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Show Somo Form of Training For Youth Is Advisable President Truman haa reaffirmed his belief that tome form 0 universal training for the nation's youth is essential to assure adequate defense of the United States in the event of a future war. His comments followed the appointment of a civilian board ' to study the whole question of universal military training In the hope that some plan which will be acceptable to everyone can be devised. This development came immediately following a significant comment by Republican Senator Wayne Morse of Oregon relative to the inadequacy of our military occupation forces in Europe. Me declared we are "regrettably undermanned" in most parts of Europe and that the personnel of our forces there is, on the whole, so young and untrained that they are not doing a good military job. Of course, universal military training will not of itself . provide the trained, experienced, mature manpower for occupation occupa-tion forces in Germany and Japan. But it undoubtedly would help to build such a force over a period of years and, by guaranteeing guaran-teeing the army a force of partially trained men at home in the event of an emergency, it would permit the army to send its better qualified troops overseas. The idea of military training for our youth has not been a big public issue lately, and many Americans perhaps have believed that the idea had been abandoned. The president's . action now refocuses public attention on the question and emphasizes empha-sizes that it will be an issue to be faced by the next congress. The Telegram still believes that some form of training for our youth is advisable. The present uncertain state of world affairs impels us not to let down our guard. We have no assurance assur-ance that the peace we have won at such cost will last. We do cot yet know that the United Nations will become firmly established estab-lished as an international peace-maintaining body. We do not know whether the nations will be able to agree on some program of universal disarmament which will obviate the need for any country to maintain large armed forces. Until we get answers to these questions we must be realistic We must be. ready to defend ourselves against any threat One way t4 be ready is to have our young manpower partially trained and organized so that, in an emergency, that manpower can quickly be mobilized. We will not have months and years for preparation if there is another war. Next time we can be very sure the United States will be attacked FIRST. What kind of program is necessary is debatable. It may not require a long period of training. A few months of basic training, train-ing, supplemented by special technical training in schools or colleges, or by training in national guard or organized reserve units, may be sufficient But we ought to do something so that In another emergency we will not have to start out from scratch with no organization, no planning, no basic skills and techniques tech-niques among the millions of American young men who will be called to the colors. That would be an invitation to disaster in a future war. It would be a veritable death sentence for the youth of tomorrow who would be sent out hastily to resist an enemy. |
