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Show o Current Events EDUCATE ORGANIZE COOPERATE I VOL VI; NO. 30. jd )MaAjun J 'ttuJOq.i Price: SALT LAKE CITY. UTAH. JANUARY 31. 1936. AAA Decisions Analyzed; Minority Slams Majority News and Comment 5 Cents Per Copy U. M. W. of A. Convention Pledges Loyalty lo Roosevelt By M. I. T. Queer Philosophy The Hearst yellow newspapers More Than 2000 In Attendance At Annual Meeting In Nations DeJustice Roberts Opinion a Revolutionary Document are abusing Col. Charles A. Lind Capital President Lewis Cheered When He Lauds Presiprives Congress of Control of Nations Purse-String- s because he fled to Europe bergh dent Roosevelt Mention Of A1 Smiths Name Is Booed Justice Harlan F. Stone, In Stinging Dissent, Says in real or fancied fear that his Miners Chief Says Roosevelt Has Lent a Helping Hjand Majoritys Contention Do Not Rise to Dignity of Argu young son was threatened by kidTo The Oppressed And Impoverished Mine Workers napers. The Colonel, Hearst conAll Wisdom Not Vested in the Courts. ment tends, showed the white feather Formulates a Legislative Program Urges Amendment of when he ran away from trouble. The U. S. Constitution. Two of the most momentous nation a truly revolutionary This is the same Hearst who reopinions ever rendered in a case. procedure, and one which would cently declared that he would deThats the 'way President Roose- probably start a revolt were it at sert California because he regard Special to the Utah Labor News. velt describes the majority and minority opinions on the AAA handed down by the supreme court. And the President is right. The majority opinion, written by Justice Roberts and approved by Justices Hughes, Sutherland, Butler and McReynolds, holds that the troubles of the Van-Devant- farmer are not a national problem and therefore, if agriculture is to get relief, it must turn to the legislatures of the 48 states. Which, as every high school boy knows, is an impossible proposi- ' tion. The majority does not deny the right of congress to levy a processing tax, but it argues that because the money raised by the tax is to be used to help the farmers, the tax is unconstitutional. The majority is that congress cannot raise money to do an unlawful thing and in this instance, an effort to keep farmers out of the poorhouse is placed in that undesirable category. theory of the Truly Revolutionary Heretofore, the right of congress to spend money legally raised has seldom been challenged by the Under the Roberts decicourts. sion, a majority of the members of the supreme court may hereafter tell congress what taxes , it may levy and also for what purposes the money may be expended. In other words, the majority opinion deprives congress of control of the purse strings of the tempted in Great Britain, or any other country with a democratic form of government. The minority opinion, written by Justice Stone, and approved by Justices Brandeis and Cardozo, recognizes the revolutionary character of the majority opinion. This minority opinion is a real Bobbs-Merri- . non-fictio- n. lewspaper war propaganda. he 1930s the myths of cyclical gressions and prosperity-around-he-com- ed de- again shook the confi k dence of the public. Such illusions are largely created by powerful forces which do not want the facts, from the millionaire divorce to a war scare, presented truthfully Although we keep repeating great phrases which have become platitudes that the bulwark of our liberties is the free press; that freeuncensored dom springs from and war that peace and printing: a new deal for all"" men depend largely on public opinion and information; that our daily lives and the future of international relations are ordered by the new estate, the fourth, which has become more important than state and church and armed forces we still remain ignorant or indifferent to the power which shapes our destiny. Here are a few examples of the corrupting influences of advertising: When Upton Sinclair exposed the horrors of the Jungle in Chicago, Swift and Company spent millions of dollars a month to defeat regulating bills in Congress. e adverNewspapers had tisements of this firm not to sell products of Swift, but solely to defull-pag- feat government regulation. Ar- mour and Company were paying over $2,000 a page to all farm publications of the country not for advertisements, but for "special articles. i.lSSl Where Is the Press On one occasion the Bethlehem Steel company, faced with a public demand for a nationally owned are mor plant, ran a series of advertisements in 3,257 .publications, at a cost of millions of dollars. It later printed favorable editorials and news items from the daily and weekly newspapers. The advertising helped to defeat the project for a national armor-plat- e full-pag- works. Where is the press when a third In party arrives? What does the er Thats another case of Hearsts queer philosophy. document. It contempFair Warning tuously dismisses the theory adPrincess Alice is writing a vanced in the majority opinion, column for the newspapers daily declaring that it hardly rises to and after the message the dignity of argument and that to congress shepresidents had this to say: it must lead to absurd conseForces opposing the new deal quences. will find their position increasingThose are fighting words when as the campaign to their colleagues by ly embarrassing addressed unless they develop a