Your Guess Is As Good
pp. 7-8 · Read in the full issue
As Mine
A World Review By R. W. Robson
rpHE events of recent weeks prob i ably have changed the course of world history. Some people think that they mean that World War lll— which will come eventually, and which will be an “ideological war”— is almost upon us. However, your guess is as good as mine. Here are the background, and the facts: form your own conclusions!
The Background
WORLD War I was fought between Great Powers who were seeking world power, world conquest, world trade. When it was over, the Em pires of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Russia were in the dust.
The victors, to prevent a recur rence of World Wars, formed the League of Nations. The League was hamstrung, from the beginning, by the absence of United States, gone “isolationist,” and Russia, writhing like a tortured giant in the pangs of revolutionary re-birth.
Individualism, the system of un fettered Private Enterprise, had won; and it abandoned itself to a 20years’ orgy of money-making. An efficient League could have placed the necessary shackles upon Big Business; and could have wisely con trolled and guided the fantastic sociological developments in the re born Germany and Russia.
But the League was a mere cipher; Britain, United States and France surrendered themselves to money power, in the shape of international combines and cartels; a gang of clever adventurers fastened a Com munist State upon stupid, semi literate Russia; and the Fascists of Italy and the Nazis of Germany came rapidly to full blooming.
The Depression was the result of greedy and uncontrolled over-pro duction. The rallying of ignorant masses to Nazism, Fascism and Com munism was the inevitable rebellion of the common man against the merciless money-power of the “Western Democracies.”
OUR lazy and blundering leaders did not see, until too late, the post- Depression danger the inevitable struggle between Individualism (which had lost its virtue to the extent that
it had abandoned itself to money power) and Totalitarianism (which, whatever form of “ism” it adopts, means that the State takes full con trol of personal freedom and welfare).
And so we went into World War IT to destroy Totalitarianism—to pro tect our individual liberty against Fascism, Nazism, etc. But the wires got strangely crossed. By a series of miracles, the Democratic nations defeated the Axis nations—only to find, when it was all over, that the most ruthless Totalitarian nation of all, Communist Russia, was riding high and hopeful on the shoulders of the Allies!
Still floundering in the dark, we formed the United Nations Organi sation, to control international re lations, and. abolish war. To avoid the errors of the League of Nations— which smothered itself in endless talk and footling argument—we made UNO subject entirely to the Big Five.
America, Britain, Russia, France and China were to control UNO abso lutely, and no decision of theirs could be effective unless it was unanimous.
Thus, blindly, we created the “Russian veto.”
The end of World War II gave us this international set-up; Germany, Italy and Japan were prostrate, utterly defeated militarily and smashed economically. France, hav ing surrendered to Germany and been occupied for over four years, before liberation by her Allies, was partly broken in spirit and econo mically sick. Britain, Holland and Norway were economically exhausted —especially Britain, whose contri bution to the war effort is among the finest things in human history. The United States economic structure was undamaged and she emerged, commercially and militarily, the world’s most powerful nation.
Russia, despite a terrific war battering, disclosed unsuspected re siliency and a clear-cut plan. Before the Western Allies were awake to her design, she took possession of (from north to south) Finland, the Baltic States, Eastern Germany, Poland, Czecho-Slovakia, Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, Rumania, Bulgaria and Albania. She established a Com
munist Administration in every one of those countries. She threw “an iron curtain” across Central Europe; kept all Western observers strictly westward of the curtain; and, from behind the Curtain, she has sent her fanatical emissaries to spread Com munism across the world. Her attack has been directed especially against the British Empire and the United States —the two great barriers against Red doctrines.
As an effective instrument in con trolling international affairs, UNO has been paralysed and rendered im potent by the Russian veto. As to why that veto has been exercised so frequently, ruthlessly and unreason ably—your guess is as good as mine.
Apparently, the paralysis of UNO is part of the Red plan.
Recent Significant Events
BECAUSE the non-Communist Gov ernments of Greece and Turkey were constantly menaced by Com munist forces, thrusting southwards from Russia, and from behind the Iron Curtain, the United States, at the end of March, announced that American money and forces would be used to protect the independence of Greece and Turkey. Normally, this would have been a responsibility of
Uno.
The United States, early in April, was given “trusteeship” authority to occupy the Caroline, Mariana and Marshall Islands, and entered into a military alliance with the Philippines Government. This means that American forces now hold all the archipelagoes of the North Pacific, right across to the China coast, as well as part of Northern China. (See article elsewhere.) Leading United States publicists have announced that, as Russia has sabotaged UNO, the United States is compelled to take the leadership in international affairs. Her first duty is to check Red Russia’s creeping advance across Europe and Asia— hence the action in Greece and Turkey—and to combat Communism everywhere. They appeal strongly for the formation of an Anglo-American Union, arguing that such a Federa tion would be powerful enough, despite anything Russia may do, to direct the world into orderliness and peace, to give leadership to the other Western European nations, and to check Communism.
General de Gaulle has come out of retirement to beg all Frenchmen to stop their drift to Communism, and re-establish democratic rule. At present, Communists constitute nearly half the French Parliament and France has been drifting under Russian influence. If France goes entirely Communist, Russia will take a startling step forward, to establish herself in the heart of Western Europe. It is not a coincidence that de Gaulle’s appeal was made almost simultaneously with the announce ment of America’s new foreign policy.
There is a complete deadlock at the Moscow Conference, where the Foreign Ministers of United States, Britain, France and Russia assembled in mid- March to make the first draft of a treaty covering the final settlement of Germany. Russian tactics have been deliberately and consistently obstruc tive, and no progress has been made.
The foreign policy of Britain, especially in relation to the clear-cut ideological struggle between United States and Russia, is obscure. Since the Socialists took charge of the British Government, developments in the British Colonial Empire, in Asia and Africa, have been unfortunate and depressing. The Brown Brother complex seems to influence all that the British Government does —with the result that the British are out. or are getting ready to go out, of Effvnt, Palestine, India, Burma, Hong Kong and Malaya.
British prestige was never lower. It has become the habit to spit upon British Imperialism—and a highly unpleasant gentleman called Pro fessor Laski, who is the shadow Prime Minister of Britain, is the leading spitter. The winter blizzards, the autumn floods and the widespread hunger in Britain are disasters which wring our hearts. But they may not be an unmitigated disaster. Britain’s misery mav bring about the down fall of the fumbling theorists and Red planners who were swept into office in an irresponsible khaki election. A new British Government, joining the new United States in arresting Com munism and restoring orderliness to the world, could change the shape of history.
THE United States has come right into the open, and challenged the Reds. What is Russia going to do now? Carry on her Communistic campaign against the world, which would lead inevitably to World War ill? Or stage a complete change of foreign policy, avoid war for the pre sent. help to implement the UNO plan —and await another and better opportunity? Your guess is as good as mine.
But, remember this: The United States now has the atomic bomb, and can use it. If Russia already hss the secret—which is probable—she hes not yet the facilities for using it. If there is to be no p-overnins: authority in the world. Russia in the course of a few vears could develon a better atomic bomb than ours. It is not a pretty picture.