Newtown High School - Newtowner Yearbook (Elmhurst, NY)

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NEWTOWN f f f f f func, 1937 Another cause for the failure of our neutrality policy has been the susceptibility of the American people to propaganda. We are by instinct a liberty-loving people, and we become incensed at any threat to our freedom. In the past, we have been drawn into wars in the belief that we were defending our fundamental rights. America today is confronted with two choices in her fight to maintain peace, isola- tion from wars, or co-operation with other nations in preventing them. Our overnment recentl ado ted a new and stricter neutralit volic . This olic g Y P Y I Y P Y if rigidly enforced will amount to virtual isolation in time of war. Its most glaring weak- ness is its 'KCash and Carry clause, permitting warring nations to trade with the United Phe States if they pay cash and do their own shipping. This would give strong naval powers like England, France and Iapan a distinct advantage. Another criticism of this new policy is that it applies equally to the invaded nation and to the aggressor. But, the most obvious Weakness of such a peace policy is that it makes no contribution to the preven- tion of war. Indeed, the unfriendly tone and the broad discretionary powers given to the President increases the possibility of our being involved in future wars. How much better it would be fore America to drop this cloak of self-protection, and initiate a definite and constructive program for preventing war. In the past, we have Ten

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I une, IQ 37 1 1 1 1 1 NEWTOWN Peace on Earth Peace on earth and good will towards men. Two thousand years have passed since these words were spoken, two thousand years of bloodshed, two thousand years of wars too innumerable to mention. Yet, strange it is that while the glories and fortunes of war were leaving their indelible scars on mankind, while crusaders and knights gallantly fought for God, king, and country, His words survived, and man sought peace. But the common man was powerless. He had no direct voice in the government nor any representation. He had only the king, and the king could do no wrong. As time progressed, it seemed as though man, in his blind obedience to some absolute ruler, was straying further and further from peace. Then, a new order developed, based on a principle opposed by its very nature to war--democracy. The common man was gaining power, his protests were voiced and heard, he could condemn war and condemn he did. Unfortunately, even this could not avail him. As the forces of peace developed their tool-democracy, so the forces of war developed theirs-propaganda. Swiftly and surely, the jingoists set about their evil work. Playing upon emotion, they turned the tide back to war. They aroused fear, hatred, and blind loyalty. They whipped the flames of nation- alism to unprecedented heights. They filled individuals with the desire to glorify their country, and cunningly encouraged economic aggrandizement. They disregarded all human considerations. The people were kept constantly alive to foreign perils, slights, and insults. If such incidents did not occur, they were invented or provoked. And thus man was unwittingly made to use his own power for his own destruction. He voted yes on secret diplomacy, he voted yes on arbitrary treaties, he voted no on peace. Then came 1914. Overnight millions of men were called to war. Again the guns roared and the cannons boomed. Again man killed man. But this time it was different. This time they were fighting to end war. And so we come to the present. The situation is grave. Europe, blind to past mis- takes, is again approaching 1914. Each country vies with its neighbors for arms supremacy. Secret diplomacy is again the order of the day. Hate, pure and undiluted, dominates Europe. However grave the situation may appear, all is not yet lost. There is still hope for peace. That hope is America. Experience has shown us that our traditional policy of neutrality is no guarantee of security. By insisting on the rights of neutral nations, we were drawn into the War of 1812 and again into the World War. Reasons for the failure of this policy are evident. American business is patriotic until its pocketbook is touched. It will not stand idly by while the government deprives it of profit. In the past, disregarding the welfare of the whole nation, commerce was carried on in war zones with inevitable results. Nine

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lzme, 1937 f f f f f NEWTOWN taken sotne steps in this direction. liy neutralizing the Great Lakes and eliminating fortifications on our boundary, we have maintained complete harmony and understanding with Canada for over one hundred years. We have settled many disputes with England by diplomacy and arbitration. More recently, we have negotiated reciprocal trade and monetary agreements with other powers that should serve to lessen economic friction, and President Roosevelt's Good Neighbor Policyn has greatly improved our relations with the nations of thc Caribbean. All the ideals of past accomplishments have been embodied in the peace proposals ol' Secretary of State Cordell Hull at the recent conference in Buenos Aires. Should the United States ratify the agreements brought up at this conference, she will launch a delinite program of international co-operation. She will prove her acceptance of arbitra- tion and her denunciation of war as a means of settling international disputes. She will show herself ready to elitninate economic peace barriers by means of more reciprocal trade agreements. She will give evidence that she realizes that the hope of peace is not nationalism but internationalism. There remains one more problem. The people must learn to answer this question: VVhy peace? Common sense alone can teach them. Year after year, billions of dollars are spent for armaments. National treasuries are drained to supply bigger ships, faster planes, and more eifective destroyers. This money is inevitably wasted because the weapons are either soon outmoded or destroyed by war. Think how much more intelligent it would be to direct these staggering sums into more constructive channels. Great progress could be made in the Held of education. Science and medicine could reach new heights. Erlicient, fully equipped hospitals, with highly Eleven