Evening star., 1950-07-06
Are We Doing Enough?

al View VI tIle hOT6au CTlSlS ana the grave
new tension it has created throughout the world,
there can be no doubt that our state of prepared
ness needs to be studied and acted upon with
the utmost care, speed and foresight The prime
factor to be reckoned with-and undoubtedly our
defense authorities are reckoning with its the
one involving the question of whether or not the
Russians are getting ready to move in way that
could lead to general war
The mere fact that we are faced with that
question, coupled with the fact that we cannot
be sure OF the answer, is enough in itself to
demonstrate how imperative our need is to ask
ourselveS-both as people and as a Government
whether we are doing all the things that ought
to be done, and whether we are doing them as
fast as we should, to cope with the ominous
possibilities implicit in the present explosive
situation. Perhaps we are, but there is more
than a little reason for serious misgiving on
that score, case in point being the highly
dubious level Of our aircraft production.
Certainly, the world right now is as full of
danger as in the days of Hitler. On every side
OF us there is evidence of a gathering storm,
and although the storm itself may not break,
although the clouds may pass, although the
crisis may be kept within bounds and brought
to an end before it causes global explosion,
the United States would be suicidally foolhardy
If it failed at this stage to do everything
necessary, as speedily as possible, to prepare for
the worst. Korea has put our own and all other
free nations on notice. 1t is an alarm bell
warning us that this is no time to drag our feet
in mood of dreamy wishfulness.
In the circumstances, we must deal without
delay with certain hard questions and we must
do our best to arrive at the right answers. For
example, can we afford to conduct business as
usual or should we have at least a limited
mobilization of our industrial capacity? Should
we or should we not take immediate action for
marked increase in our output of planes, naval
equipment, guns, tanks etc.? Is there a need,
or isn't there for legislative preparedness in the
field of economic controls? With the news from
Korea being anything but reassuring, and with
some Pentagon sources suggesting that we may
have to commit as many as six divisions of
troops there, how can we adhere to our present
program and still have sufficient military
manpower to fight the hot war we are fighting
in Asia and to safeguard our security elsewhere?
These are but sampling of the many
difficult and grave questions now confronting
our Nation Most of us-being average citizens
without access to the kind of restricted informa-
tion that is needed for sound evauation of
the immediate world situation and our state of
preparedness-are not equipped to supply the
precise answers That is the job of the President,
the State Department, our military establishment
and other key agencies working together with
Congress. The decisions must be made at that
level. The leadership must come from there.
Possibly, as of today the situation does not
require that we do anything more than what
we are doing. The trend of events, however,
suggests otherwise At any rate, considered in
relation to the dark nature of the news our
present program has all the earmarks of being
inadequate. If that is so, then the President
ought to move at once to put the Nation
into higher gear-as high as necessary. The
American people can be counted upon to give
full support to every action that is necessary
in this time of crisis