THE MICHIGAN DAILY Politics and Inflation SINCE THE middle of January when wage and price controls were imposed, this country has been entertaining some rather false and unrealistic ideas that inflation can be stopped without losing political friends. It has been agreed that the wage-price freeze method of stopping inflation is on- ly a temporary means for tackling the decreasing value of the dollar. If it is rigidly enforced our barometers of the economy (Consumers Price Index, for example) may indicate that the inflation- ary spiral has been checked. However, if the government permits lax spending po- licies, the pressure of deficit spending will build up and only postpone inflation un- til the wage and price controls are remov- ed. The administration's current program to stop "inflation is failing because it attempts to hold the line on prices and wages and at the same time keeps peace with political supporters. Soon after the wage and price freeze had been announced, the administra- tion began granting exceptions. First the coal miners got their $1.60 per day raise, agricultural products covered by parity were allowed to go untouched by controls, wage increases were allowed for meritless work and length of service, escalator clauses were kept intact and the Federal Reserve was forced against its better judgment to keep government securities at an unrealistically low interest rate. As a result of the administration's at- tempt to adjust "inequalities" for the farmer and labor, inequalities are being created for other groups, such as those with fixed in- comes. Fundamentally, the problem is due to an inequality in the volume of goods and serv- ices on one hand and purchasing power on the other. A desired equilibrium can be achieved by either increasing the productiv- ity or decreasing the purchasing power. The changes of increasing productivity seem rather doubtful for the immediate short run. Our economy geared to wartime is near its peak now and any immediate increases are hard to picture. However, we can at- tack the problem from the purchasing pow- er side, Three possible measures for a successful fight against inflation might be: 1. A drastic tax program which will hon- estly try to finance the mobilization on a' pay-as-we-go basis. 2. An end to the favoritism that the ad- ministration has been showing special poli- tical and voting groups by making a price and wage freeze, a true price and wage freeze. 3. An end to the unrealistic Treasury De- partment policy of pegging federal securities at a low interest rate. These points are not entirely wise from the political standpoint, nor are they de- signed to be politically wise. They are de- signed to curb the inflationary trend in the surest and most equitable way. -Ron Watts ORIS FLEESON: RFC Feud WASHINGTON-There are more pots call- ing more kettles black in the current luarrel over the Reconstruction Finance Corporation than Washington has seen in many years. The Congress is investigating White House influence on the RFC. The White House has retaliated by investigating congressional influence on the RFC. Conservative senators view with alarm the administration's power to name RFC lirectors and sway their loan rulings. New Dealers accurately reply that the most vocal lefenders of the free-enterprise system- Including banks, insurance companies, and he Republican National Chairman, Guy Gabrielson-have tapped the RFC till for by far the greatest amounts of the taxpay- ers' money. Members of Congress piously berate the RFC bureaucrats for failing to withstand influence directed against them. At a word rom the White House RFC produces a housand letters from members of congress DRAMA THE RESPECTABLE PROSTITUTE by Jean Paul Sartre and THE RED PEP. PERS by Noel Coward. Presented by The Arts Theater Club at 2092 East Wash- ington [HE ARTS- THEATER CLUB began its first series of plays last night with Sar- re's Respectable Prostitute and Noel Cow- rd's Red Peppers, and if the club keeps on his way it will doubtless prove one of the sappiest things to happen to drama in Ann krbor in a long, long time. There is not a great deal to be said about he Club's production of Coward's curtain alser. Sonya Raimi and Jerry Lepard were he Peppers, but without much volatility nd with a certain measure of inaudibility. esides, I am usually rendered uncomfort- ble in the presence of people imitating ockneys unless they can do it very well. ut with this behind them the players uckled down to the Big Chore, and deliv- red the entire thing with an intelligence nd enthusiasm which, if it can be sustain- d, will give play production in this town boot in its drooping bottom. The play itself is, as are most of Sartre's plays, so simply symbolic as to be almost allegorical. Here we have The Tradition Ln the persons of the senator and his son; over there are the Great Undecided, thinly veiled in the person of that old standby, the Honest Whore. Even the situation is a tired one: innocent southern Negro is pursued by supremacist lynch-mob. It is the people and what they say that ounts in this play--they are, mst of hem, eloquent and explicit. They can and do describe their emotions and de- ine their attitudes to a 'fare-the-well, md this is what gives the play its per- ;onal and immediate feeling, in spite of he kimple terms in which It is cast. In the roles .of the only two inarticulate rsons involved, the prostitute Lizzie and ie fugitive Negro, Joyce Edgar was strong ad sharp and Al Wall was brief but sub- antial. Miss Edgar, whom you may re- ember from an earlier Sartre play here, Losed Session, strikes me as likely to prove substantial support to the Club's future1 terprises. She is a good actress. The more prolix persons of the play, the nator and his son, were delivered by Dana car and Warren Pickett. Mr. Elcar, re- demanding attention to their constituents' pleas for aid. LAWYERS ATTACK the influence peddlers who neglected to drop in at some legal night school and get a degree so they could plead confidential relations between lawyer and client. The 5 percenters are preparing their own lists of lawyers here who haven't tried a case in court since they were sworn in at the bar but who wax very prosperous. Practically all hands are right. The dif- ficulty is that nobody is attacking the basic questions proposed by the hearing. One is the breakdown of the independent agencies and commissions, because the Truman administration does not furnish them leadership and strong members. Another is the showing that capitalist strongholds - banks, insurance companies, etc.'