to

Pus spring, when I was in

Copenhagen, a Danish girl
Said to me: “Everbody’s talk-
Ing about war, and I have three
children. ‘The papers write that
it’s the Russians’ fault, they
Want to destroy the American
Way of life. I don’t live the Rus-
Sian way. I live my own life. I
don’t say it’s anything special,
but I don’t want anybody to stop
Me. I don’t understand any-

thing’ about politics, but this
Can’t go-on.', , .”

“This can’t go on... .”” These
Words wake an echo in every-
One. It may be that during the
Past years the danger of war
has not increased; it has also
Not grown less. When the doc-
tor says of a man exhausted by
4 long illness that his condition
Shows no change, this is ground
for concern. Not only is the war
°f which a handful of criminals
dream qreadful—dreadful like-
Wise the fervor of waiting, the

Mutual mistrust, the lies, the

hatred, the blank walls cutting
Off one people from another, the
Clash of arms, the younger gen-
€fation growing up haphazard,
the death-dealing
Tanged against the increasing
defenselessness of man.

inventions

Every expression can be in-
terpreted variously, but‘it ap-
Dears there is no expression that
admits of so many or so varied

nterpretations as “way of life.’’-

or President Truman, the Am-
€rican way of dife is the policy
Sf the state department or the
Mtrigues of the Pentagon, For
he plain American citizen the
“oncept “American way of life’’
S the life he likes, work, family,

al automobile, American foot-

all, jazz, an exciting film, a

preech in the club or a sermon
. church, fun on Sunday and
8res on Monday.

_ Every person has a right to
like or dislike such a way of
life, to rate it high or to rate it
low, but if this way of life
Dleages the American nobody has
"ny right to interfere with it.
Vt nobody is interfering with

ating millions of plain Ameri-
Ns, the expression “American
ae Of life’ is associated with
Teamlined automobiles and
ai Toads, prefabricated’ houses,
*trigerators and television sets
the ether he owns these or sees
Bihin: in the shops, with the pos-
: llity of shaking hands with
Senator or even with the presi-
es with an easy unaffected-
hae with the Sunday idealism
Modifies the business ruth-
Shess of every day, with demo-

c
‘atic manners that smooth over

S

ila! inequality, with the fan-

oid of a lucky chance that may
Usform the homeless beggar
&N all-powerful millionaire.

a is time the plain American
Ud understand that the Rus-
S are not massing to deprive

sere | || |

POONA) A 2

_Let’s talk
things over

Nya Ehrenburg is shown making a broadcast during his visit
to the U.S. and Canada following the war,

ILYA EHRENBURG makes an appeal to
Americans to ‘avoid the peril of war...
sit down at one table and come fo ferms’

NVE)) POOR Ue LHL EY CTS

him of his Ford, that the Chinese
have no intention of meddling
with television programs in the
JSA, that the Koreans do not
lust after the Smith’s refrigera-
tor, that the Poles are uncon-
cerned whether the aforesaid Mr.
Smith shakes or does not shake
the hand of Dulles or even Tru-
man, and into the bargain
dreams of making not only mil-
lions but billions.

@ : 7
cherishes its

Every, people
way of life. The plain Ameri-
can, who likes the American way
of life, must respect the man-
customs, tastes of

ners, laws, :
You cannot inoc-

other peoples.
ulate an ideology with a bomb.

I do not know to whose taste
may be the regime of Syngman
Rhee, against which even the
ministers he nominates rise in
But let us assume that
this regime arouses pleasure in
certain Americans. Very well,
they have the right to praise.
him, but, they will be wrong if

revolt.

‘they reckon that burning Pyong-

yang with napalm will convince
its inhabitants of the superiority
of the American way of life.

I have been to America; much
I liked, and much I didn’t like.
I have met Americans who have,

been to my country; much they
liked, and much they didn’t like.
There are things that can be
argued about and from argu-
ment, it is said, is born truth.

The American authorities de-
clare every few days that they
Go not like the system in the
Soviet Union. That’s their busi-
ness, To us, Soviet people, there
is much in America itself we
find distasteful; for example, we
frankly wish that Americans
disliked. black deeds and not
black skins—that they respect-

. .
LULL EMO EU MOT EE Si Str OO 01 gt 90) et M0) tT dt att at nd nd at att

ed the dollar a bit less and men
a bit more.

