Evening star., 1945-10-24
War Training Plan
Linked to MiIiturists

1lIINCO ~ IVltlIlOt1StS
Truman Short.Sighted on Higher
Education Need, Says Writer
BY David Laurence
President Truman has swallowed
hook -line- e-and-sinker the miIitaristic
approach to universal military training.
He has accepted the plans of the high
ranking generals and militaristically in
clined civilians In the War Department
who believe that it is desirable to in
terrupt higher education for military
purposes even in time of peace
Instead Of proposing a plan that
would make 1t optional for the boy to-
take one years training any time be.
tween the ages of l8 and "a, the Presi-4
dent accepts the War Departments pro-
posal that between high school and coll
lege all boys must interrupt their studies
and spend year in military camp.
This proposal will never be accepted
by Congress II the liberals of the country
and the persons who believe in higher
education become vocal about it.
The only answer that some of the
War Department experts have at times
made to the point is that it isn't demo-
cratic to worry about college educations.
This is but another way of saying that
1t isn't necessary to develop doctors or
dentists or scientists or any of the
other professional groups so essential
to American life.
Cites Doctor Shortage.
The shortage of doctors today in
civilian communities is due directly to
such ort-sightedness by the military
chieftains. AS for the future, there is
to be shortage of medical men for
many years to come so that even the
veterans with recuFrent disabilities are
going to have hard time getting medi-
cal care in the next several years.
There are some educators who have
been persuaded to take the War De-
partments view of military training,
but they are minority. 1t has been
contended by most of the others that
when boy graduates from high school
he should go ahead with his college
education because the one-year inter-
ruption gets him out of the habit OF
concentration on studies and even may
require refresher courses to recover
ground in some of the interrupted
studies.
The Army has not considered a boy
OF % or "a unfit for training. In fact,
during the war this was considered 4
desirable age bracket for making nom
commissioned and commissioned officers.
So, If the proposal were to permit boys
to take the year of training any time
between l8 and "a, some who were not
going to college could take the year
early whereas others could take 1t after
their college courses.
The President repeats in his message
to Congress the same illogical arguments
that the Army chiefs have made before.
He says:
The argument has been made that
compulsory training violates traditional
American concepts of liberty and de-
mocracy and even that it would en-.
danger our system Of government by
creating powerful military caste. The
purpose of the program, however, is Just
the contrary"
A System OF Teaching.
Mr.. Truman may not know it but no
militarist ever conceded a militaristic
purpose. The development of military
caste cannot be prevented just by stating
that there isn't any intention to develop
one. Militarism is a state of mind and
system of teaching which can easily
be foisted on the youth of America as It
was on the youth of Germany. If BOYS
are taken at an impressionistic age and
taught the latest methods of killing, it
is not likely that their professional
officers will fail to tell them how to hate
and how to bayonet their potential en-
emies-as was done during the war by
Voluminous literature called "indoc.
trination."
THE objective" says the President,
"is not to train professional soldiers.
1t is to train citizens, so that If and
when the Congress should declare it
necessary for them to become soldiers,
they could do so more quickly and more
efficiently
1t is difficult to see the Presidents
distinction and it would have been better
to acknowledge that the purpose is to
train soldiers and make the best soldiers
America can produce. But this can be
done as well with boys of much more
mature age and with system of civilian
supervision to avoid militaristic teach
ings than by intrusting the task to the
military departments.
Hint Of Militarism.
A hint of the militarism that turks
In the proposal is to be found in the
. following paragraph of the President 4
message:
"Unoer the plan which propose, pro-
visions should be made within the armed
services to help trainees improve their
educational status
Presumably under such a plan the
Army would be hiring teachers away
from the colleges and high schools and
this would mean an entire educational
system overlapping the civilian educa-
tional system. The President adds:
THE period of training could we'll be
used to develop in our young mer
the ideals of responsible American citi.
zenship."
This is large order. Not a single
textbook the Army got out during ths
war on this subject was free from eriti.
cism, because opinions differ on what
constitute ideals" The President ad.
mits, moreover, that the emphasis isn't
going to be on mere drilling" any
longer or on calisthenics, but ION fhs