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or:

ing that the CCF
hands of the Tories,
-detriment of the
Ontario, warns us
too many people be
| the phoney, propa-
I: GCF it will be hi-
lay we go for the
the federal election:
Stop and remember

‘> of their ivory tow-
-sive super-socialism
a to unite with the
; progressive forces
ve licked the Tories,

clear where the
‘he Tory victory be-

ist a short two weeks
if. J. Coldwell, still
the warm glow of
‘Ontario, beaming a-
midst of his provine-
jon colleagues in BC,
iz the sword of CCF
n one hand and a
election promises in
stood like a popinjay
lroom of the Hotel
and cried defiance
ces of all who dared
that the CCF land-
1 sweep us to CCF
“osperity ‘in the fed-
“ns.

J. Coldwell, -political

‘aes success in poli-
jolteacher turned
strutted and breath-
y fire and brimstone

2 hundred
‘rents salaamed and

ys of the political
ickle apparently, and
B. Jolliffe, the CCF

wounds,
zat the people of On-
= pay heavily for
aim and his party in-
tical ashean, his spir-
‘er, Coldwell, makes

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YOU THINK?

considerably humbled pleas to
the electorate to send “many,
many. CCF’ers to the next par-
liament.”

It is a rather stunned silence
interspersed with
squawks that “everyone done us
wrong” that come from the
power-bloated CCF leaders to-
day: Ignoring the obvious les-
son ofthe Ontario election they
continue to try to salvage
something of their political

\prestige from the ruins of On-

tario. 5;

It is not enough to hurl barbs
at the CCF for the debacle they
suffered in Ontario. It is time,
and there is still time, to rum-

inate the wreckage, to consider.

what can prevent the CCF-en-
gineered catastrophe from hap-
pening to all of Canada. The
labor vote must rally around a
clear-headed yjrogram of co-
alition to defeat. the Tories.
The CCF has lost the confidence
of the people by its stupidly
partisan line. There ‘still re-

‘main the tried and true leaders”

of the working class, the Labor-
Progressive candidates. The

* working class vote must rally

around :trusted leaders of the
people, who have proven by
their history that they deserve
to represent the people. The
Labor - Progressive candidates
are the only candidates who
will ensure the people a strong

‘voice, speaking for their inter-

ests, in the next government.
JAMES GARSTANG, -
Vancouver.

Housing

To the Editor:

While the federal election
campaign has. occupied the
stage for the better part of the
last six weeks, a basic problem
has continued to exist in Van-
couver. This problem is hous-
ing. The city. council, ‘well
known for their procrastination
in’ this regard, have more-or-
less been given a momentary
respite from any action on
housing. :

|

| jeader” in Ontario
licks his

|

:

pitiful.

|
if
|

u're Playing with Dynamite, Coldwell

PAGE 5 — PACIFIC ADVOCATE

It is to be remembered that
the influx of returned service-
men, coupled with the opening
of tourist trade, and still in-
ereasing worker’s population,

‘are making Vancouver’s hous-

ing situation loom more and
more important: The situation
is fast approaching the critical
stage,

The Trades and Labor Coun-
cil, Vancouver Labor Council,
Citizen’s Rehabilitation Com-
mittee, and other groups have
already underlined the need for
a realistic housing program for
Vaneouver. Such a program
must be put into operation im-
mediately.

The citizens of Vancouver
must rally around those organ-
izations who are offering lead-
ership in ‘this question so that
immediate action may be effect-
ed to alleviate a grave condi-

‘tion.

JAMES FURLOW.

Racism

To the Editor:

The Progressive Conserva-
tives, as part of their election
propaganda, have raised a very
dangerous issue. Their assaults
on the Japanese are tinged with
near-fascist racist jingoism of
the worst type, and constitute
a danger to our basic .concept
of democracy, While the Japan-
ese issue in itself is well left
until after the war for solution,
the dangers arising from any
form of race-baiting is not iso-
lated to any single racial group.

It is a short step from Jap-
baiting to Jew-baiting. And as
short a step from Jew-baiting
to red-baiting. The full effects
of the Tory campaign against
the Japanese might well be felt
in the trade union movement.

It is to be remembered that
Hitler, in making the Jews his
first scapegoat, travelled in
easy stages to attaks on all
and sundry. None were spared
in his gangster attacks on all
who opposed his ruthless rise
to power, and the high-powered
ears that took “enemies of the
state” to murder in the night
and lime-filled graves carried
Jews and Germans, reds and
liberals.

Trade unionists and progres-
sive people mtst be on their
guard against racist attacks in
any form. When a campaign is
conducted against any racial,
religious or national group by
another group there is some-
thing about that campaign that
smells strongly of fascism.
Racism is fascism regardless of
whom the butt of the attack
may be.

The French government has
offered a strong lead by con-
ducting a judicial investigation
into all anti-semitic organiza-
tions and have banned these or-
anizations from further opera-
tion. Our next government will
strike a strong blow for na-
tional unity and future har-
mony if it passes legislation to
prevent the persecution of any
person or persons for reason of
race, color, creed or national
origin. Such legislation must be
provided with teeth to make it
effective. The Soviet Union has
set the example; it is necessary
for all forward-looking coun-
tries to follow suit.

