Evening star., 1945-10-14
Times Still Require
A Sense Of Urgency
The World Will Be Dangerous
Place Until Peace Is Sure
Bu William H. Harrison.

q thing only dimly remembered. After
the shooting stops and people return to
their normal pursuits of making living
and seeking as much happiness as they
can find, the sense Of urgency passes,
the "feel' of danger fades away, the
Apocalyptic picture of the past-which
once seemed so real, SO close, so terrify-
ing-now grows haZy Time is more
than a healer. 1t is curtain of sorts,
a comforting mist, blurring or blotting
out entirely the memory Of events which
most men and women would just as
soon forget.
If time did not do this, of course, the
past, with all its pain and terror, would
remain as vivid as If 1t were still here,
and the human spirit would be over
whelmed by it. To that extent, therefore,
people may count themselves lucky that
their remembrance Of some things be-
comes weaker and weaker with the
years, but there Is a great danger in this,
too, because men and nations are now
at the Threshold Of an age in which
they will be literally inviting their own
destruction If they carry their forget
fulness too far or II they fail to realize
how electronics and atomic power have
so changed the nature of war that the
whole world will be living in kind of
emergency until a permanent peace is
assured.
This is matter of particular I'M
portance for the United States. OF all
ma jor powers, ours is the most prone
to- stop thinking about war when war
is over Ever since the Revolution, the
American people have been like that.
After every great conflict, we have put
aside our weapons to the point of
neglecting them altogether. Relying on
the once e-protective reaches of the oceans
around us and letting our wishes govern
our thoughts and action, we have
excelled the world in our capacity to
demobilize not only our armed power
but our minds as well. 1t is an old
national trait, and a highly honorable
one, but, unfortunately-in this new era
of the atomic bomb and the guided
missile of supersonic speed-it is trait
given free rein.
After the tensions, the alarms, the
fatigue, the savagery and the vast blood
letting Of the Second World War, it is
only natural that the Nation should now
find emotional release in demobiliZation
Yet we can no longer take the risk-as
in the past-of letting that demobiliza-
tion go so far as to leave the country
physically and mentally disarmed in a
world that will be exceedingly dangerous
until genuine peace is established. Our
. highest military leaders may be striking
a distasteful note when they say it, but
they are right when they say that the
United States, to insure its survival,
must now do three things, in addition
to working unremittingly for inter-
national collective security: "a Main
tain land, sea and air power adequate
to the times; (2) inaugurate compulsory
peacetime training, and f3) carry on
constant research and development in
all fields of science.
At the moment the American people
seem anything but disposed to favor
such a program, and this raises the
question whether the vast majority are
fully aware-or can be made to become
fully aware-of how truly dangerous
the world is. Is it properly realized, for
instance, that the oceans have lost
their old defensive significance? Is
it clear that II there is another war
1t will be far more total than the one
just ended? Is there sufficient public
appreciation of the kind of gas and
psychological weapons now at mans
disposal? Is there doubt about the
meaning Of tranSoceanic rockets? Are
the potentialities of the age vivid
enough to convince every one that If
it is unprepared, this Nation, no less
than other nations, can be overwhelmed
overnight by a sudden attack in which
I single bombs-about which long term
secrecy is impossible-can virtually
erase whole cities like Washington? In
short, does America in general under
stand that it's scientists and political
and military leaders are speaking lit
orally when they make the seemingly
| fantastic statement that in the era
Immediately ahead, it will be possible
at least theoretically--to destroy life
completely not only in one or two
countries but all over the face of the
earth?
Although the implications of the age
| of electronicS and atomic energy are
thus more appalling than anything
that has heretofore confronted man.
kind it is doubtful that the people as
whole have yet come to a full ap-
probation of the situation Demobiliz-
ing as fast as they can, forgetting the
| Second World War as fast as they
can, they are UNDERSTANDABLE enjoy
ing their release from the recent sense
of urgency and the "feel" of danger,
and in such a mood they can hardly
be expected to welcome the idea that
the times demand continued prepared
ness; they can hardly be expected to
give much thought to the fact that
for some years to come, until there
is guarantee that the peace will be
lasting, there will be kind of inter-
national emergency.
Nevertheless that fact must be faced
and the public must be made so aware
of it that year from now, or two or
more years from now, the security of
this Nation will in no way be neg
lected On two basic points the Amer
ican people must henceforth remain
wide awake and continue to feel a
sense of urgency. The first of these
| Is that we must have an adequate up