The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1944-06-30
By LAVERNE HAMILTON
THE HOME FRONT

THE HOME FRONT
Departing now from the study Of
the Russian Experiment" and its eff
feet upon the evolutionary process We
turn our attention to the home from
to observe the effect of IS months Of
war upon the economic system of Am
erica and its secondary effect upon
the world.
In 1886 practically every corporation
in the U. S. A. was on the relief rolls
of the Reconstruction Finance Corpor.
alton. Such small business as was
unable to exert sufficient pull to be
certified" for such relief was indi-
rectly on the relief rolls of w. p A.
| by reason of the fact that the bulk of
its merchandise was purchased by w.
P. A. Clients" To find a single ''pri-
vate enterprise" which during that pc
Rod was neither directly or Indirect
ly on "relief'' of this kind would be
as simple as discovering the proven
bal needle in the haystack.
While five billion dollars was paid
out for the relief of private citizens,
EIGHT BILLIONS was expended for
the relief of CORPORATE ENTER
PRISE, and manufacturers association
and similar organizations were dill
gently seeking ways and means of
providing bigger and better calami-
ties.
Under the profit system economic
scarcity war is always good business
(for Big Business) and since under
the profit system during conditions of
peace the public deprived of purchas-
ing power could not purchase the full
production of industry, war must be
stagd so that the wheels of INDUS
TRY might again revolve, with a
PROFIT to the owners of said wheels.
BUTTS per cent of the American
public was definitely and bitterly OPP
posed to American involvement in
war. The period 1914 to 1918 and the
inevitable depression which followed
was still too fresh in the minds of
the older group and both old and
young were more pressingly concerned
with the more personal problem of
securing subsistence from the "over-
production of commodities which lack
of purchasing power denied to them.
Came the fortuitous (for Capital
ISM circumstance of Pearl Harbor
and a public which had been rs per
cent against armed conflict was trans
formed overnight by CJap'O treach-
cry.
Regardless of what other insidious |
Or unknown factors may have con-
Lributed to the Japanese attack, Am
erica now had no other alternative |
except war. In such unforeseen and |
distasteful ways does the |
evolutionary process manifest itself.
The wheels of capitalist industry
could now revolve, it would even be
to gear them to the highest
possible speed. Dear old Uncle" re-
;ently so vigorously and thoroughly
Tanned by the Rugged Individual
sts,' would not only provide the
mazuma" to start their revolutions,
lie would also purchase their product
It a profit (AND WHAT A PROFIT).
The "all-out" production heretofore de-
lied because of limited purchasing
lower could now be released since it
ould be sold at PROFIT, would de-
troy and be itself destroyed No {
bought now of blowing under" corn,
yheat or cotton, or destroying pork, !
eef or mutton. We don't "plow I'M J
err cannon, battleships or flying /
ortresses. They destroy the enemies i
owns, shipping, factories, commune l
alton and transportation system and {
re themselves destroyed by the enc |
~ if he happens to be lucky or ac- i
urate with his own equipment. Pro-
uction for DESTRUCTION The ma v
on could plunge headlong into a h
NO or three hundred billion dollar h
ebt for the destruction of human life t
nd the things created by the labor
man9ind with little or no criticism