Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-09-19
Americans
In Dark on
Axis Thinking
Pearl AHarbor Big jolt
TO u. S. IdeaIism.
By BENJAMIN DE CASSERES

N NE we AillellCdiiS SaPo
"A One of our greatest defects
as a people-a defect that when
a war breaks out is revealed TO
us as a gaping weakness--is
that we are not psychologists.
We are a trusting, hopeful,
optimistic, sentimental people.
and, TO our great misfortune,
we believe that to be true Of
other peoples.
We are nationally honest in
our dealings with other peoples.
and we also believe that in deal
ing with us other nations are
just as honest.
THIS defect of ours-a lack of
L insight into the emotional
motives and mental clockwork
of other nationS-received
terrible "facer' at Pearl Har-
Dor.
That may be the most memo
rable day in our mental history.
A veil was torn from us. We
were revealed to ourselves as
sentimental suckers.
While President Roosevelt and
Secretary Hull were, in full
faith, carrying on negotiations
of peace with Japan, the latter
was bombing our battleships.
our army and our airports in
Hawaii.
We have not known the men,
tai processes of the Japanese or
the Germans, and we still do not
know them.
WE HAVE had brain trusts"
W at work on our domestic
problems. but when il comes TO
foreign affairs we seem to leave
our brains at home.
What our state department
will need hereafter is a group
to study the histories and the
national characters of all foreign
peoples so that there shall never
again be a Pearl Harbor.
The slogan Remember Pearl
Harbor" should have a psyche
logical value as well as an &C
tual value.
"Heptisax," the brilliant
writer in the New York Herald
Tribune. gives us the plain. I'M
vanished truth in the following.
which l reprint at some length"
because / feel that in these days
of so many empty phrases and
superficial thinking every ounce
of real brains should be given
the widest publicity:
CT NOT only believe that each
L people gets the kind of gov
eminent that II deserves at the
moment, no better and no worse.
but that in the long run the
political institutions of each
breed Of human beings will ac-
curately reflect Its character.
Each primitive peoples
heaven Is a mirror Of its stand
ards of conduct. Its gods are
no better than the best men
and women IL has eyolved-the
best according to its standards.
eff n jungle tribe has survived
for many generations because
Its ablest men have been stealth
Ter murderers than the murder
ers of neighboring tribes, and II
their superior gifts have been
accompanied by a taste for In
ficting ingenious fortunes on
prisoners, the gods of that tribe
will inevitably he endowed with
eXtravagant powers in sneak
thievery and skulking slaughter.
600 THE tribe that sets up n
~ cruel tyrant as its ruler.
cndows him with unchallenge-
able authority and submits 10
his arbitrary abuses Of power
with masochistic delight and
pride worships gods Of that char
acter: while the tribe whose
chiefs powers are checked by
an assembly Of fiercely individ-
ualistic warriors and hose
champions fight fairly and de-
fcnd the unfortunate against the
selfish and overbearing will have
n pantheon full Of heavy ~
savages with n lot Of bad habits
perhaps. hut just, generous and
mereiful."
In that sense, too, every
country is a democracy. for /
do not believe that a tyrant Of
any kind, ancient or modern.
could last month IL the
people did not secretly or
overtly want him.
IF THERE are Hitlers and
Il Mussolinis il is because the
people like that kind of man
because he is themselves.
And do you think that Ger
many after. this war, which we
shall win, will not have another
Bismarck or kaiser or Hitler or
Frederick the Great?
There will be such men over
the German people until the
Germans become democratized
and give up the worship of uni
forms and goosestepping and
verboten signs.