Evening star., 1952-07-09
The Effect of These
Policies on Freedom
In the United States

on the United States. it is no
news to you that the Federal
and local governments are
spending about IS per cent Of
the national income. That is
more than any nation can bear.
! have long had great SYM,
pathy for the humble decimal
point. He has to Jump three
zeros every little while. He had
to make three jumps to punc-
tuate our present deficit. No.
We do not need to look far
to find the blazing proof IN our
midst that we cannot carry this
economic burden.
II you think these policies are
not producing an imitation which
is wrecking American lives. just
recall but q few things: Already
after this six years of these
Washington policies the Ameri-
can worker must have an an
nual income of $4,500 today to
live as well as he did on $4,000
six years ago. II this does not
convince you, look about you at
the necessary round of wage in
creaseS going on today which
means you can buy less with
your money tomorrow. ii.
Look around you and you will
see millions who have earned
pensions or saved to protect
their old age being reduced to
the tragedy of want.
Look still further and you will
find not only imitation but that
the intolerable taxes stifie initi-
ative and are driving millions
of our people to become more
and more dependent upon the
Government.
Look again and you viii find
this tax-and-spend used as q
vehicle to mix collectiyism into
American life.
You can look even more deep
". No government can spend
such sums of money and not
corrupt the spenders. And no
government can levy such taxes
without breeding a horde Of tax
dodgers and bribers.
Do you want to go on with
this spending, imitation and COR
ruption?
If free men are to survive in
America, we must reduce spend
ing and taxes. It is true we can
make some cuts in spending by
stopping waste, corruption and
private privilege. But the total
2of all such reductions would not
even reduce the prospective
budget deficit by one-half. To
say nothing of stopping imitation
or reducing taxes.
It is not enough Just to say
we will balance the budget and
reduce taxes. Or to say we will
do it some years hence. We
must face the grim reality Of
how and where to do it now.
The reality is that we cannot
ever balance the budget and re-
duce taxes except by cutting
into this military and foreign
spending.
To find this how and where.
and still do our part In the
world, we must take a new look
into these military policies.
The administration and the
Pentagon have been building up
four gigantic military programs.
First, Sthey insist upon huge
ground armies; second. naval
forces; third, air forces: and
fourth, munitions and cash sub
sides to other nations. And
now they propose to add huge
numbers to these armies by
compulsory universal military
service. All. this STEP -by-step
building of great ground armies
is the road to militarism. That
is at its base a threat to all
freedoms. That has brought
ruin to freedom ever since
Rome. That wrecked Germany
and Japan.
Moreover, the military
strength Of America does not lie
today in great ground armies.
How many mistakes do we
have to make before we learn
that our genius lies in the in
vention, production and opera
ton of great weapons? Our fu-
ture is in great weapons, not In
bayonets. And we, can furnish
these great weapons to nations
who have the viii to defend
themselves.
Lest you think the Pentagon
is not determined on bayonets.
] may mention their bulletin Of
February l of this year which I
quote. They say:
"The individual rifleman is
the most effective and the most
essential weapon against the
enemy. All other services exist
to support the Infantry soldier"
The Alternative
All Americans wish to see
civilization. preserved In West.
ern Europe.
But We must recognize their
hack of viii in preparedness.
which might have been . de-
terrent to Communist agrees.
sion. Therefore. we must de-
termine what real deterrent
- aau ~