Til E NOM E NUGG ET
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Entered as second class matter October 14. 1943, at the postoffice
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Monday, February 1(», 1948
Nome ApprtM’iates WXLN
A QUESTTONNAIRE was distributed last week lo
cally from WXLN to assist the station in planning their
programs.
Many of us take the service of this army broadcast
for granted, not realizing just how much we would miss
it were we deprived of the privilege of a local station.
The station which had its start during the war to
keep the community alerted for quick and concerted
action and was maintained by volunteer citizens has
now fitted itself into the everyday pattern of our lives.
We take this opportunity of extending appreciation
to the Armed Forces Radio Service and the personnel
of WXLN who now make it possible for the continua
tion of a local radio station and the presentation of fine
programs every day of the year.
Wallace-Comiform Spearhead in U.S.A.
(By The Observer)
IT WOULD BE SHEER BLINDNESS to see in Henry
Wallace’s announced Third Party a purely American
domestic decision. To the contrary, it is a Moscow-dic
tated move. Tt forms part of the new nohcv of the K>em-1
lin characterized bv Jacques Duclos’ denunciation of
Earl Browder in 1946 and the creation of the Comin-i
form and Socinform in 1947.
Mr. Wallace’s Third Party is a wedge of the Comin-l
form into the very heart of American life on the eve of
Presidential elections, perhaps for bargaining purposes.
It is counted on by Moscow to become the American
outpost of the new Comintern and hence is considered
of crucial importance. According to reports, the Orbur
is in a great hurry and making all possible efforts that
the party be organized in time for the 1948 Presidential
elections.
On July 9, 1947, Pravda wrote: If it is decided to or
ganize a Third Party, that party will be ready to under
take an energetic campaign during the last months of
1948. The basis of the party will be the organization
“Progressive Citizens of America,” which will have the
support of the CIO and of the left wing intelligentsia.”
Pravda considered then that the formation of the Third
Party will be easily achieved in 27 states, more difficult
in 21 states. At that time, however, it did not anticipate
a Third Partv would come into being before the conven
tions of the Republican and Democratic parties.
Now Moscow seems indeed in a hurry to catapult Mr.
Wallace into the U. S. pre-election arena. The original
plan, as mentioned by Pravda, to have the Third Party
enter actively the Presidential race only in the latter
part of 1948, must have been revised in favor of imme
diate action. It seems correct to assume that the Mos
cow decision was influenced by the growing determin
ation among the American people and particularly
among members of Congress, to counteract the Com
munist menace. To paralyze this trend, Moscow may
have felt, an American arm of the Cominform must be
put into action right away.
Irrespective of the various reallignments on the left
ist chessboard Mr. Wallace’s announcement is produc
ing, there are several factors that overshadow all other
considerations. They seem to be as follows:
For the first time in history, Moscow succeeded in
bringing into the U. S. Presidential contest a party and
a candidate controlled by herself, who is a former vice
President of the United States and has been a member
of Presidential cabinets for many years. This is a seri
ous achievement and an unprecedented inroad into the
American political life.
The other result of Mr. Wallace’s candidacy is that
objective? of Soviet policy are for the first time being
WHO'S BEHIND THAT BUBBLE GUM ?
introduced into a Presidential campaign as avowed
goals of a non-Communist party. Irrespective of the
chances Mr. Wallace has, he is already now recognized
as an important factor in the election year, with whom
both national parties will obviously count. Thus,
through Mr. Wallace, Stalin will debate with top Amer
ican leaders and Presidential candidates on what is good
or bad for the United tSates.
From this is derived the third party danger of Mr.
Wallace’s party, that its platform of a “peace party”
may have a paralyzing influence on U. S. foreign policy.
Should his position grow strong, while the election cam
paign goes forward, the usual rivalry in pre-election
programs and slogans may acquire a tendency toward
appeasement rather than toward an increasingly firm
policy vis a vis Communism and Russia. After all, Mr.
Wallace reserved for himself the right to merge his fol
lowers with one of the national parties, should anv^of
them, according to his judgment assume a true “peace”
program. This is a cleverly devised bait.
