Evening star., 1950-12-07
Worse Than Pearl Horbor

Nine years ago today, when the Japanese
struck at Pearl Harbor, this country was better
prepared for it's ordeal than it is now.
We were not necessarily better prepared in a
strictly military sense. In some respects our
rearmament program was more advanced but
in terms of air power and naval power, consider
ing the damage done to the Pacific fleet, we were
woefully unready to wage war against Japan
that boasted a measure of military power far
exceeding anything face in the Pacific today.
Pearl Harbor, however, was by no means an
unmitigated disaster. Prior to December Z, 1941,
this country was engaged in much the same kind
of debate that is under way today. But Pearl
Harbor resolved the doubts and ended the argu-
mentS. From that time on we knew what had to
be done, and we were able to apply ourselves to
the job in hand with Sngeness of purpose and
a measure of dedication which brought the
eventual victory.
There is little of that clarity of purpose, that
understanding and acceptance of the fact of war,
in this country today. In Korea, we have suffered
a military defeat of greater magnitude than
Pearl Harbor The attack by the Chinese Com
munists on our troops, forming the puk of a
United Nations army, is as much an act of war
as was the Japanese assault on Pearl Harbor.
But we have not been willing to look this fact
in the face
Our main national emphasis is not being
placed on preparation to fight the war that has
already begun. There is nothing in this country
today which even approaches the effort that was
set under way on the day after Pearl Harbor.
The Chinese continue, with impunity, to attack
our forces from what General Macarthur calls
their sanctuary in Manchuria, and our casualties
mount by the thousands. But there is not, as
yet, any official recognition of the fact that we
are at war with China.
There a
insistence of our allies and in our own interests
we are striving to avoid that last step which
would plunge us into full-Scale war with China
in theater which might absorb all our energies
for years to come. There is great deal to be
said for this policy. But it is also policy which
has its disadvantages, and we cannot afford to
ignore them.
The alternative to open war with China has
to be what we speak of as settlement with the
Chinese. And it is at this point that our main
difficulty arises
AS long as our official policy is one of seeking
settlement it will not be possible to bring into
play the effort that this country is capable OF
making to prepare for war. The situation Is one
in which hope, confusion, and the dread of war
combine to cramp our energies and paralyze our
will. After Pearl Harbor we knew what had to
be done and we did it, Today our national scene
is one that borders chaos. 1t is situation in
winch conflicting advice, conflicting demands,
and conflicting opinions operate to keep us mark
ing time while events in Korea pursue their
relentless course.
There is another danger in this situation
which should be recognized. 1t may be possible
to arrive at some kind of settlement with China
Thirteen members of the U. N. have already
appealed to the Chinese to halt their attack at
the 38th Parallel, and there is a chance that
the Chinese may do this. But we should not
fall into the error of thinking that this would be
settlement in any realgense of the term In
the short run, it might eXtricate us from an un-
tenable military position at the price of con-
doning and rewarding Chinas aggression, with
all that this would entail in the way of lost
prestige for the U. NJ and for this country.
Actually, however, it would settle little or
nothing. Our real conflict, our real clash of
interests springs from our failure, after nearly
five years of effort, to find any basis for decent
and tolerable living arrangement with the Rus
slams. 1t Is the military power of Russia, not
that ef the Chinese Communists, which threatens
our survival as nation, and this is something
which we should never forget. Conceivably we
may reach settlement in Korea But If we
should permit that to lull us into thinking that
we have really Settled" anything and least Of
all that we have settled our differences with
Russia, we would only be taking one more step
down that road of self -delusion which leads to
catastrophe.