However, that’s the Ameri-
cans’ own business. The plain
American must understand that
it is impossible, in the name of
his own liberty, real or fancied,

to try and deprive other peo-
ples of their liberty.
The “Voice of America’’ an-

nounces regularly to all and
sundry that in America-has been
set up a “‘Society for the Liber-
ation of Russia,’ with a man at
its head who only recently was

‘U.S. ambassador in Moscow. In

my country there is not and
could not be a Society for the
Liberation of America. However
much we may desire the elimin-
ation of race discrimination in
the -USA, we know that this de-
pends not on the growth of So-
viet armaments but on _ the
growth of the American con-
science,

Hitler, too, talked of “‘liberat-

ing Russia.”” He wanted to lib-
erate Russia from the Russians.
The plain American should be-
think himself whither leads the
greed of the deceived or ‘the
rivalry of the deceived,

e *
You have a right to choose

that way of life which pleases

‘you, you have a right to choose

between Democrat and Republi-
can, between psychoanalysis and
physiotherapy, between two box-
ers or two film stars, between
the Rocky Mountain prairies or
the Florida beaches, but you
have not a right to choose be-
tween war and peace. No

_ foreigner will -call on you “to

answer for voting for one or an-

other president, for this or that
law, but all the peoples of the
world will hold you responsible,
though you be a good and peace-
able man, if the authorities of
your country venture to let loose
a third world war.

It ‘is not true that we, the
Soviet people, hate America. We
respect the American people,
their genius, their achievements
in science, their inventiveness,
their industry. 1 add, speaking
personally as a writer, I value
very highly many American
writers, despite the fact that
their viewpoint is often so dif-
ferent from mine. I add, speak-
ing as a man, I have been in the
U.S. and met there many people
both wise and good. —

No one in the Soviet Union
has ever encroached upon nor
ever will encroach upon the Am-
erican way of life.
people live according to its
rights. Let every people find
the path to peace, whereby the
ideal, interests and tastes of one
people shall not interfere with

Let every,

any other people’s living, think-
ing, creating.

To avoid the peril of war,
one must sit together at one
table and come to terms. The
Soviet people wants peace with
any America, the America of the
Progressive and the Republicans
and Democrats.. It wants peace
with the American workers and
with the American capitalists, it
wants peace not only with its
friends but with its enemies, It
wants, peace not because it is
faint-hearted or weak, but pre-
cisely because its heart is large.
. j

The plain American may say
that there are sharp discords
between the American’ and So-
viet viewpoints on many ques-
tions. I am not a diplomat, I
am not a speciailst in questions
of atomic energy, not an expert
in international law. I am first
and all the time a writer. But
I know that many times the rep-
resentatives of my country have
proposed to the Americans that
talks be started, and I know that
many time the Americans have
refused to talk.

I am told, it will be hard to
agree. This is true, agreement
is not easy. For this is' required
mutual goodwill, desire to find
agreement. When Nazism
threatened Europe and America,
the Soviet Union and the U.S.
agreed. Throughout the terrible
years, our soldiers and the sol-
diers of America fought side by
side for peace. This, for our
part, we have not forgotten.
Viery well, there too were ideo-
logical discords and difference
of taste and conflicts of interest.
Would then, a third world war
be any less an evil than Hitler?

You, citizens of America, tell
your responsible leaders to give
up ‘bragging and threatening,”
to sit down round a table with
Soviet representatives, with .the
representatives of the other
great powers, and honestly try
to reach agreement. Thereby
you will save your country, your
children, your future, too. I
believe in the head and the
heart of the American people,

Later this year will be held
a great Peace Congress, high
hope of all the people. Let the
people of America realize the
importance of this Congress and
send there a delegation that
shall voice the will of every class:
and every party.

I desire only to say that, in
the persons of the Soviet dele-
gates, they will find friends, able
to appreciate the distinct path-
of every people, and desiring not
to enforce on others their way
of life, but to save the life, cul-
ture and future of all humanity.
@ From a speech made by Hya

Ehrenburg, world - renowned

Soviet journalist and author,

at. the Berlin meeting of the

World Peace Council last

month.

EEE EEE REEL

Yank wants Magna Carta isle

N American is hoping to take,
over Magna Carta Island,
Wraysbury, Buckinghamshire —
recognized as the ‘birthplace of
English liberty.”

At. 2 a.m. one morning a trans-
atlantic telephone call came
through to the tiny island on the

Thames where in- 1215 King
John signed the famous charter.

At the other end, in Philadel-
phia, was an American business-
man with a “proposition.” Ha
said he wanted to buy the island.

Sir Patrick Hannon, former

Tory MP, husband of Lady Han-
non, the owner, took the cal] and

« told the American to write.

Hearing the island was for
sale the American hoped to buy
it. ‘But he was forestalled by
Buckinghamshire County Coun-
cil, which early this month an-
nounced that it was buying it
for £9,500 (approximately $26,-
600) under an agreement made
with Lady Hannon in 1938.

The council is going to rent
it, however, and the American
will still be able to make an of-

PEDERI RULE RL BERR ERR EE EEE RUEBEN EBB BIB By

fer for the lease.

Sir Patrick Hannon declined
to make any further comment,
but Lady Hannon said: “We
shall be sorry to leave, but we
feel it would be a good thing if
it were taken in charge by some-
one who would really look after
Eig

Magna Carta Island has a sev-
en-bedroomed house _ which
stands on it, the home of Sir

Patrick and Lady Hannon since
1935, ‘ :

ENBLIBIIEL nie)

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — AUGUST 15, 1952 — PAGE 9