Show kahleen norris sa Ys clial price america bell service ap il gather the youngsters into your house for or debate and coffee and doughnuts once a week let them know that under their own constitution they can introduce any changes they wish that it is is the miracle and privilege of 01 democracy that it can change and develop with the chan changing gilig world worl by KATHLEEN NORRIS can only D DEMOCRACY work if the members of that democracy work for it democracy can only be proved a success among the varied types of government the world has tried and is trying it if ayery one of us wakes herself out of the slumber of centuries and and as asks ks herself what democracy is and whether its a good thing an and d whether its worth fighting for and when I 1 say fighting I 1 dont dolit mean with guns and bombs for my own profound belief after more than 20 years active service in the cause of world peace is that no gun and no bomb e ver ever did anything to defend democracy or establish anything else that is good I 1 mean fighting with gods own weapons of brotherhood service sympathy understanding these are wisdom understanding counsel fortitude knowledge piety and fear ear of the lord all of which are the true weapons and the powers of evil can never stand against them democracy challenged our fight tor for democracy must go on in our homes through the little dally daily job that we have to meet and solve and unless it succeeds there it is going to tall fail in the world for never since its very beginnings has it been challenged as it is challenged today A democracy which in our form is a republic means that the people rule they look at their candidates they decide which ones they like and they put those men into power fascism nazi ism and communism mean that the people are told wh what at to do eat spend wear think and say ay r monarchies and czarisms Czari sms and oriental rule also meant this the thin little fringe ot of places and peoples pe 0 who believe to in democracy is diminishing now to a very small percentage indeed unless we defend it it will vanish from the earth good men and wise men from the days of the greeks and romans have bien been dreaming of world republicanism lican ism world democracy plato dreamed of it sir thomas more dreamed of it washington saw the great vision and through bewilderment and desertions treason and poverty and failure and despair brought it to birth we possess it what Is freedom worth to you but how much do you care about it how much is it worth to you that america shall go on as america free of speech free of press free to worship god to in her own way do you care enough to read one or two books of the thousands that are being circulated now telling you what other countries are doing and how their ways differ from ours are you willing to say some evening evenin g in the near future george lets go to that meeting or bir that rally c or r that lecture or that debate and see what these candidates are like and what they are promising and planning do you care enough to know the answers to your childrens questions when those th children ildren speak airily of the superior methods of russia or slightingly of thi the greatest country in the world which Is their own it you dont if you still think the most absorbing problems in the world are those of getting the spare room blankets cleaned and bearg beir sure the lower piecrust pie crust is good and crisp th then enyou you dont deserve to be an american you dont deserve to live in a democracy and youre oure do STICK IN I 1 your most mos absorbing problems in the we world are those of at meal planning getting the attic cleaned or gecine seeing that hat young teddy wears his rubbers then you dont deserve to live m in a democracy at least the way kathie kathleen en 1 norris r r i feels her view is is that you should u 1 d exercise your 0 ur mind study read discuss I 1 digest i ge 1 I the he world changes going on about you dont miss miss this straight to the point argument ing your bit to aid the totalitarian governments every voice needed dont think that because you live on a limited income in a rented house and run just a little over the budget every month that your voice needed and valuable great national changes dont necessarily come from privileged men lincoln napoleon stalin mussolini hitler and countless others knew the sharp touch of poverty and lived the first third of their lives in obscurity the reason the dictators have gained so strong a hold is because nine tenths of the men and women they rule are abysmally ignorant of what is going on of their own rights and powers dont keep yourself in that group unless you want to see our own country menaced men nc ed by b Y the forces that tha t are honestly convinced that th atthe the dictators way is the right way our share of citizenship now as american women Is to demonstrate just what is true democracy to perfect our own system it Is for us to do away with unemployment men t poverty slums to discourage false philosophies to the faith of our great forefathers it if you can do that tor for the smallest spot in the smallest of our towns or villages you will be doing an incalculable service to america the ways of doing it are infinite first line of defense study unemployment and housing and hospitalization and sanitation in your own community for instance find out why youngsters in high sc school hool and college are taking to european ideas gather the youngsters into your house tor for debate a and 11 d coffee and doughnuts once a week stop lamenting that undergraduate morals are something cle deplorable p borab I 1 e and the half baked communism those children are talking I 1 is 8 really frightening and do something about it let them know that un under der their own constitution they can cintr introduce aduce any changes they wish that it is is the miracle and privilege of dem democracy oc that it can change and develop w with ith the changing world women who are unwilling to make this effort to uproot themselves from the age old laziness of not thinking or acting at all in national and international affairs women who dont know the names of f their representatives in washington washington nor how those representatives are voting on questions of vital importance to every wife and mother be surprised or horrified if american democracy really does totter under oppression from abroad wax wai naturally destroys democracy for the time being the individual cannot have any opinion in war he obeys and he does nothing but obey he serves in the ranks or in the munitions factories he kills I 1 is woun wounded ded dies without one mom moment e nt of freedom this Is inevitable A plan necessary but when the wars are over and someday they will be ended then it will be tor for us to build a new amei lea ica even as they will have to begin to rebuild shattered europe and that will be the time tor for us to decide between a dictator who will ten tell us ui that he knows exec exactly aly what we must do or follow a wise and sale safe democratic plan of our own |