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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 15, 1945)
o o Side Glances Washington Merry-Go-Round EDITORIAL PAGE T "DBEW PEARSON J La Grande Evening Observer Frank Schlro, Publisher WEDNESDAY EVENING, AUGUST 15, 1945 Page Four Locked Out! p NATIONS p3 IXr ' I ' -..w ...V . V -. it MU Atoms and Men They are saying now that the power of the atomic bomb is so terrible that men will no longer dare to wage war. That would be comforting to believe. But they were saying the same thing about the bomber airplane only seven years ago. They probably made the same pre diction when gunpowder was first used in battle. The fact remains that no weapon, however terrible, has ever curbed war making. Andd some of the best human minds down through the centuries have devoted much of their talent and en ergy to creating more elaborate and efficient methods of bringing quick and widespread death to their brothers. Now the scientists of America, in a fantastic race with the scientists of iheir enemies, have perfected the most horrifying agent of death the world has ever known. In doing so they have probed another secret of the universe. They have taken the motivating en ergy of life upon this planet and, with out being able to explain it, have har nessed and used it. The explosion of the first atomic bomb was no more shattering than the announcement of its existence. The em ployment of atomic energy, surely one of the great scientific achievement of all time, promises incalculable changes in history and human life. Yet is man ready to be trusted with the fruit of his own scientific wisdom? His record to date is not good. Too often the great scientific leader has been followed by stupid men and vicious . men who have cheapened and pervert er the gift of his discoveries It might ' be better if men would devote their en ergies, for a few years to raising their moral and ethical stature to the point '' where they could employ their present scientific advancement decently and wisely, rather than devising more sour ces of power which, in the wrong hands, tire sources of cataclymic murder. It may be right, by the rules of war, for us to visit this cataclysmic death upon a cruel and guilty enemy who has been offered a way out of a hopeless war and has refused to take it. But what is to be done with this new weapon in the future? At present the weapon is a secret known only to a few persons in this country and Britain. It is a product of two nations which genuinely love and want peace a fact for which the world may well thank God. It might be well if they kept that secret and guarded it with desperate vigilance until the rest of the world has shown itself fit to share it. It is more important that the United Nations Organization prevent future war than that we run our ships and air p lane s by atomic energy instead of steam and gasoline. It is more impor tant that the w o r 1 d keep the peace through sincere desire and friendly ef fort than through fear of another war's destruction. For the effort, though never yet; honestly made, is the world's , only hope. And the fear has never pre vented war, and never will. Funny liusiness SO THEY SAY Many thousands of them (ex servicemen) arc going to seek to enter business for themselves, unit we are going to co-operate with them to the fullest extent. William Pludo. business executive. Some people's religion consists mainly ot the firm belief that Heaven will provide. Edwardsville, III., Intlli6wr. I hopo you don't- mind I couldn't get a priority!" America will have at least 3, 500,000 private flyers by 1S60 if increases since 1929 continue at the same rate during the next IS years. William A. Mara, Bendix Avi ation Corp. Farming is a real business re quiring courage. Initiative and, above all, hard work . . . The people to whom work and initia tive and responsibility are dis agreeable should never elect furming as a career. Muncie, Ind, Press, WASHINGTON Already scientific plan ners for the next war have been working secretly on such weird things as bases on the moon from which they could launch huge rocket bombs on any nation; plans which would seem ludicrous and laughable were it not for the deadly achievements of science in other directihons. Already, Gen. William Donovan and his office of strategic services have been plan ning a worldwide espionage network to operate in peacetime by which we could spy on other countries. , Already Adm. Ernest King had drawn plans for 73 warships not to be completed until three or four years after the war, which peace-aspiring Jimmy Byrnes knocked out of the budget because they were not need ed and obviously were aimed at future use ' against only one country Russia. Already the war department had been spurring a campaign for peacetime conscrip tion, never before adopted in the U. S. A. In other words, our top planners were largely ignoring the hopes and ideals for which this war was fought. Already, they were plunging ahead toward the abyss of the next world war, blindly oblivious to the aful state' ln store for them. They were plunging ahead just as if another war were a foregone conclusion until Aug. 5, and the atom bomb over Hiroshima. Now a cold chill has crept over the world, even over1 the hard-boiled war planners, though not ver all of them. The New York News came tout with an editorial urging that unless Catlfida share with us her uranium deposits, we should forcibly take them. , Good Neighborliness Pays This is-the kind of jingoism on which war feeds. And, if there is one thing we have learned in this' country, it is that being a good neighbor pays, dividends. We have only to look at our vast borders with Can ada and Mexico, minus a single armed guard, or at the thousands of people commuting ev ery day across the Rio Grande or the Niag ara or the Detroit river, to see that we of North America have led the world In neigh borliness. And when