Show GENERAL IF HUGH S JOHNSON jour y F washington D C ARMS production our snails pace arms production need any declaration of an emergency or new legislation to speed it up it needs just one thing authorized and responsible management and leadership in the government itself that seems so plain as not to need argument even a very small industrial effort needs that hat nobody would dream of starting one without that mr knudsen says that the public is sold to the necessity for speed and production but that industry and labor are asleep almost at the moment he was saying that another member of the rearmament advisory overhead mr nele nelson on was telling us that the trouble is that the public is apathetic asleep this is not to criticize these gentlemen they have done marvelous jobs of making without straw such bricks as we have manufactured the straw that management of a great effort needs is authority they got it but did anybody ever hear of any determined effort on their part to get it it is well known that there has been none in the absence of such an effort perhaps we should look twice at these indictments of the public of labor and of industry e specially especially when one of these authorities says that the public is to blame while the other feels that the public attitude is satisfactory but that industry and labor are the goats whenever a man or a group of men step into the drivers seat there is only one goat when the bus run it is the man at the controls if he get the right gasoline or has accepted a faulty accelerator it lie in in his mouth to blame either the passengers or the rest of the crew mr knudsen is right about the public attitude the public has been far ahead of government for defense from the very start ahead of both congress and the executive department it balked at nothing it is ready for any sacrifice As for labor and industry they are the public their response at such a time depends entirely upon government leadership of them they are the lead swing and heel horses of this team they can haul the load and put every ounce of their weight on the traces but they cant set the pace and direction without a guiding intelligence and inspiration to spark the effort there is no hanging back on the industrial side it has never been more willing and eager since world war I 1 the solution of our problem reside in words and gestures and laws and new strange and un american devices it resides in in work wo rk and common sense and competent leadership |