Feb. 13,1980

Letters To The Editor

So Its 1, 2, 3 What

Are We Fighting For?

Editor:

There is a kind of mentality common in our country and on this campus in which people accept what is printed about a certain group of people or a country, even when the portrait is of the group being evil. It’s a Dick Tracy view of the world — good guys & bad guys.

Some would say that there is a need for scapegoats. I think the reasons are far more complex than that. At one time it was accepted that Blacks were subhuman, that the Jews killed Christ, the Indians were pagans and so on.

During the First World War, the Germans were the bad guy’s. Now it is the godless Communists. They are coming to take our precious freedoms away. We must fight and die to protect what we hold sacred, thus we kill for democracy!  Steve Powell, in his article writes:  “The United States should continue to lead the west in the defense of democratic ideals throughout the world; we should continue to work and possibly to fight for the freedom of the individuals everywhere ... But he [the enemy] is going to take too much of your freedom. Kill him’’ (Steve Powell, Feb 1, Guardian).

              The development of an understanding of the evolution of political systems, and an understanding of how well these systems function given the historical, cultural and educational attainment of the people upon which these systems function, is a slow, arduous process. This refinement of understanding in development of social systems is not common among Americans, and some USCD students. To wave the words — like flags — of “freedom” and “democracy” is an indication of the user’s intellectual development. 

Could not democratic system and principles go further, as, for example, to allow the employees to elect their foremen and managers?  (There are a few business in this country that have employee ownership and thus input into the operation of their business).  And is not a system superior that has as a right for all equal access to medical care, housing, food and transportation? What of the freedoms to be without food, housing, employment and medical care?  Is this country “leading the west in the defense of democratic ideas throughout the world,” as Powell claims? What kind of governments have we helped create in Greece, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Taiwan, Indonesia and South Vietnam?

The question that confronts most of us is what are we being called to arms for. Are the Russians about to invade the Middle East, as we did in Vietnam? The Russians entered Afghanistan, a neighboring socialist country, at the invitation of the previous government. They got drawn into the conflict there because a fanatical socialist government had instituted reform at too fast a pace, and their ungodly actions pissed off the religious fanatics, whom we have been supplying with weapons.  The radical government has crumbled, a more conservative socialist government is in place, but the United States continues to support the rebels at the costs of many lives.  Russia is there in an attempt to restore stability to that region. 

We are being called to arms because the economy is sagging — again — and the only way to halt the decline is to print money to stimulate the economy? Who benefits most from increased military spending. 

What confronts us is not a call to arms but a gross failure of this country to progress. Neither has our living standard or health standard improved. Our environment has deteriorated, and we stand on the brink of global destruction while our “leaders” call for more bombs, rockets and soldiers. We need to put human welfare before warfare.  But business, who has formed an even tighter alliance with government over the last 30 years; they see greater profits in wars than social programs.  We need to disarm the corporate-military-government complex, and make the world safe for democracy. What confronts us is not the Soviets, but our own failures and excesses.