you remember that our trade with Canada, Cuba and Mexico is greater than with any other three countries, obviously good neighborliness pays. Except for off intervals, when we landed marines in Nicaragua or Haiti, we have not tried to lord it ever other people. We have tried on the whole to respect the rights of others. We did not dam off all the water in the Colorado river from Mexico, but di vided it peacably by treaty. We have made plenty of mistakes, but perhaps we have come nearer to putting Christianity to work on an international basis than other major powers. - . But even sc, we have not kept out of war. So the problem of preventing future wars is very deep and very difficult. It goes much deeper than the United Nations, which, though a start in the right direction, has se vere limitations. It gets down to education, to the churches, and to carrying out the ba sic rules of Christ's sermon on the mount. How we can do it, I don't know. But we must do it, or see civilization vanish from the earth. Rooserelt end Stalin There has been a lot of talk about how Russia was argued into the Japanese war at Potsdam. The real fact, however, is, Stalin made his initial commitment to President Roosevelt at Teheran. The details of what happened can now be revealed for the first time. At Tehran, the Big Three held their first get-together. The atmosphere warmed very slowly. Roosevelt had never met Stalin be fore, but they got along very well. Stalin and Churchill, however, were almost at dag gers' point. See WASHINGTON . . . Page 6 WE, THE WOMEN By RUTH MILLETT Infidelity of wives is responsible for 43 percent of the mental breakdowns that keep returned servicemen in hospitals, either un fit for civilian life of return to the armed forces. So says Capt. Howard Sprague, chief of mental rehabilitation for 5000 patients at St. Albans naval hospital, Queens, New York. There is no defense for the war wives who have been faithless in their husbands' ab sence, no matter what excuses they may find for their own conduct. But there is one ser ious mistake that has been made during this war which might occount for some of the in fidelity of wives. That is, the way the soldier overseas has been portrayed as a woman chaser. What picture have the women back home been given of the service man away from home? Well, it has been a composite photo made up of disquieting figures on venereal dis ease, widely publicized stories of husbands falling in love with girls in other countries, lightly written accounts of the way foreign women throw themselves at American men in uniform. Not a pretty picture for the wife at home or one that tends to make her feel secure in her marriage. And, of course, there are wives who are foolish enough to say to themselves, "Well, why should I suppose my George is any dif ferent from the rest?" From there they go on to rationalize: "Why should I sit at home waiting for a man who probably isn't wait ing for me?" Not that such reasoning accounts for all of the infidelity among war wives. There are plenty of no-account women who mar ried servicemen for. their allotment checks and never had any' intention of being faith ful to them. But that kind of reasoning is sure to ac count for some of the infidelity of wives. And it is too bad they have been given such a disturbing picture. For the wife back home needs to have her morale kept high, just as much as does the husband overseas. It hasn't been built up by the picture American women have been given of the American serviceman away from home, which can't be any more true of all men in uniform than is the faithfless war wife a true portrait of all war wives. Behind Scenes in Washington By PETER EDSON, La Grand Eronlng Observer Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 How things get done in Washington and how the wires get pulled is always revealing. Take this proposal to establish a Missouri Valley Authority which has stirred up the folks of that area into two opposing camps. While the people don't want on MVA say that the idea is being forced on them by a bunch of carpet baggers, conception of the plan really traces back to James C. Patton of the National Farmers union of Denver. The Farmers Union is made up largely of small farmers and tenant farmers, as op posed to the bigger land owners and oper ators. It has close connections with CIO and PAC. Early in the war, Patton cast around for some project to improve the lot of his mem bers in the big mid-west. He sent identical letters to three government agencies de partment of agriculture, department of in terior and Tennessee Valley authority. Ik invited or suggested that each of these agen cies send teams of experts into the area to appraise its resources and develop a post war program for belter use of the land. Advantages of such a program to an or ganization like Patton's are fairly obvious. Most of the good land has been settled and taken up. The chances for a little man starting out in the world as the pioneers and the homesteaders did, aren't too numerous. Nevertheless, there is room 'here for growth. The Missouri Valley represents one sixth of the U. S. land mass. Yet it hs only one thirtieth of the U. S. population. More popu lation, more members for Farmers Union. The secretaries of interior and agriculture, on receipt of the Patton letter, came to the umc conclusion, untwknownst to each other. They looked over their staffs, their war pro jects and their budgets and decided they ha.t neither the time, the men nor the money to do what they wanted. They declined with regrets. TV A. however, leaped at the chance with all the feevor of its cult. It loaned a staff of experts. They went over the Missouri val ley. Then they prepared a draft of a bill to create an MVA in the image t TVA. The opportunity to sponsor MVA was giv en to Senator James E. Murray of Montana, a Missouri valley state. Murray is the great spokesman of the little man. He has a fur ther