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CACHE YOUR
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THE
MODERN WAY
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SFRSADS PICKLES . SAUCES CHEESE
COOPERATIONS TRUE
AIM
( Written by Oscar W, Cooley in reply to an
article by Ottar T/rglum on "What is a
Cooperative?" )
/s one who is concerned with Co-operative
publicity, I am not very happy about Otter
Tirglum's definition of n cooperative—
especially with his implication that the
ultimate objectives of cooperation and
socialism ere the seme. He see both co
operation and socialism as "production for
usei" Thus their goals are the same, he
reasons, although their methods are ad
mittedly different.
But their goals are not the 3eno, The dif
ference is vital, especially in these
times. Socialism aims at the establishment
of an order in which r. 11 economic activity
is planned and coitrollod by a single,
central authority, either the state or some
similar agency, In short, it aims at mon
opoly? benevolent monopoly, perhaps, but
monopoly nevertheless.
Cooperation has no such aim. Indeed, mon
opoly of any kind is the very opposite of
what cooperatives are seeking. Coopera
tives are established to do a job and to
do it better than any other form of enter
prise can. That implies a contest--"oomp
itition for excellence," Dr, J.P. Yfarbasse
cells it—between cooperative, and non-co
pnrative business,. Socialists don't be
lieve in that kind of contest'; they feel
chat they know how our e'eonomy should be
organised and that no further experimental,
tion is necessary.
Cont. from column 1.
Freedom is tho very essence of cooperation*
Cooper"tivos can be established only in a
vsociety where people are free to choose
what kind of business organization they
want to produce *hd distribute their goods.
Totalitarianism of any kind, whether es
tablished by bullets or by ballots,'snuffs
'out cooperation because it snuffs out the
freedom of choice. This has bdSn’demwn
strated under all the totalitarian regimes,
[Democratic socialists are infatuated with
"majority rule"; they would have the' ma
jority. rule our economic as well as our
political affairs. Today in America the
great majority are voting, through their
patronage, for non-cooDerativo business.
If this v«te of the majority wore enforced
upon tho country, all cooperatives would
be ruled out of tho picture.
Fortunetoly, the U«S. Constitution sets up
o system in which majority rule is balanced
against individual freedom. Political
matters are decidec/by majority vote, but
the individual, whether ha be of the ma-.
jority or of the minority, is guaranteed
the freedom to express himself, to assemble
with his follows and form voluntary organ
izations, to own property and so on. With
out these freedoms, guaranteed in the'Bill
of lights, America never would have had
a cooperative movemont, Cooperation is
truly a child of the Bill of ttights.
Under socialism the Bill1 of Rights surely
would wither away, for a centrally planned
and controlled economy coul'd not permit
people to s ten outside the plan and sot
up businesses, which would compete with it.
By a long flight of the imagination, ope
; can conceive of a time when everybody will
turn voluntarily and freely to the cooper
ative way of busines beoause they prefer
it, Ehren if such a stBte of'100 per cent
cooperation cane.to pass, the freodom to
set up and to patronize non-cooperative
business would still hc-ve to remain, ■ * •
unless cooperation were to give up its
philosophy of voluntarism, in which case
it would no- longer.be cooperation but
socia lism*.
•'ccoording to Mr, Tirglun, cooperation ns
well as-socialism believes in "production
for use." The phrase "production for use,
not for profit" neons less than socialists
would hare us believe. A business nan
producing patent .medicine- must make b.
medicine thn.t consumers will want to use,
otherwise he will not be able' to sell it
and make e profit. According t'o the soci*
nlists, he will'make the pobrest medicine
he can get ewoy with and still sell,
'Put I have seen--os Mr, Tirglum probably
has also —patent medicine on the shelves
of cooperative stores, too.
Cent, on page 15