Milford chronicle., 1949-08-12

standard OF living, ana VIII nS llho II! Ou1
idea Of what civilization is, in other words,
is not shared by everyone else.
5000
THAT WICKED PROFIT MOTIVE
The present practical confiscation of pro-
fits stops the building of new capital, inter-
est in profits is killed, and wages, interest
and dividends are knocked away. Actually,
not production but production costs, are re-
warded. The businessman is interested TO
raise not lower costs in order to make the
net taxable revenue small, not large. Social |
list planning always shows its worst failures,
not in production figures, but in the price
level. The enterpriser, exchanging profits
for security, in the form of fixed prices and
subsidies, stops caring about costs. A rigid
economy follows, in regard to all the ele-
ments of production, which shows lnelastl-
city in responding to consumers shifts. MOI
one can accuse Socialists of the wicked profit
motive. They genuinely desire the welfare
of the masses. But this righteousness re-
garding their own motives induces a pecu-
liarly irritating smugness, binding them to
the fact that noble bureaucratic costs can
greatly exceed wicked profits and that the
welfare Of the masses has to demonstrate it.
self by facts, not theories. We are being
urged to follow much the same path that
Britain has chosen. A determined campaign
is on to nationalize industry, as in the case
of light and power. An equally determined
campaign would have us accept a compul-
sorry health insurance scheme that differs
only in detail from England's enormously
costly experiment in this field. The advocates
of cradle-to-the-grave~ Security-at cost
which no one can eStimate-are beating the
drums throughout the land. And, in spite
of the tremendous burden of taxation that
SVNTH1 ka0c h00V
made to cut the cost of government. Every
socialist or communist proposal is based
on the appealing fiction that by eliminating
profit we will advance the welfare of the
masses. Yet, in every case, precisely the
opposite result has been achieved It is not
an accident that our high wages and high
living standards have been gained under the
profit system. The system has its faults
but socialism, as the record proves, has in
tinitely more and some of them are beyond
correction.
ONLY A STEP
A distinct departure in the Federal power
policy is embodied in a report of the Senate
Committee on Appropriations. The report
disapproved proposed appropriations for
constructing government power facilities in
four parts of the country. 1t did this on the
and would achieve the same results, without
waSteful duplication of facilities, under con-
tracts with the government These contracts
would be patterned after time-tested con-
tract which exists between the Southwestern
Power Administration and Texas utility
The contract in question is naturally techni-
cal in its wording. It's basic principles, how
ever, can be simply described. First of all,
it permits the Federal plants to carry out
the mandate of Congress-, and to serve their
preference customers" without duplicating
existing power lines. Second, it permits the
private company to develop its service area
without being constantly threatened by SUBJ
Sldlzed taX-eXempt government competition.
Thus, it stops the vicious cycle under which
the menace of unmeetable, Socialistic COM
petition alarms investors their alarm pre-
vents a company from raising the money it
needs to meet the growing demand in it's reg
ion, and finally, this situation is used as an
argument for putting the government deep
er into the power business at huge cost to
the general taxpayers. The Senate commit
tee has taken step in the right direction.
But, so far, it is only step. It's action seems
to have been received with hysterical hor-
rOr by those who want socalized power re-
gardless of the cost or the need or the justice
OF the matter. They are mobilizing all their
proposed appropriations - along with a
lengthy list of other measures whose whole
intent is to destroy private enterprise and
local authority in the electrical field The
public, which pays the bill, must understand
what is going on, because it will pay for il
in needless taxes.
NG0&&
NOW COMES THE RECESSION
Unfortunately, jobs are disappearing
Prices have come down. There seems to be
more difficulty right now than ever before
to bring about compromises between strik
ers and employers. Labor union bosses are
carrying on plans that an outsider might
think indicates enmity towards the Ameri
can industrial system. Just why the labor
bosses and industrial managers have to figh
their battles to a finish doesn't seem to make
sense. The federal government has enacted
labor laws for the adjustment of all differ
ences between employers and employees