The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-09-29

can Do heard through the doors oi the conference room In London N far from reassuring. The Russian press is attacking the fascist ana reactionary forces in Britain anc America who are trying to obstfuct the progress of democracy in ku. mania, Hungary and Greece Ano to divert our minds from the un- saVoury business, we have, here at home, the old crusade to restore democracy to Spain. Temporarily at least, we are not in Spain, (We may be sending an army over there, vet, If the liberal left has It's say0 But the victorious nations are in complete control In Rumania and Hungary. Why not get busy setting up Q democracy In these countfiesY Mir. Molotov knows the answer to that.
 What we mean by democracy and what Russia means by 'de- mocracy' are two Ideas poles apart ft is not merely a difference in method, or procedure. tt IS not merely a difference in economy, or jurlsprudence. We might quote from the works of the bolSheVikS. But that might be pointed out as going 10 extremists for an explanation Of the Russian Idea. But we can, very proeitably, quote c man who VII play c dominating part In the poA- tical development of the western world. This man iS Harold Laski n1outhpiece and policy maker TOT the new Labor Government m ? Rneiafd, Writing in Faith, Rea- son and Civilization (Viking Press, New York, io4D MT. Laski says: "UnieSS we claim that the Churches will renew their hold on mems al" ieglance-and there is no serioui evidence for the validity of such Q ciaim-the Russian idea seems like' ly to be the pivotal source from which all values will find the neana os renewal" MeanlngY The basic principles of Christianity are outmoded and 2 thrown aside, Christianity 1 q 1. thing of the past. The Russian idea is to me, henceforth, the FnAinspFing of society.
 And what is the Russian idee7 It is. in essence, this; Nothing exists but physical matter. Men are animals, living matter. The chief concern of mankind is the satlsfactlon of his appetites,
 breeding and feeding, working and living = in Q controlled environ ment. For if there Is no spirit in man, there are no things of the epiFit, And If there are no things Of the spirit, there ls no truth, no honor, no true glory. There n0Ghlng sacred. This sounds crude? This sounds unbelievable? Where did Hitler get his Idea Tor concentration camps? Where dld he get his idea for the Gestapo7
 But still, you may say, with all the unpleasantness Involved, there is something appealing about the Idea that all men are created equal that the natural resources Of the country belong to the people and there is c fair distribution Of the good things of nature. It does seem something like justice,
 Here in America there Is 6 poor dis- trihution of the wealth of the na. ton. There is discrimination against Negroes and Catholics and Jews HOW ready we in America are te confess our faultsl It is c noble trait, born of the innate falr.mind- edness of most Americans. We complain of our failinga we head iine them, we discuss them on the radio.
 But let us not line up reality here with the fake Russian idea and fear that we have fallen short Democracy in America Is the most successful and just system of gov- ernment that has ever operated on the face of the earth. And that's counting in all our faults.
 For here is the joker in the Rus sian idea. We need not become in- yolved in diplomatic two-timing: we need not rehearse the long and miserable story of the unfortunates who spent years in concentration camps long before Belsen was opened, and will be there long after Belsen Is a sickening memory. A practical, business-like Americans let us look at the figures paid tc the Russian military, and compare them with our own. Tn this land of fascistic capitalism. the ration oi the pay of a private to that of an officer is one to three. That is tc say, a private receives one dollar foi the officers three in wages. Tn England, which Is bit more decad- ent than America, the ratio is one tc four. The private receives one dol lar to the officers four.
 This is worth a separate para graph in baldface type. The ratio in Russia ls one to one hundred! For every dollar the Russian pri- gate gets in wages, the officer gets enc hundred. Here Is the wage Acale: private, ten roubles a Hzunth; lieutenant, one thousand enbIes a month; colonel, twa
 pnsand four hundred Faubles 8
 nfhl
 There Is a similar disparity be- 1FeeQ the wages of the ordinary
 sk1H9 man 8lfH nis sErNEfIsof
 |.sE Nt t teIE|pAl