Mr. Wallace’s announced platform is a repetition of
the Communist party line in 1939-40, when at the time
of Nazi-Soviet collaboration, the White House was pic
keted in protest against American intervention in Eu
rope. Also his answer to the European recovery pro
gram is a copy of Mr. Molotov’s suggestion made in
Paris last summer, before Russia withdrew from the
conference on aid to Europe. Another global UNRRA.
with sufficient Soviet influence to control distribution
of American goods by the new international body, this
is what both Mr. Molotov and Wallace are favoring.
This consensus of opinion cannot be fully coincidental.
According to liberal circles, the immediate effect of
the creation of the Third Party is the general clearing of
docks in the labor, liberal and fellow-travellers ranks.
Quick decisions are taken whether to cast one’s lot with
Moscow or with the United States. Mr. Wallace is the
dividing line. But, in spite of the healthy reaction of the
national CIO and AFL, in spite of the Wallace precipi
tated split in the American labor party and numerous
defections of fellow travelers, who formerly supported
him, Mr. Wallace is still a grave danger. Waving the
false banner of peace and capitalizing on his reputation
of an idealist, he can fool many. Only unreserved un
masking of the Third Party, as an enlarged Communist
Party, can be effective.
Perhaps Only “Maybe”
GENERAL MacARTHUR sent a message of greet
ing to the Wisconsin Centennial, writing the following:
“In the labyrinth of destiny’s pattern, there can be no
greater satisfaction than such as comes from the confi
dence t-eflected in the selection by one’s neighbors for
public service—no more challenging responsibility than
lies in the fulfillment of their trust.”
Political observers, studying that sentence from every
angle, conclude that although the general didn’t quite
say yes, he certainly didn’t say no.
0
Bombshell
In Greece
(By Barnet Nover)
It would be putting it mildly in
deed to say that official Washing
ton is gravely disturbed by the
latest developments in Greece.
The effeet here of the creation of
the so-called “Government of Free
Greece” under the Communist
leader, Markos Vafiades. has been
that of a bombshell.
This is not because the develop
ment came as a surprise. It did
p.ot. Something like what has hap
pened has been expected for some
time.
It became evident long ago that
there was nothing the Athens gov
ernment could do, no attitude of
moderation and conciliation it
could display toward the rebels in
the north, no gestures of amnesty,
! forbearance and forgiveness it
i
could make toward the rebels
would make any difference.
The Communist-led rebels were
' aginst the Tsaldaris government,
which they denounced as reaction
ary. They have been no less op
posed to the more moderate and
conciliatory Sophoulis regime.
There is, in fact, every reason to
believe that they would be against
any government in Greece which
, they did not or could not domin
ate as their fellow Communists
now dominate the governments of
all of Greece’s northern neighbors.
| All this would not have mat
■ tered if the Greek government
had been successful in liquidating
the guerrilla war in-the north. It
has failed to do so.
What is particularly significant
about the setting up of the Markos
; regime in the north is not so much
| the event itself but the timing of
, the move and the composition of
that regime.
Coming at this time—on the eve
of the great debate in the United
States Congress on the European
recovery program—it has for Rus
: sia very considerable nuisance
value.
It means that on ton of the vast
sums this country is to be asked to
spend on behalf of western Europe
additional sums may be needed in
support of Greece. Possibly the
Kremlin is reckoning on the hope
and belief that the multiplication
of burdens which the American
people are being asked to assume
may frighten Congress into a
strong isolationist move.
I In any event, it is evident from
i the action of her Greek stooges
that the mood of intransigeance
which Russia displayed at the re
cent London conference is still the
! mood of the Kremlin:
It is interesting to note that
; the Markos regime is wholly com
j munist in composition. The pre
i tense of a coalition regime made
up of various “democratic” ele
! ments, the kind of a pretense
! which was implicit in the setting
up of the various Fatherland
| Front governments in the Bal
| kans, was dispensed with at this
time.
Official Washington is not yet
I persuaded that recognition of the
Greek rebel regime by Greece’s
northern neighbors and possibly
Russia, as well, is imminent. The
consensus is that this will depend
on whether the rebels succeed in
capturing any important Greek
cenetr in the fierce fighting now
taking place. Such a center is
needed to give the rebels even the
pretense of being the legitimate
Grek govrnment.
! If, as the French Communist or
gan L’Humanite, predicted on
Christmas day, early recognition
of the Markos regime by the Sov
iet satellites occurs, the latter may