Evening star., 1942-04-01
intellectual Offensive
Proposed Against Axis
Writer Argues for Propaganda
To Re-edueote the World
Against Aeeressors
To the Editor Of The Star:

| To the Editor Of The Star:
We have read with interest in The
Sunday Star, March 90, the editorial
Propaganda and Disunion" and the
feature article, the use OF Propaganda
as War Weapon"
Propaganda is merely an organized
| type of education, and like any kind of
education 1t can be true or false. 1t
can be based upon and proved by science
and logic or it can be a pack of half
truths and lies. Hitler has achieved
| great and terrible victories oy the latter
type of propaganda. In fact, without
these victories his military conquests
would have been impossible.
| Hitler has won his propaganda victo-
ries, which have made his military
conqueSts possible, because there was no
organized education based upon science
and logic to refute his lies. Not only
was there no organized education against
Hitler's half-truths, but the organized
propaganda among our educators during
the 1920s and early 1905 aided Hitler in
winning his propaganda victories. Hitler
| was preaching war for expansion and
| preparation for such war, and our
educators we're criticizing our Army and
| Navy and were trying to drive anything
that sounded like preparedness for war
from our national education programs.
In those days the word patriotism" was
considered "reactionary" by many, if
not by most of our leading educators.
The question now arises: Are the edu-
| Gators who come to Washington to help
win the war any more qualified for this
job than they were in helping prevent
| this war? So far it appears that our
educational program to win this war has
been purely a defensive effort. AS we
| understand it, our educational program
is designed chiefly to give aid and COM
| fort to our people. 1t seems to us that
what the American people need is not
a program that gives them comfort, but
rather one which arouses them to strong
and unified action to aid the common
cause. We should not content ourselves
with a defense against Hitler's lying
propaganda. We should take the often
sive. What we need Is not only mill
tary offensive, but an intellectual Of
time until we can build the necessary
| machines of war to take the military
offensive, but why should we have to
wait to take the intellectual offensive?
The truth seems to be that our educa-
tors were as badly prepared for this
war as was our military, and the unpre-
paredneSs Of our military Is due largely
to the propaganda program of our educa-
| tors during the 1920s and early 1906.
| In those years our educators were circu-
| lating peace-pledge ribbons or at least
condoning this activity. In those vital
years Army and Navy officials who advo-
| Gated preparedness were considered and
condemned as "war-mongers" by our
educators. 1t was this type Of propa-
ganda that gave Hitler. Mussolini, and
the military party in. Japan their big
opportunity.
Hitler shouted that the German people
were cheated and abused after the first
World War, and our educators echoed
the shout. Hitler shouted that the first
World War was forced upon Germany,
and our educators excused Germany of
all or most all of the war guilt. Musso-
lini, Hitler, and the military party in
Japan sang out that their people must
expand" and our educators echoed this
refrain. Great Britain, not Germany,
was considered the big, bad wolf by
our educators. Is there any wonder that
our educators and intellectual" leaders
find it difficult practically to reverse their
program and to launch an intellectual
offensive against the enemies Of our
Nation and the enemies of civilization
itself?
Hitler, Mussolini, and the military
party in Japan have given overpopula-
ton as their reason for launching this
war for conquest. Mussolini has said
that the population program is 'the
problem of problems" and that Italy
must expand or explode" Hitler has
asked: What is the root cause Of all
of our economic dificultieS?" He i'm
mediately answered this question by
saying: 1T is the overpopulation of our
territory" 'rMein Kampf" is chiefly a
long -drawn-out essay on race and popu-
lation problems and policies. All stu
dents of Japan's foreign policy know that
of population. Yet what do our educa-
tors know about the subject of popula-
ton? incidentally, had our educators
known very much about the subject Of
population they would have seen this
war coming 20 years ago and they
certainly would not have been circu-
lating peace-pledge ribbons. To meet,
take the offensive, and defeat the Axis
propaganda compaign, our educators
should at least know something about
the subject that the Axis leaders are
using as a basis for their dirty work.
Propaganda based upon lies and half
truths Is one of the most, if not the
most, vicious force in the world. But
propaganda based upon science, logic
and human welfare is vital and neces-
sary part of civilized society. One Of
the chief objects of our intellectual
offensive to win this war should be to
bring home to the peoples of North and
South America the deadly seriousness of
this world conflict. This can be done
in large part by explaining the popula-
ton programs of the Axis leaders to the
people of the Americas. A smattering
knowledge of these programs will prove
that the American people are not only
fighting for democracy, but also for
their very lives and the soil under their
feet.
Another purpose Of our intellectual