- are cutting their losses on bad loans by inducing the RFC to bail them out, in whole or in part. According to Senator Ful- bright, the First National Bank of Boston cut its losses on the Waltham Watch Co., via the loan Waltham arranged with RFC; Massachusetts Mutual Life and John Han- cock insurance companies got a similar hap- py issue from some mistakes in judgment when RFC loaned Texmass corporation the taxpayers' millions. This is true of other parts of the country. Be it said also that the labor unions cheer- fully put their pressure on to maintain bus- inesses that competition was sending to the wall. Labor unions worked effectively, for example, in the Waltham case. When the capitalists stop taking their risks at their own expense it is serious for them as well as a prime example of hyp- ocrisy in their attitude toward government spending and the new deal. Through the RFC they are ducking past errors of judg- ment. Their insistence in the current war contracts on amortization favors which all but wipe out their future risks is further evidence of impairment of that pioneer spirit which has been one of the great virtues of capitalism. Yet Senator Fulbright says plainly that he has been warned there is absolutely no hope of wiping out RFC. He adds that his subcommittee's only assignment and inter- est is to make it function better. The RFC has done good things. It can even plead the effective alibi: the net of RFC operations is a profit; it is in the black. Senators -from small states, the west and south especially, plead that it has per- formed an important social function in help- ing their sections to develop, including their many small businesses. Significantly, the Hoover Commission task force recommended abolition of the RFC. But the commission didn't. Perhaps the fact that RFC is in the black despite monumental errors of judgment proves that somebody somewhere is selling America short. That is a real subject for inquiry. A mendment Ramifications THOUGHTS OF DEMOCRACY never fill- ed a hungry man's stomach. But in the course of persuading nations such as France and Italy and the colonial coun- tries not to taste Communism, the United States' main emphasis has been that life wouldn't be worth living if it was at the cost of political democracy. It is undiluted hypocricy to ask people in nations threatened by rising internal Communism to follow' us on the demo- cratic road while in America that road is being narrowed. At the present the most obvious consequence of the passage of the new constitutional amendment is the con- fusion it will leave in the minds of the peoples whom America is trying to im- press with the glories of democracy. And, although limiting presidential ten- ure to two terms does not take away any great measure of our political democracy, it is a needless weakening of the right of the American people to choose their leader. The new amendment places an added load on the backs of State Department of- ficials trying to sell democracy abroad. Our emmisaries of democracy find the job al- ready complicated by numerous instances of inexplicable irrational behavior on our part. When pointing to the advantages of American democracy our salesmen are stopped cold by references to our color lines, poll taxes and increasing limita- tions on free expression of belief. And now the foreigner may wonder if it is al- so democratic to place a binding limitation on the tenure of presidents. Whether it is democratic for the will of future ma- jorities to be limited by the acts of poli- ticians blinded by revenge. It is high time that those who have their voice in government are made aware that if nations are to follow us on the democratic path, our democracy must be authentic. Ev- ery effort should be undertaken to make our democracy as pure as possible instead of going in the opposite direction. A syn- thetic democracy will have absolutely no appeal to the hungry peasant. -Paul Marx John Hopkins Pflan JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY has pro- posed a plan that can revolutionize the country's educational system, but one that may easily turn out to be a complete fizzle. The school's administration has out- lined a program' of study that would per- mit students to complete their university education at their own speed. Under the plan a fairly bright student would be able to graduate in four years with a master's degree. Each student would re- ceive individual consideration on his course of study-there would be no general re- quired courses. In a university the size and caliber of Johns Hopkins the plan has a good chance to be successful. But whether a larger school which puts less emphasis on specialized graduate work could make a go of the plan is questionable. To be possible in a large school a definite time limit would have to be imposed to pre- vent loafers from cluttering up the univer- sity while they proceed at a needlessly slow pace. More important would be the need for an outstanding counseling service that really would take an interest in the individual, rather than merely approving required courses as is done now. Perhaps this can- not be done with universities at their pres- ent size. But if some method can be worked out so that the Johns Hopkins idea can be put into effect throughout the country it would be a step toward a truly progressive education-one that is designed for the stu- dent. -Vernon Emerson. SUFFERI NG FRCVrt- ' FROSTBITE, CHI LBLANS? HOT UNDER THlE COLLAR?