In contrast, what we call Democracy makes its mistakes openly for all to see and endeavor to correct. Democracy, to us, means complete personal liberty, the right to live, work and play how, when and where one chooses, in open competition, and is maintained by a process of checks and balances or trial and error. We who live in this atmosphere of free enterprise, take these things for granted, while treason catches us off guard. Until we recognize this, we will continue to be at the mercy of organized political traitors both foreign and domestic. We can no longer afford to assume a casual attitude, even though history reveals that the Communism of Stalin, like other world shaking movements in the past, if given sufficient time, will fall of its own weight.
“Well,” you may ask: “If Communism is going to fall anyway, (or be pushed), why bother to do anything about it now?” The answer is simple. We must do something about it now because generations, even centuries, may elapse before it collapses without help other than human intervention. In the meantime, what will happen to us and to our children? Do we realize the long period of humiliation and degradation, with increasing controls by the Communists, that this means?
War, a global holocaust, in the not too distant future seems a much more likely turn of events. We know that Russia is expanding and improving her military force, including long range submarines and airplanes as well as ultra-destructive weapons. She has more planes than the United States and other democracies put together. We are told that Russia is making A bombs and has already had at least one atomic explosion behind the Iron Curtain. The H bomb is a logical sequel. She is capable, we understand, of delivering a surprise atomic attack against any part of the United States, while we have no sure defense against such an attack. Her submarine fleet rapidly is being patterned after Germany’s and this, with her other combat ships will make her the third greatest Naval Power. She has an army of two and one-half million uniformed troops and thousands of undercover agents to act as spies or scouts. We know that she is on a complete war footing, just as England was during the latter days of World War II and as we made an attempt to be.
This is grave food for thought. If our most responsible leaders are assured that Russia is intending to attack us within a short time, then should we not prepare and attack first, trying with the initial blow, so to paralyze the enemy that she will be unable to retaliate. This would be a terrible decision to have to make, and we may not have the chance, but we must give it serious thought.
As long as Russia feels that she is winning the cold war, however, she would be a fool to start a hot one she might lose. I do not believe that she would even let herself be goaded into it. When she is ready to strike, she will strike, of that we may be sure. It may be possible that the men in the Kremlin are hesitant about upsetting their present position, fearing counter-revolution at home and abroad. Perhaps the mighty armada is for propaganda purposes and to hold the Red Empire together. If this is so, we must never relax our own efforts behind the Iron Curtains everywhere in order to enlist the support of the unhappy 90 per cent of the enslaved people, without whose help we cannot hope to defeat the Soviet Union. Our most powerful secret weapon is not the A or the H bomb, but this same overwhelming majority of victims who fought and won a revolution only to find that they had been sold down the river at the moment of their victory.
These terrorized victims in every country are our most powerful potential allies, and we must do all in our power to make them understand that we are in sympathy with them—with their hopes and prayers for liberation—and that the only thing we reject is Communist despotism. All peoples who are denied the basic freedoms of speech, press, religion, assembly—immediately become enormous whispering galleries. There is greater “lure” in suppressed facts and ideas than there is in political propaganda. Even the threat of death will not keep people from reading forbidden material when they are hungry for news from those who may be sympathetic to their plight. But all this would take well-trained counter espionage, and it would cost money.
It would make sense to me if, first of all, we saw to it that our homeland was protected—but not by an armed camp or maintained by a disproportionate amount of military might that would hamstring our economy or deprive us of too many of our liberties. Our military forces should be trained and equipped to provide a reasonable degree of military security for the United States. Then, bring about this same type of coordination in Canada and the Latin American countries, thereby creating a modicum of safety throughout the Western Hemisphere.
In doing the above, we’d be licked before we started unless we made assurance doubly sure that we, the people, knew beyond all possibility of doubt, what was going on and why. Once we are possessed of complete understanding, and support the purpose for which we may be called upon to make the greatest sacrifices of our lives—even including our lives if need be—our objectives will thus be constantly in view. We know this would require a rebirth or a resurgence of courageous leadership, honesty and integrity—and an old fashioned “patriotism” too long lacking in our leaders. But are not these qualities still inherent within us? They were, certainly, until clever and sinister propaganda infiltrated our very marrow.
To go a step further. We know that we cannot stop with our own Western Hemisphere. Our thinking and our responsibility is now global. There’s “no hidin’ place” anywhere. Therefore we must improve our position, militarily, economically and psychologically throughout Europe and Asia by helping nations and peoples there to help themselves to keep their few remaining freedoms. Of course we have to protect certain sea and air routes to and from our best sources of raw materials.
To me, it is sheer nonsense to give, indiscriminately, whether it be money or military aid, without stipulating that we get something for it. To do otherwise is contrary to individual human nature, and yet as a nation, we have given billions in money and material—not to mention thousands of lives in Korea—without demanding anything in return. To keep on throwing good money, things and men into the hopper will bring no permanent relief, nor will it accomplish any outright objective.