progresses three of the most distinguished leadership that knows what it members of the nations highest wants and whom it is backing. tribunal. "Merely spattering Goliath With Holds AAA Constitutional showers of pebbles may arouse Justice Stone flatly declares that him to the point of making another the Agricultural Adjustment Act and then what will Mr. speech, is clearly constitutional, Fletcher do? The power of courts to declare Mr. of course, is the a statute unconstitutional is sub- 'old Fletcher, chairman of the Reguard ject to two guiding principles publican national committee. And which ought never to be absent Princess Alice is the daughter of from judicial consciousness, Jus- the late President Theodore Roosetice Stone says. the wielder of the big stick. velt, One is that courts are con. (Continued on page 2) cerned only with the power to enact statutes, not with their wis dom. Political ' Outlook The other is that while unconstitutional exercise of power by In and the executive legislative Utah For 1936 branches of government is subject to judicial restraint, the only Compiled From Reports of Observers (Continued on page 3) two-fist- PEOPLE GET WIIAT THEY DESERVE IN GOVERNMENT AND THE PRESS (A review of a book, Freedom of the Press, by George Seldes, Co ll published by New York.) A great many of us resemble All we Will Rogers in one thing: know is what we read in the pagained from pers." What Will answered his reading the papers nev needs nicely. His light er cut deeply and he was well paid by those who were content with for the things as they are.' Butlittle bemost of us, who read but read we what papers, yond the has an important bearing on our welfare, both present and future. What our newspapers 'contain and how powerful forces in the background seek to control and guide its news is effectively exposed by Mr. Seldes. His book is deservedly among the seasons best His experisellers in ences and intimate contact behind the scenes, as correspondent on the nations leading newspapers, qualify him to speak with facts and authority. His book is divided into four 'parts: (1) The Romance and Realities; (2) The Corrupting Influences, with chapters devoted to the power of advertising, bad medicine, utilities, oil, big business, propaganda, the 1929 crash; (?) Associated Sources and Forces Press, New York Times, Hearst and the poisonous springs of world news; (4) The Struggle for a Free Press the press and the individual; Free Press vs. Free Labor, battle for press freedom; the roll Df honor for newspaper and journalists who have fought hard for justice and the crushing of injustice; and finally he outlines the possibilities of a real free press. Were Deceived In the 1920s millions undergo-n- g disillusion vaguely realized that they had been deceived by ed its taxes as excessive. According to the perverted philosophy of Hearst, it is cowardly to safeguard ones flesh and blood, but highly proper and patriotic to look out for the pocektbook! press do to Progressive, party, Farmer-Labo- r league (Continued on page 4) Non-Partis- an Salt Lake Democrats Parnell Black, - assistant , third district attorney, is the new chairman of the Salt Lake county Democratic committee. He was elected by acclamation at the reorganization meeting held at the Newhouse hotel Monday night. . . . He succeeds . Ralph T. Stewart, who refused to become a candidate to succeed himself. Dr. E. E. Monson, Sugar House dentist and a member of the legislature, was elected vice chairman, and Mrs. D. W. Moffat of Murray a ... ... ... vice chairwoman. It was reported that harmony prevailed at the session. It was also reported that rival factions were seeking to forget differences and go forward unitedly into the forthcoming county, state, and national campaign. Mr. Black has served as secretary of the county committee for the past two years. . . . Those on the inside say that he has established a reputation for campaign organization effectiveness. . . . The incoming chairman will recommend the appointment of the secretary, assistant secretary, and treasurer at an early date. . . . The committee approves the chairmans selections: . . . Chairman Black was voted discretionary power to proceed with setting up the Salt Lake county Democrat headquarters to handle routine business for the party and assist in dispensing patronage. . . . Both the retiringand incoming county chairmen stress- -' ed the importance of such an office located in Salt Lake City and urged the committee to delegate power to establish the headquarters. . . . If such an office had been opened and maintained two years ago, Mr. Stewart said, I think we would have had several hundred more Democrats in office than we have now. . . . The office will be open throughout the year, Chairman Black said, and will be maintained, it was indicated, by either voluntary contributions from Democrats who received jobs in the local, state, or federal governments or by assessments on such . . . County Clerk W. (Continued on page 5) ... ... job-holde- rs. WASHINGTON. At the opening of the annual convention of the United Mine Workers of America here Wednesday morning the officers and delegates pledged the unions support to the Roosevelt administration and the new deal. In his address to the more than 2000 delegates at the convention, John L. Lewis, president, flayed A1 Smith's Liberty League speech and said, "A billion dollar dinner was given