in humiliation and rage
against the employment Of Afri-
can colored soldiers in the tenn
porary occupation OF a portion
of conquered Germany, did not
hesitate TO unleash the Japanese
against the American people
who include. of course, many
patriotic Aryans. as he would
call them, who came here from
Germany or were born here OF
German immigrants.
Nothing is beyond him and
actual slavery is the condition TO
which he consigns all peoples
whom he conquers.
Not merely. our Jews whom he
holds to be sub-human and with
no rights which a human being
is bound TO respect, nor our
Negroes whom he frankly re-
CARDS as beasts, but all Amer
leans would be slaves except n
few miserable Vierecks who
would be rewarded with special
positions in which TO assist his
regime here.
Is CONSUMPTION OF work and
compulsion TO work and stay put
until the war is won too great a
sacrifice for a free people 10 inn
pose on themselves
New Zealand has done IL and
although / have read Of no ac-
tual CONSUMPTION Of labor az
such in Australia. the effect of a
number Of emergency rules in
that very free and independent
country has amounted TO such
CONSUMPTION.
If the enemy were that close
to us we would not hesitate. per-
hapS too late then, to compel
every able-bodied man and
woman TO fight or work and
there would be no argument
about it.
FORTUNATELY in our case
l. the enemy is farther off, but
he Is nearer than most of us
realize, and If we are TO get the
benefit of our skill and muscle
the time TO organize the effort il
when we still have some sand in
the glass, not when confusion and
panic are exciting the people.
We can be invaded, we can be
cut apart and licked il we do not
make a total effort, and If that
should happen the Stars and
Stripes would cease to be and
no American now living would
ever be free again.
Undoubtedly the unions will
object as bitterly as any nomad
riding the roads in his trailer
with his wife and kids. following
the SUN through the seasons and
taking his jobs where he finds
fharr1