Detroit evening times., 1945-11-06
BEHIND
The NEWS
BY Paul
MaIlon

CIcdSHnBly the peIpleAltleS VI
human existence.
A drinking clique of high
Schoolers in Washington has
reached the front pages with
eScapades which rather indicate
that they are in control and
not to be trifled with.
A gang of Halloween maraud-
ers worked through my neigh
borhood with unusual zeal for
destruction and when accosted
by the citizens of my commun-
ity, asserted their rights TO
destroy on Halloween; in fact
the citizens melted away and
the vandals were rather invited
to maintain their rights.
They won. They kept their
soap.
THE CITIZENS whose prop
l. erty had been damaged re-
tired TO their houses. obviously
chastened by these youngsters
with rights.
The run of news in your pa
per and mine shows the same
tendency of domination by
youth over teachers, parents
and even police authorities.
Why is this? In my younger
days l saw kids carving their
initials in the wrong places,
generally in washrooms. They
put obscene words there. Now
they write these in soap on
your front screen. Also what
is wholly different, they assert
their right to do it. Not only
that, but they get that right.
In our community they get
1t now. l will admit our COM
munity is about as badly run
as any in the world. We seem
really to need Russian domina-
tion and Communism or Fas-
ciSm.
WHEN l see morons, such as
w these children are, using
hates and otherwise escaping
common punishment for mis-
deeds; rising above decency to
impose their destructive will
upon adults, indeed asserting
and getting a right to do So
/ begin to wonder, as you all
have, confronted in one way or
another with the same circum-
stances.
wrote a book on this subject,
THE Ease Era" which is selling
like new notion eagerly wanted
and graSped by the people. 1t
counseled the democratic way of
handling these modern offenseS
against society, in contradiStinc-
tion TO what might be called the
Mrs. Roosevelt way. What L
have TO say now is a Suffix or
addendum TO that book.
Frankly / am wondering if
appeals to reason are possible;
if the democratic way will suf-
flee, whether we need a youth
draft and domination to make
people believe, as you all do
when you see injustice imposed
upon you.
I KNOW that what is wrong is
Il that evil merely has gotten
the upper hand. Delusions have
seized righteousness. Common
honesty has lost its grip. So
what? Turn us over TO a die
tator? Not by any concepts of
insane imagination.
The thing TO do is to assert
decency and maintain il. Democ-
racy does not allow that moronS
shall rule. 1t is all question
of influence. Hitler made his
youth believe service to the
state was their only aim, and
he kept them that way.
We have enormously allowed
our youngsters to believe evil
influence is democracy, that
crooks, sexual impulses, selfish
interests, are justifiable-be-
cause you should be under
standing" as Mrs. r. has said.
We let those influences run our
children and ourselves.
This is crises. 1t is time to
assert good. Adults must not
melt away in the face of childish
assertions of influence. If that
kind of people run your COM
munity, get yourself an organi-
zation of decent citizens.
THE trouble is not with de-
Il mocracy, but with the fact
that decency is not working,
does not impose its will, is not
asSertive and belligerent, but is
inclined TO retire in the face of
danger. You must fight for right,
or YOU will never get it.
There must be no OF h er
thought in your imagination. Do
not permit schemerS to use your
likes and dislikes. Think only of
your own ultimate welfare. If
you confront a force of evil,
know that righteousness is
stronger.
This Is a new world, know
your children. know your schools,
know the people about you.
Never permit impositions upon
your intelligence by any one. All
that is needed is for the decent
people to arise and assert them
selves.
Always there wili-be two in
fluences IN the world, the influ-
ence for good and for evil. This
is not only Christian doctrine; il
is apparent. The forces of good
shall not submit TO the forces of
OWL Don't faka n Won aro an