Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1946-12-13
What's
New?
By
Edwdrd Duck

bered as the year or the
fifteen cent hot dog and the
five dollar necktie.
A dozen years ago we
thought it scandalous that
gangsters were wearing ex-
pensive silk shirts and driving
sporty convertible roadsters.
Now people are having a hard
time buying a plain white
shirt once every six months.
Merrily we roll along.
Everyone's getting clipped, ex-
cept those who are doing the
clipping. People are begging
for the opportunity of paying
$4,000 for a home that wasn't
worth more than $4,000 when
it was built, ten years ago.
While quality drops, costs
rise. We didn't need price
control, they repeated, but
when price control was wreck
ed, then abandoned complete
ly, the vultures swooped down
on their prey, meaning us.
WE AGREE
Ladies and gentlemen: We
may discuss the coal strike
until we are blue in the face;
we may jump to our feet when
a disbarred Clyde, Ohio take
note) attorney screams about
the communist menace; we
may argue or hours on end
about small men like Truman
and screwWballs like Ramey;
but on one subject we are all
agreed prices are out
rageous.
If the American people were
not supinely stupid concern
ing economic truth, we could
hope for a complete answer to
the most important of all
problems at hand, that of bal
ancing prices and wages.
We would do well, after
Christmas, to put on our
thinking caps, insist upon the
various leaders of labor getting
together for once in their life
time, and agreeing to COOP
crate in demanding Congress
to roll back prices so that the
American dollar would have
reasonable purchasing power.
An ultimatum should be
issued, stating that 1t was Con-
gress which got us into this
mess and demanding that Con-
gress get us out.
When FDR took office the
situation called for drastic
moves. The moves were made
and the situation took on a
different hue in a compara-
lively short time. We certainly
can expect nothing wondrous
from Little Harry Truman at
this time or at any time in the
future, and FDR is no longer
around to save us.
Initiation is not around the
corner, ii is here. And 1t will
continue to become worse un-
less something is done about
it.
FACTS
We are not talking ourselves
into a depression, as some
people would have us believe.
We are facing facts. Dire,
dreadful facts. Facts some of
us have forgotten, like evic-
tions, breadlines, free soup,
charity from neighbors, i'll
clothed, undernourished fami-
lies, poverty and degradation
of mind and body.
Depression surely will fol-
low initiation. War will Just
as surely follow depression.
The boys who dreamed of
this and that (Which they
never have received and GER
tainly shall not receive) will
be most unhappy to receive
greetings" again for quite
some time. Joe Stain is as
safe as If he were in his
mothers arms. The morale of
the population is at a mighty
low ebb, and rightly so.
Something must be done.
The next bonus marchers"
will not be a bunch of old
men, because the march will
undoubtedly take place before
the boys have aged more than
an extra couple of years. 1t
will take more than a water
hose to shoe them away this
time.
America had something like
$50 billion dollars to spend
on the war, which is rather
lavish spending in anyone's
game. But instead of spending
a few million to reward the
boys who did the fighting;
instead of presenting a sincere,
adequate housing program; in
stead of providing jobs at de-
cent wages in relation to
prices, American politicians
and businessmen have Joined
hands in a rat-race with bread
lines for all as the goal.
The time is over-ripe for
the leaders of all unions to
think seriously about prevent
ing the plan of Wall Street
from succeeding. If the unions
- a