The Nome nugget., 1949-12-21
ARE WE TOO BUSY?


 We Americans are busy people, We've been busy for long time It's in traditions And it's in our blood. This urge to be up and at t-ths itch to get things done has had a lot to do with the spectacular accomplish ments of this free nation Because appetite for compshing has always been sharp. and because Amer ica has drowned anything that would dull initiative and independent action we are today the richest the freest, the choicest land on earth.
 May it always be So However, am sometimes con- cerned deeply about success lest preoccupaton with the doing and achieving and living of all this cess might be making blind to the 'wherefore of it all Granted that the majority of Americans recognize freedom of individual opportunity the big factor that has made this way of life of possible just what doing about it? Are doing what to pre- serve it?
 That in the idiom of the day. the $64-queston! It is plain day that America go, the next genera ton just where Americas citizens want America to go Will 1t be toward socialism and economic slavery, the road to totaariansm and loss of all freedoms guaran eed in the Constitution and lower standard of living? Or will be in the direction of higher standards of living greater personal liberty and individual op- pOrtunity?
 suspect it will take than just wishing, to follow the latter route toward greater American des- tiny As citizens we'd better get busy As to civic duty and responsibility, have great traditions which we afford to throw overheard. Deep in the truth that led the founding of this nation lies that principle that each citizen has duty to do his part We depend upon citizen militia We have ruling class but elect leaders from the citizenry The electorate itself is charged with responsibility
 Yet, my fellow Americans, we slow to shoulder up to places at the Whee-When 1t comes to doing what to help preserve freedom of enterprise. Everybody is for it. Oh, Gwen Henry Wallace has claimed respect for free enerprse But what counts is performance What have you done to stop the march of bureaucracy, the growth of big government for example
 In the struggle of American way of life to survive against all sorts of encroaching 'isms" that would weaken destroy it, most Americans will have no trouble deciding which side they must take Then hav- ing taken sides will they quit worrying about it? There folks that nothing at all they do about it. Such thing going out to vote for the right man. serving in public capacity, would be quite out of order. What pity!
 America never won struggle that way. Three times this nation has taken to protect herself and other countries against ideas that would enslavement Each time we have emerged triumphant having tried and hoped to make the idea of democracy of per nanence in the world. We stopped being busy long enough to go to the side of freedom It not easy, either time.
 All right. Here are, busy again. There's shoot ing war; and nobody wants But we're just little too busy to that it's up to to have America stay free From without and within ideas being presen- ted that are different from those basic principles upon which opr nation founded The very halls of Con-