Evening star., 1951-04-12
Hope and Reality

any one listening TO the PRESIDENT last night
must have come away with the conviction that
he Is utterly sincere in his hope to avoid general
war in Asia. But as the speech is read more
carefully, another conviction forms-the convic-
tion that the hope has little relation to reality
that MIR. Truman has no real plan for the attain
ment of his goal.
The President quoted from two secret intelli-
gence reports One revealed that the Communists
regarded the attack on South Korea as the first
step toward liberation of Asia And when the
Communists speak of liberation, Mr.. Truman said
they mean conquest. The second report was even
more ominous. It set out statement by Com
munist officer to his men. Here is what the
officer said: "In order to successfully undertake
the long awaited world revolution, we must first
unity Asia. Java, Indo-China, Malaga, india
Tibet Thailand, Philippines and japan are our
ultimate targets. The United States is the only
obstacle on our road for the liberation of all
countries in Southeast Asia In other words, we
must unity the people of Asia and crush the
United States
Does Mr.. Truman believe that these reports
accurately reflect the Communist aims in Asia?
Presumably so, for otherwise he would not have
put them before the American people. But If he
does believe them. if he believes that the real
objective of the Communists is the conquest OF
Asia and the destruction of the United States,
then he believes what General Macarthur be-
lieves, and what the general has been saying ever
since the fighting began.
In the light of these Communist detectives
what justification is there for the hope that our
enemies will agree to any settlement in Korea
that will bring peace and an end to aggression
in Asia? Is it not more reasonable to believe that
General Macarthur is right-that the Commu-
nists have launched their bid for world domina-
Is Ae;o &I,o&{ r,;IJ iy,f0
decent settlement in which we can have the
slightest confidence, and that we have no rational
choice except to take up the challenge and meet
force with superior force? No doubt 1t was done
unwittingly, but Mr.. Truman has made himself
a persuasive witness in support of the Mac
Arthur thesis.
MIR. Truman'S plan, If he can be said to have
a plan was summed up in this paragraph: "If
the Communist authorities realize that they can
not defeat us in Korea, if they realize it would be
foolhardy to widen the conflict beyond Korea,
then they may recognize the folly of continuing
their aggression. A peaceful settlement may
then be possible"
eff" this and may" thati something may
turn-up strategy In which the wish Is father to-
the thought! What kind of basis is that for
the conduct of bloody, bitter war which has
cost the United States nearly $4,000 casualties
and which will cost us thousands more? Is it
right to send men out to fight and die in a war
which depends for its objective on nothing more
than a fiimsy hope that somehow the Commu-
nists, who have betrayed every promise that they
have ever made, will be induced to sit down and
make trustworthy settlement forsaking all of
their self-proclaimed ambitions?
Hope may spring eternaly, but it does not
win wars The more one weighs the Presidents
remarks, the stronger becomes the conviction that
we are simply deluding ourselves If we believe
that the war in Korea can be won and peace
restored to Asia by anything less than the maxi
mum effort of which we are capable.