Milford chronicle., 1952-08-01
A RIGHT AND A DUTY

The NOn-Partisan Retailers Nationwide
Get-Out-The-VOte Committee has come up
with a catchy and excellent slogan this year.
1t is "VOte AS You Please-But Please Vote" 4"
The coming election is of tremendous
lmpOrtance-it will determine the fateful
courses that this nation will take in domes-
tic and foreign policy. On both sides, the
candidates, their managers, and their par
tisans have promised driving, fighting cam
palgnS. Far-reaching and opposed philo-
Sophles OF government are the real stake in
this election. 1t will be a tragedy if the de-
cisiOn is made, as in the past, by a minority
of our people,
Over the centuries, rivers of blood have
been shed in the fight for the right of fran
chlse-the right to a secret ballot. For this
is the first and the last defense against tyr
amy. Without the right to vote as con-
science and mind dictates, men are slaves
the servants of ruthless masters whose DOW
ers know no limit.
We have that right-yet it is common
IN this country for but half or less of the
eligible voters to go to the polling booth on
election day. One vote doesn't matter, they
say. Yet bare handful of votes can deter
mine crucial cOnteStS-as recently as 1910
a U. 5. SeantOr was elected by a margin of
just 20 votes in the huge state of Texas. And
when the my vote doesn't matter" attitude
10 AAOAN W 4ILAII4OIIo VI pSOplC, we nave gov
ernment by the minority, and no one can
say that the will of the people is dominant.
Vote AS You Please-But Please Vote
%&ONS3
BIG BUSINESS AND BIG GOVERNMENT
Many people believe that this is a won.
derful period for business and especially
big business" The dollars are rolling in
in an endless golden stream, they reason
and about the only worry is how to dispose
of them.
If you hold this belief, the following
paragraph from a factual article in a publi
cation of the National City Bank of New
York should be of interest: "'Big business
now deVOtes major portion of its income
to the support of big government The
modern corporation has become an agency
to marshal men and money not only for thu
mass production of goods, but also for tn,
mass collection of taxes. Last year the 1OC
largest industrial organizations each paid al
average of $67O00,000 in Federal incom,
and excess profits taxes, and $42,OOO,OOO il
other Federal, state, local and foreign GOV
ernment taxes. Their total direct tax bill
of 100000 900 took 81 per cent of the bal
ance before taxes. Such taxes were at th
rate of about IA cents for every dollar O
sales. They amounted to nearly twO-third
OF total payrOlls, and to nearly four time
the dividends paid to shareholders"
The individual income taxpayer is in
similar position. More and more of his in
come goes to gOvernment-less and less q
it is his to spend and save and invest Econ
Omists have long believed that if a nation
economy is to be kept dynamic and progress
i've, not more than 25 per cent of the nations
income must be absorbed by taxes. Toda
about third of the national income goes t
government.
Can anyone doubt that government spenc
ing, the public debt, and taxation, togethe
constitute one of the most vital problem
we have ever faced as a people?