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Show Farm, Business 2nd Labor Leaders Should Be Consu'tcd uy Lawmakers, Says C. E. Wilson A plan to utilize the knowledge, experience and service of lenders in business, agriculture and labor to aid Congress in writing fair and constructive laws is proposed by CHARLES E. WILSON Charles E. Wilson, president, General Gen-eral Electric Company, in an analysis .of economic control and political freedom prepared for the American Iron and Steel Institute. "We are more interested," he wrote, "in creating new wealth for all the people than in dividing what there is, a luxury which only a state-managed economy can bestow upon its children." Blaming "tinkering in high places" tor the present situation in which many manufacturers, and other business men have "no alternative alter-native but to increase wages and kick prices a little higher in order to ball out," Mr. Wilson criticised the principal distortion In the price structure. "In somewhat roundabout fashion," fash-ion," Mr. Wilson told the Iron and Steel Institute, "we have come to a situation in our national life important im-portant to management and labor, vendor and vendee, public servant and private enterpriser. It is this: Are we to purchase social stability. i a more equitable distribution of wealth, and insurance against the hazards of unemployment, sickness and other unhappy by-products of a non-interference economy by giving giv-ing up a large chunk of our traditional tradi-tional freedom and independence in favor of a planned and controlled con-trolled economy?" Stating that the nation has experienced ex-perienced the preliminary and conditioning con-ditioning doses of planned economy and after a decent interval rejected re-jected them at the polls and elsewhere else-where Mr. Wilson continued: "We do not want to turn away from the problems of inflation, housing, agriculture, depression and unemployment, the perils of unregulated industrial disorders, the benefits of constructive unionism, union-ism, the question of universal military mili-tary service, regulation of atomic energy projects, financial and Investment In-vestment safeguards. from any of the things which will help more Americans live longer, healthier, safer, more comfortable, more efficient, ef-ficient, prosperous and useful lives. We want to eat our cake and have it." The General Electric executive said we need "government in the modern economic picture, but government's gov-ernment's participation must be by law, not by executive whim." Government Gov-ernment should participate, he said, as an enforcer, not as a petty tyrant. Stating that we have right to expect only the virtues of common sense, fairness, and respect for law in our national law makers, Mr. Wilson declared that private citizens citi-zens owe them a duty to supply expert advice and counsel in special spe-cial fields. It is vital, he said, that some form of continuous conference confer-ence be set up at which non-governmental leaders in business, agriculture agri-culture and labor will sit with representatives of the proper committees com-mittees of House and Senate, and with access to the statistics and knowledge of governmental departments depart-ments assist the legislative branch in writing the laws. He stressed that such a conference would be "advisory and unofficial, but extremely ex-tremely practical and helpful." |