_ FRED WIELMOT.

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Election Wisdom

EvEsY election has its humorous interludes which add to the general
fund of the world’s hilarity. Among the stolid, phlermatic folks
who fill out their span of life im the British Columbia coast jungle,
however, the humor is not so effervescent as, let us say, in Hollywood,

- where losers of election bets may have to push a peanut with their

noses for two blocks or more along Sunset Boulevard or execute some
other equally elevating performance, but then election punters here do
not have the same yen for publicity as the inhabitants of that great
metropolitan center of American culture.

Here, the humor partakes more of the nature of tragedy. The line
between these two qualities is not very wide. It is like the capillary
line of demarcation between the needle-wit and the nit-wit which makes
one of Shakespeare’s characters proclaim that “Madness is akin to
genius.”

While listening to a radio commentary last Sunday evening, I
heard one of our high-priced columnists advance a “Season” for his
political preferences that was a great source of merriment among
socialists, even in the early days of B.C. polities; one which was only
credited to “political morons,” people whose sole interest in politics
was the casting of their ballot on election day. :

I laughed out loud. It semed so funny. On second thoughts, however,
the tragic aspect supervened and I became saddened almost to the verge
of tears. It was heart-breaking to think that a man who is looked upon
by many as one of the most enlightened political analysts in our midst
should have to be placed in the class referred to above. But that is
just what it amounted to.

Elmore Philpott was the speaker and the statement that knocked
the wind out of me was the old bromide, “I don't believe in losing my
vote.”

“’Political Morons”

Just what does that mean? It means that Philpott, who writes
about politics almost every day in the year, would rather vote for
something he does not want and get it, than vote for something he
does want and not get it, providing he can boast afterwards that he
backed a winner, just like the “political morons” who take no imterest
in politics, who know nothing about programs, have no conception about
the consequences that may follow from the way they mark their ballots
and who will show no further interest in politics until next election daly,
when they will do it ali over again.

What are the consequences of this line of reasoning, if it can be called
reasoning? In a horse race it is all right to want to back a winner or
to put it the other way, “not to lose two dollars.” But politics is another
thing!

There may have been occasions when, the dice being loaded, the
most reactionary elements were indicated as the surest of election. Fhe
man who does not believe in ‘losing his vote” would be committed to
vote for candidates of that reaction, will vete for them, even if they
were Hitler and Mussolini, for both of these ghouls were at one time
in the position when they appeared to be surest of election. And that
certainly would not .be the lesser of two evils!

Philpott has done some very good work in breaking down prejudices
against the progressive forces and their program particularly in the
lad against fascism, but see where his fear of losing his vote has led

im.

He recommends his following, which is extensive, to vote for a
selection of B.C. candidates which he announced in the same broadcast.
One of these is a Tory, two are Liberals, one Labor-Progressive, one
Independent Labor one Indepndent CCF, and the rest are CCF.

He does not propose or advocate, or claim that they have, a comr
mon program. The lumping of these candidates together is unprincipled.
It is done on the basis that the people who vote for them will not
be “losing their votes.”

Since he is so catholic in his choice as to include almost all parties
naturally I can agree with some of them, not, however, because I don’t
want to lose my vote, but for the simple reason that they stand for the
things I want—and they are the only three candidates on Philpott’s.
list who are in favor of uniting the progressive elements in Canadian
life against the possibility of Tory-impoved fascism.

Philpott only had one Progressive-Conservative on his slate. Had
he waited until after the outcome of the Ontario elections and seen
the results of the dog-in-the-manger, anti-unity policy of the CCK, he
might have had some more Tories on his list and a few less CCF’ ers.

“Out of the Mouths”

On a MacMillan club quiz program a few days previously, a cons-
petition between two elementary schools was staged. The schools were
Tecumseh and Strathcona, both dyed-in-the-wool working class. The
questions dealt with in the broadcast related to the elections. One
little Chinese girl from Strathcona was asked to name a major Canadian
political party. Without hesitation and spiritedly she answered, “The
Labor-Progressive Party.”

The manner in which that little Chinese: elementary school. girl
answered that question showed she had a better understanding of a
political set-up than all his experience has taught Philpott, whose lone-
wolf tacties are not only futile but a menace in a situation such as we
find ourselves in at this time.

As for myself, I always “lost my vote” voting for something I
wanted, except on two occasions when, in the mistaken belief that the
CCF might be made the nucleus for a powerful united front movement
in Canada, I voted for CCF candidates. The CCF’ers were elected but
I really did lose my vote on these two occasions.

In this election I will vote Labor-Progressive in Vancouver East.
If there were no LPP candidates I would not vote for MacInnis anyway.
IT remember when he was an alderman in the City Council and the police
were clubbing the unemployed im the streets; MacInnis said in the
Council chamber, “I have no criticism of the way the chief of police is
handling the unemployed.”
SATURDAY, JUNE 9, 1945.

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