Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1943-02-09
Letters
To the Editor

were lOSt at sea ana were over
joyed over your rescue and we
were anxious to hear of your
experiences over the radio.
Then came the disappointment
of your radio address before the
Society of Automotive Engineers
on the evening of Jan. %, 1913,
when you insulted us, the auto
workers, members of organized
labor.
Captain Eddie, where. in your
many experiences and world
travels, did you ever get the idea
that the Sargent Bennies" and
the men in uniform Of khaki are
separate and different kind or
variety of men than those war
workers in our auto plants?
1t is very evident that you
have not visited the halls of or
gained labor to inspect the
huge Military Honor Rolls in
scribed with the names of thou
sands of auto workers and their
sons, belonging to the CIO.
II is Our men who are leaving
their jobs in the auto factories
and the homes they love so well
TO don the uniform of Uncle
Sam, and it is they who serve in
the fox holes, slime, filth and
disease. They are the pennies"
you'll find in the Bataans, Afri-
can deserts and all the far off
fronts of the Allies.
Yes, Mr.. Rickenbacker. you in
suited the auto workers and all
of organized labor when in your
talk on Jan. %, 1943, you sug-
gested that the soldiers OF
Bataan and Africa be used to
smash our unions and make the
auto industry open to the open
shop any company unions.
II is true that we have had
strikes and slow-downs and that
there has been idleness on the
job, but this is a direct result OF
the companies using the no
strike pledge TO refuse TO bar
gain on just grievances and per-
haps through no fault OF their
own in not providing materials
TO work with.
Perhaps you'd be interested to
know that after a layoff Of
hundreds Of men in Chevrolet
Flint division, a huge demon
stration was held Jan. -, 1943,
by members of the CIO protest
ing that layoff when war ma
terialS are 50 badly needed.
When the war is over and our
boys in khaki come home, Mr..
Rickenbacker, they'll come home
to jobs in the factories. Yes.
because we, the auto workers,
members of organized labor, are
protecting their jobs and they'll
be welcomed by us and again
take their places in our auto
factories because they are our
boys.
My husband, a war worker,
a member of Local No. $50, is
doing his "bit" by working 10
hours a day six and seven days a
week and 1 spend five days a
week doing Red Cross surgical
dressings in a hall donated by
Local No. $50, Go, to the Red
Cross for this purpose, and as /
look at pictures of my two and
only sons and then at the win
dow where hangs a Service Flag
with its two blue stars, / say TO
you, Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker,
you owe organized labor an open
apology.
MRS. GERALDINE KLASEY,
2184 Genesee road, Flint.
ITO THE EDITOR:
Il For what are we sacrificing,
fighting. and dying7 This ques-
ton, burningly important. is not
asked much any more, for is not
the commonly agreed answer:
Victory, victory in this Second
World War? But we won mill
tary victory in the first world
war, and today, mothers and
dads, your sons are being blown
TO bits again. are rotting in
shell holes, are giving indiges-
ton to sharks.
Why?
The answer Is because we did
not win the victory Of peace.
Because we didn't think of peace
and its problems till the war
was overland hence we were
unprepared for the toughest
battle of all.
America won't make that mis-
take again. We are starting,
and starting now, to plan for
victory in peace. For, what is
victory in war without victory
in peace?
1t means just this. There'll be
a third inning of the most God
forsaken game ever played by
the human animal.
We know all this already
but we have to stress II, we
have to tell 'em all that what
we're striving and dying for is
victory in war and victory in
peace.
II. III. NELSON,
1882 Parkside Ave.
WAR
H. ToI