natural concern in the loss in popula- tion which some of the Missouri valley states have suffered during the war because they had few industries which could be converted to war production and too few big communi ties with a labor force already assembled and housed. The states in the valley that had the most to offer drained off the popu lation from areas with less opportunity. Assuming sponsorship of the MVA bill, Murray looked around for support. Among other places, he went to department of in terior. Bureau heads there looked over Murray's bill and weren't too pleased. The public power sections looked okay. But the experts from TVA, coming from an area of surplus rainfall where water had to be drained off, apparently did not reckon with conditions that had to be met in the semi-arid Missouri valley There was in sufficient provision for irrigation projects, for piotccton of grazing areas, the great na tional parks, care of the Indians and many of the other characteristic things that make up life in this vast orea. Interior thereupon proceeded to draft a bill of its own. This was a more general "authority" bill, intended to make it possible to create not just a Missouri valley author ity but others as well Columbia, or Central Valley of California as the need for them arose. And naturally, the interior boys, al ready having grazing service, bureau of rec lamation, fish and wildlife, national parki and a host of other miscellaneous businesses under their wings, wrote their proposals to keep the department of interior in charge. This was too much for Senator Murray and too much for the Farmers Union and the other local backers of the MVA idea alone. Secretary Ickes and his aides have talked about their bill and shown it around in pub he. But it hasn't been introduced in con gress and it probably won't be until the time is riper. The whole subject therefore remains some thing for public discussion. The lobbies, pro and con, are shouting at each other up and down the valley, Something might happen when congress convenes in the fall, but the opponents of MVA are well organized. It ' usually takes five or ten years to get a new idea through congress It sometimes takes that long to get public opinion jelled" so that the congressmen know where their constit uents stand. ' ' . feoe)timiTimMimci.wc.'T.M.MQ.u.s.rAT.orr. S-lb "Which is more important, dear for an ex-soldier to bs on time or to go around the office looking like a fashion plate?" O McKENNEY ON BRIDGE By WILLIAM E. McKENNEY America's Card Authority CAPITALIZE ON FOE'S ERRORS TO WIN HAND I am not a very good kibitzer because I like to enter into the bidding and play of every hand, and certainly no one can keep me fUUph Kempner 4J 10 97543 VK 10852 Q None K69 V873 87643 75 N W E S Dealer V A J 4 K J 10 2 J963 A VQ9 A95 AKQ 10 842 Rubber Neither vui. South West North East 3 N. T. Pass 5 Pass 6 Pass. Pass Opening J. It out of the discussion. That is why I always enjoy the rubber bridge games in Chicago. While only four people play, there are at least 10 people in the game: My old friend R. W. Halpin, one of Chicago's outstanding players, o BARBS The atomic bomb has put it squarely up to the world as to its future peace or pieces! sent me this hand, played by Ralph Kempner. ' Kempner let the opening lead ride around 'to his singleton ' queen, then led the deuce of hearts and finessed dummy's nine-spot. Next he led the queen of hearts, East winning. At this point, if East had returned a spade, the hand would have been dead. But East led the king of diamonds. Kempner won in dummy, ruffed a small club, picked up the outstanding trumps, and led a spade over to the ace. As Halpin said in his letter, that was Bingo! O IN FORMER YEARS 30 Years Ago Union county's jail is empty to day. Three prisoners in it last night have flown flown with traces left behind of skilled jail birds engineering the escape, and . clear evidence that someone smuggled a saw into the county jail with which the prisoners could saw their way to freedom. Pros and cons of reducing wa ter charges in the city will be heard tonight when the Commer-. cial club meets to take up the matter which has been brought to their attention. An electric light bulb used on warships withstands battle shocks. Perfect for the front hall when dad comes home late! Just, move to a nice place in the country, or near a lake, if you want your friends to drop in and stay and stay and stay. A large apple crop is in the offing. Orchards will be safe just as soon as school opens. Yawata, the "Pittsburgh of Ja pan," got a real break. It was hit only by demolition bombs from 225 Superforts. Mother is the one who will real ly enjoy her vacation at home just as soon as school opens. "Retail Prices Hold Level" headline. Since when have they been on the level? 15 Years Ago The first move to extend the work of the state Americanization commission into extreme eastern Oregon probably will be made within the next few weeks, ac cording to Frank S. Sever, sec retary of the commission, when he will attempt to organize a class of foreign born residents at La Grande. La Grande's miniature golf course, at the corner of Spring and Cedar streets, will be open for play tomorrow. f This Curious World 10 Years Ago Three plays, a comedy, a trag edy, and a fantasy, have been se lected by the Little Theater group of La Grande for presentation this summer. There were 250 4-H club mem bers and local leaders from Bak er, Wallowa and Union counties present at the 4-H club picnic held at the Eastern Oregon exper iment station at Union yesterday. IN THE gwmM, THERE WAS NO NEED FOR OLD A0 seccwrx. . , FOR NO ONE EVER REACHED OLDA&E. STUDIES OF SKULLS FROM THAT PERIOO SHOW THAT EMU PERSONS LIVED OVER rOKTr TEARS. AJtfNJIS HATCH BD IN WISCONSIN l are wwrm. mo. u. . pat. on. A LIFT-HANDED PU-LHITTe m iball USUALLY HITS TO WHICH FIELD... IMW, ANKWF.H' Tn rioht fiol,l NEXTi A bard that goes north In winter.
