Evening star., 1947-01-15

new laws, even before they have
taken shape, as compulsory, "puni-
tive" and drastic" And there was
sounded again the silly prediction
that any s"extreme measures" will
cause the CIO unions to 60 Com
.inunist.
This is just the beginning. BY the
time hearings on these bills are
held the act will have reached its
climax and q frightfm clamor will
arise to impress the unthinking
that labor is being "crucif1ed," "
that it is being deprived of its
"hard-won rights; that it has been
stabbed in the back" that there is
q "monstrous conspiracy" to "de-
stroy the unions; that what is pro-
posed is not only compulsory, :"
punitive" and drastic" but "un-
American"
A very costly and efficient public
ity machine will be devoted to this
denunciatory campaign. There will
be little or no argument; it will be
almost altogether a defense by de-
nunciation, an effort to convince by
noise.
Few Persons Seen Deceived.
OF course, the whole business is so
transparent that it is difficult to see
how any intelligent person can take
it seriously or how any sincere mon
can participate in it. Obviously in
spired by the labor bosses, whose
primary interest is to hold on to
their power and keep their jobs,
and supported by men in public or
political life who for one reason or
another have contracted labor po-
litical alliances, 1t is not likely this
big denunciation act will deceive
many persons-certainly none suff1-
ciently informed to know the truth.
For it seems perfectly clear that
any legislation not violently op-
posed by the labor politicians, in
and out of the unions, will not meet
the urgent needs of the day.
For example. as Donald Richberg
recently pointed out, 1t will take a
compulsory" law to compel the
labor bullies to stop attempting, at
regular intervals, to freeze or starve
the people of the United States into
submitting to their arbitrary de-
mands. 1t will take drastic" law
to end the power of few thousand
transportation workers to shut down
the industries and tmperil the health
of a great city, in the way the tug
boat men and teamsters paralyzed
New York. And 1t will take a "puni-
tive" law to make it impossible again
for a conspiracy of public utility
employees to wage civil war for
private gain in cities like Pittsburgh,
Philadelphia and Washington, by
cutting off electric power and light,
or local transportation or telephone
service, which are essential to the
public welfare and safety.
Drastic Laws Urged as Needed.
Certainly, it will take "compul-
sory," punitive" and drastic" laws
to prevent and punish all the
outrageous uses of organized private
force by which labor unions have
made local, State and Federal gov
ernments impotent to preserve law
and order, to. protect the people
from needless and intolerable injury
or even to carry on the normal and
necessary operations of the Gov
ernment itself.
If compulsory" punitive and
drastic" laws are necessary to
achieve these objectives, then that
Is what they voted for on Novem-
Der 5. There is extremely little
doubt about that in the minds of a
majority of Congress and very little
question that despite the big de-
nunciation act the majority will pass
a bill that adequately meets public
sentiment on this vital issue.
The fact is that the big denuncia-
ton act, in all probability, will dem
onstrate again the essential weak
ness of these labor professionals
and their supporting groups.
Last year, in both the primaries
and general election, they sustained
a series of crushing defeats which
showed their claims to great voting
strength in the Nation to be without
foundation. After the threats in
which the CIO and its PAC had
INDUCED, the proof of its impotence
was amazing.
They made an awful lot Of noise
but they had very few votes. 1t seems
likely a similar experience awaits
the labor bosses in this session of
Congress. They will put on their
act, but an adequate bill as finally
decided upon by the Republican