Salt Lake Telegram | 1935-01-12 | Page 4 | Not a New Idea

Not a New Idea Idear r W MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS n U meditated back in tho the second century that everything is tile the result t of a change and and there is nothing Nature loves so well as to change existing forms he lie must have ha reflected reflect reflect- ed cd that human nature which so many say does docs not change loves to change its mind at least It is is' is not a ne new idea A changeless world would be a dr dreary ary one There Thero is nothing so remarkable in change but sometimes it is somewhat somewhat somewhat some some- what astonishing to note the rate of change Surely we see it today in world political thought Though we wc still classify programs as conservative conservative con con- liberal radical and otherwise we se do donot donot not attach the same meanings to them as we did ten fifty or a hundred years cars ago President dent Roosevelt's last two messages to congress are arc examples Half a dozen years ago calling call call- ing for old age pensions unemployment insurance in in- collective use of certain natural resources resources re re- re sources and the addition of men to the federal payroll roll would have sent shivers up and down some millions of honest American I backs Instead it was rather generally accepted accepted accepted ac ac- ac- ac as a middle of the thc ron road venture Many even een saw v in it a swing toward the tha right I i L The recent campaign speech of Premier R. R B. B Bennett of Canada which called for an Ian end to the tho reckless exploitation of human resources resources re re- re- re sources and aud the trafficking in the health an and happiness of Canadian citizens is another ex cx- I ample F- F Fl Premier l e Bennetts Bennett's program seems to 10 be beS r f- f r. r J- J S more or less a n duplication of President Roose Roose- It calls for unemployment insurance a revamped re old age pension plan insurance against sickness and nd acci accident ent new income tax ax laws aws and a system of minimum wage and maximum hour laws for labor The point is not whether the voters of Canada Canada Can Can- ada give Mr fr Bennett a mandate to put this scheme into effect or retire him and give someone someone someone some some- one else a chance It is the simple fact that a Canadian premier like an American president has las advanced a program which would have seemed startlingly radical if it had been suggested suggested sug BUg as recently as 1928 And that is not all by any means In England England Eng- Eng land and itself there is talk of a nc new deal Frances France's premier likewise launches a JHo program ram profoundly pro pro- roundly along new deal lines The fhe impressive thing hing is that in the United States in Canada in ill n Great Britain and in l Prance France rance the definite and outspoken demand for change is not a a. a demand for revolutionary overthrow of anc an- an c dent ent and hallowed traditions Russia R and Germany and to some extent Italy have witnessed witnessed witnessed wit wit- this complete upheaval This is because their heir people never experienced participation in government The great democracies of the thc world still are arc tied fast to their political fun- fun There is no no aim to supplant a po po- order tri tried d and found not wanting The Thc aim im is to attain an expansion of social conscience con- con science and so far as each nation is concerned to o make the world a better place to live in The Time c in short is a fuller and a richer life So the change we se are arc going through now is s a change of viewpoint which counsels that before we pin our labels on new proposals we would do well to examine them to see if they mean nean the thc same things they used to mean We Ye have haye moved moved out from under some of our favorito favor favor- ito ite tc figures of speech As we ise adopt new ones onest it t is needful that we be careful to see that we fit it them and that they fit us