Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1949-11-18
Big Business Denounced By Big Businessman

the so-called independents, he explained, are
automobile dealers or electric equipment
dealers who are controlled by GIN or GE or
similar giants an dare examples of complete
sugjection."
"The system Of concentrated power in rela-
lively few hands is inconsistent and opposed
to democratic obiectves," he added "Where
the way is closed and opportunities fade, the
individual becomes disgruntled and often bit
ter enough to accept even so alien an idea as
Communism, which he chooses as the lesser
of two evils The bigger the organization, the
less the opportunity for developing individual
initiative or giving the worthy chance .
the chances are at least thousand to one that
the potentially best man never had chance
because he never had the training or oppor-
tunity."
Contending that there is a deep moral
and spiritual difference between the respon-
sible president of an independent company
an dthe dependent manager of a subsidiary
factory" Quinn said, "the manager is not part
fthe community in which he lives because
his interest and attention is directed toward
officials in New York or elsewhere" Such
man, he said, cannot have the same interest
in the men who work in the plant HE oper-
ates according to rules made by others and
can hardly afford to be good human being,
which helps to explain the abuse of workers
and the rise of unions"
Discussing remedies, Quinn said it was not
enough to offer capital to small combanies-
because investment in many fields today
would be imprudent in view of the domination
by monster corporations. AS an example, he
cited the field of home appliances General
Motors, he said, could sell all of its home ap-
pliances, including Frigidaires, washers, and
ranges at cost until its competitors were wiped
out, without cutting its overall profits more
than two per cent, Quinn said many indepen-
dent producers were now going broke because
fthe prices at which GIN is offering such
products-a price which he suggested might
be heavily subsidized by profits from the
other activities of the big corporation.
The public is misinformed and uniformed
on the subject of monopoly, Quinn said, be-
cause the press takes the side of big business
from which it gets advertising He cited the
current treatment of the Arp case in the
newspapers as an example. THE attitude of
much of the press is in itself, he said "a blat-
ant manifestation of the evil effects of con-
centrated economic power"
Drastic legislation is the only remedy for
the situation, Quinn told the Celler Commit
tee, He recommended that all corporations
with assets of more than hundred million
dollars or found to be dominating an industry,
be required to take out federal charters limit
in gtheir activities if they engaged in more than
one line of business ,and strictly regulating
tnelr conduct In many other respects. They
would be offered the alternative of breaking
themselves up into smaller units voluntarily.
II, for one" Quinn concluded, want and
shall continue to work for relief from monster
cooperation dominatio and for the restoration
of our economy to honest freedom of oppor-
tunity and private enterprise for the greatest
number. To the extent that we fail in that best
cause, propose to accept the welfare state and
If unavoidable, eventual socialism, in prefer
~ fTCh RNrtxya
heve to be the real issue and the decision
which the voters will make if forced to it by
monsters left uncontrolled by any failure of
Congress to act"