here the. other night, and that dinner was addressed by a man who had made a reputation for himself as a great commoner." Report Progress When Lewis said that A1 Smith The report of Lewis and other was that man, boos went up from officers said: We have made prothe floor. gress and our people feel an InRoosevelt Cheered tense gratitude to our able and Every time the miners chieftain courageous president, Franklin D. mentioned Roosevelt, thunderous Roosevelt, who is the only presiapplause and cheers resulted. dent of the United States, during There was no doubt about the con- the lifetime of most of us, who vention delegates being united for has lent a helping hand to the opPresident Roosevelt and the new pressed and impoverished mine deal. And Alfred E. Smith from his position of supreme happiness and comfort offered to the 14,000,000 unemployed and their dependents for their supreme happiness and comfort only the ancient face of the constitution, Lewis proceeded. workers. May the prayers of countless thousands in the mining communities of the nation sustain him in his great humanitarian work. Challenge Green Other high spots in the report: . William Green, a member of the United Mine Workers and president of the American Federation of Labor, was challenged to explain just how he stood in the federations family quarrel between craft and industrial unionists. Lewis heads that faction which believes that mass production industries should be organized by industries rather than by I heard him say once that the people down in his ward, when they wanted coal or food, could not either burn or eat the constitution of the United States or a decision. I tell him today that the people of the United States have the same reaction today as did those people down in his ward when he crafts. honestly represented them. (Continued on page 6) WIIAT IS AHEAD FOR 1936 IN SOCIAL SECURITY A Statement by John G. Wlnant, Chairman, Social Security Board, Washington, D. C. 'V The year 1936 will be recorded lems involved before they recom:n American history as one in mended the social security act to which the United States made its the whole congress. first effort, on a nation-wid- e Remove the Fear basis, to provide some reasonable deIn a very large sense this year gree of economic security during will witness the first step of a e other than on a unemployment effort to prevent the relief basis for those who ordin- recurrence of what America has arily are employed. The year will gone through in the past five be recorded as one in which the years. The unemployment compensation provisions of the social seway wa3 paved for a nation-wid- e e system of for pensions paid curity act 'are not a cure-a- ll up insurance, not relief for men the economic ills which make deand women who, having been em- pressions possible; they constitute ployed for many years, choose to rather a firstline defense against retire or are forced to retire at unemployment. The act is intended the age of 65. As a further step to remove the fear of poverty durtoward social security this year ing unemployment and the fear of e the Federal government will which for destitution in when congress makes the neces- generations have constantly hung give sub- over the heads of millions of sary appropriations stantial aid to the states for as- American wage earners. The act is sistance to the needy aged, crip- designed also to serve as an ecopled or otherwise dependent chil- nomic shock absorber for the dren, the blind, and for the up- country as a whole in periods of d building of the states child welunemployment. fare, maternal care, and health Suppose the present social seservices in general. These are, the curity act had been in force In three major purposes of the social 1922 and all of our states had then security act. , adopted unemployment compensaThe act was the product of the tion plans comparable to those now best thought of more than 100 in force in the District of Columoutstanding experts in the field of bia, and in Wisconsin, New Hampindustry, commerce, government shire, California, Oregon and sevadministration, economics, labor eral other states. By 1929 ten bilorganizations, public health, wel- lion dollars would have been conThe act tributed to the unemployment fare, and employment. was not hurriedly drawn. During trust fund and eight billion dollars months of intensive study these paid out as benefits to the unemmen and women cooperated with ployed during that period. This the Presidents committee on eco- would have left a reserve of two nomic security, composed of the billion dollars at the outset of the secretary of labor (chairman), the present depression. It is not difsecretary of the treasury, the sec- ficult to visualize the steadying retary of agriculture, the attorney and stimulating effects on Amerigeneral of the United States, and can business that would have rethe federal emergency relief ad- sulted from the disbursement of ministrator, to draw up a report this huge fund to those eligible to the President. Then the ways for unemployment compensation. and means committee of the house Morale of Workers of representatives and the finance Nor is it difficult to visualize committee of the senate gave the effect on the morale of the three months of careful considera- workers if they had received these tion to this report and the prob (Continued on page 7) long-rang- old-ag- old-ag- wide-sprea- |