_ oi1 3*11, OL7] GOP~ that he was in the White House when ruthless barbarians threat- ened to overrun this world. Yes, the political smearers are rejoic- ing today, because they have suc- ceeded for a time, but they will never succeed in erasing from the minds of a free American people the story of a country squire from Hlyde Park, with a Harvard ac- cent, who never once failed the people, and who the people never failed!' -Eugene D. Mossner Capital Punishment . . To the Editor: IN RE grad student Adomian's non-intellectual dissertation on the virtues of capital punishment: May we proffer a few questions, and suggest answers for your con- sideration? 1. What is the basis or' back- ground for your so enlightening analysis of this social problem? Answer: Possibly your graduate studies in ballet-dancing and/or basket. weaving. 2. Since you are a strong advo- cate of the capital punishment philosophy, can you present sub- stantial, factual evidence (not emotional outbursts, please!) that capital punishment has been an effective deterrent where it is the law? Answer: The evidence (compil- ed statistical studies) shows no correlation between vindictive treatment of criminals and con- sistent lowering of the crime-rate. A humorous, but pathetic, exam- ple: In medieval England, the law would cut off one ear if an indi- vidual was convicted of a crime. Much of the population walked around with no ears. Moral: Even so fiendish a punishment was no deterrent for crimes less heinous than murder. 3. Following your emotional, non-sequitor reasoning (which says that non-capital punishment law doesn't bring back the dead victim, and therefore is useless, we ask: How do you propose to bring back the dead victim? Answer: Your reasoning leads to this conclusion - possibly through the capital punishment of the killer ... -Robert S. Ernstein, '53L Marvin L. Failer, '53L * * * Capital Punishment .. . To the Editor: q 'SGK t:5.--- - .. 009A 746 w~.IW+ $M4 Pe+, 4w Music Criticism .. . To the Editor: WHAT A pleasant surprise it was, to .read Louise Goss's in- telligent and constructive music criticism of the Cincinnati Sym- phony's concert! After the many violent and quite unnecessary antagonisms which your "regular" critic, Har- vey Gross, has aroused in readers in the past, it is refreshing to read a criticism not saturated with flimsy abstractions and meg- alomaniac value judgments. The true worth of musical cri- ticism, it seems to me, lies not so much in stimulating contro- versy, as it does in aiding the in- terested layman to form intelli- gent value judgments and to ac- quire a certain consistency in per- sonal preferences often we walk away from a concert with a va- gue feeling of something having been especially beautiful or not well-done, and we then welcome the guidance of the qualified cri- tic the next day, who helps to bring our thoughts into focus. Responsible criticism, backed up by valid and lucid reasoning, as demonstrated by Miss Goss is, therefore, a highly satisfying and long overdue change. -Paul Fairbrook (Editor's Note - We are pleased that reader Fairbrook liked Miss Goss's review, but would point out to him that she has been one of The Daily's "regular" music critics for the last year and one-half.) *w * * Capital Punishment -. - To the Editor: IN THE Michigan Daily of Feb- ruary 23, 1951, Professors John B. Waite, Roger Heyns and Don- ald Freedman declared their op- position to establishing the death penalty in Michigan. Professor Waite, a recognized authority in the field of criminal law, gave as his reason the argu- ment that the death penalty will not deter murderers from their crimes. He must, of course, have other reasons to support his ob- jection to the death penalty. If Professor Waite means that the death penalty will not prevent vi- olent, passionate murder then I agree with him. But I cannot in the absence of factual proof to, the contrary believe that it is not a strong deterent to deliberate planned murder. I don't believe we can support the anti-execution view on the grounds that it will protect the man who is convicted of a crime for which he is blameless. Mis- carriages of justice are the rare exception in our courts. Is it not just as possible that an innocent man may die while serving a life sentence as it is that he may die in the electric chair? In some cases psychologists like Professor Heyns may be able to rehabilitate murderers. Until the state is twilling to engage psychol- ogists and psychiatrists in the number necessary for this work, I cannot see how this argument should block present enactment of the death penalty. It would be foolish to argue that since not all murderers can be rehabilitated we should execute all killers. But is it not equally foolish to argue that because we may be able to' rehabilitate some murderers, no murderer should be executed? Granting for the sake of debate the value of psychology, should, we not try to provide this treat-, ment to those who need it before they commit murder? The as- signment of more psychologists and sdcial workers to our courts to work with first offenders and those who display anti-social atti- tudes would reap greater gains than "rehabilitating" the murder-, er serving a life sentence. In shortI I think that Professor Hyns should consider cause and not effect. I believe the sole issue is wheth- er we are going to allow murder- ers to live out their lives which .