The Omaha guide., 1946-01-12
Freedom has No butts
THAI THEY MIGHT WALK TOGETHER

The wonder Of 1915 was that so much could hap
pen in so few months. Staggering head lines be-
came commonplace. There was the death of Presi-
dent Roosevelt; the war ended; the United Nations
Organization became a hopeful fact; and, most cat
aclysmic of all, was the thunderOus dawn of the at
Omic age. These were but q few of the headlines.
The events they portray have left a turbulence in
the human mind such as has never been experienced
before. That turbulence is shaking the postwar
world to its very foundations. The peace and
plenty which so many had hoped for when the guns
fell silent, Isl nowhere to be found. Whether it will
materialize in the reasonably near future depends
upon the fOrtitude and common sense OF millions.
An indication of the temper of the times is evil
dent in the words of one veteran, a college graduate
who lost a leg at Ell Alamein: 'There is evidence a
mOng us of a growing distaste for %orations. We Will
tend to Judge parties and proposals by results, not
by prOtestations of high purpose. We know free
dom doesn't mean much without grOcer1es-how
can a man enjoy free speech on an empty stomach
Appealing as these words sound on the surface,
they reveal the terrible weakness IN thought that
today threatens the future of the American repub-
lie and he hope OF democratic government through
out the world more seriously than any dictator or
combination of dictators ever has. First, this vet
eran-and his reasoning is paralleled by millions OF
civilians-is assuming that freedom is somehow to
blame If there is a grocery shortage. Second. he
infers that a little less freedom can result in a few
more groceries. Third, he makes the potentially
fatal blunder of inviting a strong man or group to
take dcIlOn, III Cn6 same DT0aUu, nlllO you, Ildt he
questions the validity of freedom unless it is ac-
cOmpanied by a three-decker sandwich. This bread
and butter philosophy leaves the way wide open for
the demagogue to step in with a hatful Of promises
impossible promises that will result in less free
dem and fewer, not more, groceries.
General Carl A. Spaatz, former Commanding
General of the United States Strategical and Tact
ical Air Forces in the Atlantic and Pacific Thea
tiers, says: Disseminated youth makes for troubled
. waters in which the Inscriptions politician loves
to fish. When the Man on a White Horse comes
forward in such a situation, things begin to happen,
as they happened in Germany. Hitler rose to pow
er on the back of YOUTH
The most important issue before the American
people today is how to get the price tag off free
dom. In other words, freedom, our form Of gov
eminent. our religious beliefs, should not be con
sldered in the same breath with material fortunes.
Inc former are things Of the spirit that must sur
we III lean years as well as years of plenty. The
latter, in spite Of our best efforts. will f~luctuate.
Inc old saying Of shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves in
three generations used to pretty. well express the
americans philosophic approach to the ups and
downs of economic life.
Undoubtedly as time goes on, greater protection
against the hazards OF poverty and illness can be
eVoNed. Greta steps have already been taken in
thls direction. The United States is so far ahead of
the rest OF the world in the achievement nf human