| Show South American Dictators I N THIS page Monday John T. T Flynn nationally nationally na na- na- na OI O known economist and writer on business affairs pointed out some differences between South American and old world dictators dictators dictators dicta dicta- tors and the ideologies they are cramming down the throats of their peoples peoples' It is well established established established that the authoritarian rule of Russia is definitely tyrannical rule by a minority It would be good for the world to know the full extent to which this is true in Italy Germany and the small fry totalitarian states in Europe There is an underground opposition to the iron rule of the nazis and fascists fascists' Returning Americans Americans Americans Amer Amer- often say this opposition is growing but nobody knows its present strength Dictators can be sure that hat nobody will know until it ex explodes explodes explodes ex- ex and the explosion if it is coming is delayed delayed delayed de de- de- de by fear and by progressively giving the people other things to worry about about as as il ii duce permits Italians now to turn their thoughts to France Tunisia and Sicily The South Ameri American an dictators are forced on the consciousness at this time more than they have been in the past in consequence consequence of the imminent Pan-American Pan conference at Lima and because of the propos proposals l put forth by President Roosevelt for western hemisphere solidarity The conference in Peru may be productive of great things things' Yet there is no ignoring the fact that of the nations there represented only a few can be classed as genuine democracies As AS' a general thing the banana republic dictatorship is a highly individualized show Only rarely is it based on any theory more elaborate elaborate elaborate orate than a simple desire for power It may maybe maybe maybe be exceedingly repressive some repressive some of the Latin dictators had nothing to learn from the nazis about the technique of silencing dissidents dissidents- but by its its' very nature it is ephemeral and it does not force the ideals the mental pr processes and the intellectual outlook of its people into a rigid mold It is a way of government but not nota nota a a way way of life All of which is the reverse of the European European- model dictatorship For the frightening thing about such a th thing ng as is it vests all the power of government in one man it it- goes goes' far beyond the time old-time idea of simple autocracy and sets up an ideal to which all allmen allmen allmen men are forced to conform It is not enough that the citizen simply Refrain from from- criticising the dictator d he must think as the dictator wants him him to think he is permitted to have have only s such ch ideas as suit the dictator So it is not merely political freedom which dies under this system The fundamental right of the human being to think his own own- thoughts and worship according to the to-the the dictates of of his his his' own conscience to pick his friends to train his children children chil chil- children dren and to keep himself aware of what is goIng going go- go Ing on in the world world this this broad right which is fundamental to anything that can pass under the name of civilization ceases to tot t exist There is nothing out of the way way in the spectacle spectacle spec- spec v. v of various Latin-American Latin dictators dictators' sit sitting sit sit- ting down to discuss ways of checking the spread of European totalitarianism Free democratic s society can Survive these impromptu one-man one dictatorships It cannot survive a spread of the European dictatorship ideal If we are to understand understand understand un un- un- un the significance of the Lima conference conference conference confer confer- ence ence we must be clear about the difference e between between be be- tween Yeen the two |