- f n.t '# XietteP4 TO THE EDITOR The Daily welcomes communications from its readers on matters of general interest, and will publish all letters which are signed by the writer and in good taste. Letters exceeding 300 words in length, defamatory or libelous letters, and letters which for any reason are not in good taste will be condensed, edited or withheld from publication at the discretion of the editors. may run vrom one o ouyears more or less in prison at the ADOMIAN'S letter of the 25th state's expense where they are of favoring capital punishment, value to no one, themselves in- showed little respect for the facts. cluded? I don't believe it neces- Judging the desirability of capi- sary to point out that liberal par- tal punishment to lie in its ef- ole boards have released into so- fectiveness in deterring major ciety murderers who have served crimes, the following evidence is but 15 or 20 years of their life available. ,sentences and who have commit- Quoting, from Crime and Its ted murder or other crimes again. Treatment by Wood and Waite, Only about six of the 48 states pp476-477: do not have the death penalty. I "Statistics -of homocide rates in rather think that it is Michigan the United States, as compiled for and not the great majority of the different states by the Bureau states who are out of step on this of the Census, and covering a per- matter. iod of ten years (1919-1928) ap- --Chester J. Byrns pear to indicate that capital pun- * * * ishment is. in no way a deterrent New Amendment to murder. On the conwary, it is s h o w n conclusively that states To the Editor: which put their criminals to death . . . . The figures are 8.3 THE REPUBLICANS have never per 100,000 for a ten-year aver- forgiven Franklin D. Roosevelt; age homicide rate in the capital for running for a third term. Now, punishment states, as over against they supposedly have revenged his a rate of 3.6 in the non-capital act by passing an Amendment to punishment states." Considering the Constitution of the United just our own area, "Among mid- States, forbidding a President to western states the ten-year aver- run for a third term in the White age homicide rate for four that House. How stupid! The Eighti- have the death penalty was 8.15, eth Congress which passed this while that for four non-capital bill and the state legislatures + punishment states was 4.3 per which ratified the amendment 100,000 - about half as large. have not- only limited the Presi- Moreover, the figures indicate dent of the United States, but that there was an increasing have limited the voters as well trend of homicide during the de- from electing the man of their cade in' many of the states, which choice. was decidedly sharper for those I am not one to hold that the states that attempt to curb mur- Constitution does not need alter- der by legal killing." The evidence ation. Sound and constructive is similar for other regions of the change of our laws makes for pro- country, and for cities matched gress, but legislation such as this according to size. recently passed amendment is -Thelma Batten neither sound or constructive. It * * * arose only from prejudiced minds who thought that by this amend- Adomain Replies * ment they might yet take one To the Editor: more slap at our late President. President Truman said in 1948 FULLY expected when I wrote that the Eightieth Congress was my views concerning capital a "good-for-nothing Congress." punishment that some student This fact is becoming clearer ev- would answer logic with emotion, ery day, for it was this Congress and reason with abuse, invective, which initiated the 22nd amend- and sarcasm. ment instead of doing something Mr. Helmrich, your very first worthwhile. But I am quite confi- sentence is false. Those were not dent that someday this Amend- my words. A good undemocratic ment will be repealed by thinking method of debate is to make your lawmakers who will have some- opponent seem like a beast in one thing more to do in times of Na- way or another and this is your tional peril than play silly politi- method of discussion. You ex- cal tricks on the American public. ceeded my anticipation however, And all the more confident am Mr. Helmrich. I hardly thought I that despite all the efforts of all anyone would g e t hysterical the haters of the 32nd President enough to cloud the issue as you of this nation, that men, genera- did and to extend frivolous name- tions from now, will honor and calling to implying that I am a respect the name of Franklin De- Nazi or a Communist. I ioted lano Roosevelt in every country eight examples of name-calling on earth, and they will thank God and slander. Why not call. me i Looking Back Gulantics 35 YEARS AGO PRESIDENT WILSON called on the coun- try-to support him against efforts being made in Congress to abridge the rights of Americans to travel on the high seas be- cause of the German submarine menace. Return T HE UNIVERSITY'S largeness has tri- .umphed again over the student body. With numerous events scheduled for the weekend, many people overlooked Gul- antics. They've been regretting it ever since. The show was very successful-some of the best campus talent in years was un- covered-and three members of the faculty also joined in the fun. But it only ran one night. Agreed, with prizes given for the winners, there would be no competitive element the 20 YEARS AGO WITH VIGOR and emphasis the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Eighteenth Amendment, transfering the battle of the liquor laws to the field of re- vision or repeal. * * * 10 YEARS AGO THE BRITISH announced the capture of the capital of Italian Somaliland, and unofficially claimed effective control of the BARNABY Your Fairy Godfather decided not to pursue those robbers after all, m'boy when their car hit eighty. We Private Gus was I hated to disturb the household, little on your boy, but I tore my last clean sheet. And veranda, tivondered 'if my laundry is ready yet-