| Oo | * With unemployment in the United States at its highest levels in seven years, and with Canadian unemployment expect- ed to rise to nine percent this coming winter, the Economic Commission of the Communist Party of the United States has described the present economic recession as the “most serious crisis” since World War II. In a draft statement prepared for discussion the Commission says: “For the first time” since the 1930s, a ‘financial panic accom- panies the decline in produc- tion. “For the first time the crisis occurs along with continuation of the previous monetary and price inflation. “For the first time ever, a crisis of overproduction erupts simultaneously with the waging of a war, with a wartime mili- tary budget.” The party’s statement points out that the economic crisis co- incides with — “a crisis of U.S. military policy. in Indochina, with the worsening of U.S. im- perialism’s political _relation- ships worldwide . “A constitutional crisis in the struggle for authority between the President and Congress .'. “a social crisis in the multi- plication of crime, the mass cor- ruption of police and politicians, the multi-million dollar thievery of corporate officials and bank- ers... “an operative crisis in the vir- tual collapse of public services, of telephones, transit and sani- tation, in the explosive poison- ing of air and water by the ex- cretions of corporation monopo- lies, the reckless disposal of weapons of mass annihilation of the Pentagon.” The “economic decline and fi- nancial crisis’ have blow to hundreds of thousands of workers,” the party’s state- ment says. The crisis has curtailed the hours of those employed, while living costs rise. “It redoubles the misery of the oppressed Black and Brown millions,” the statement adds. The statement points out that the deterioration of the econo- mic situation has been accom- panied by an increase of repres- sion against blacks, students, workers. The workers “faced with soar- ing living costs and taxes,” have “maintained elementary living standards only by going heavily into debt. The statement points out that “the contradictions erupting” in the present crisis “have been accumulating for a quarter of a century. Intervening crisis and recessions were cut off without having been resolved. “The industrial recovery of the 1960s was prolonged after 1964 by the surge of war orders accompanying the Vietnam War escalation. Inflationary deficits “dealt a pay, their ‘liquidity,’ reached a record low...” “With such a tightly drawn chain,” the statement declares, “the break of any link could set off a financial panic. “The initial stimulus of the Vietnam War was exhausted. Expansion of facilities and em- ployment for Vietnam War ord- ers was completed,” the state- ment declares. The “tax burden on the work- ers to pay for the war continued to rise,” however. “Thus the war started to de- press the economy. “All these factors made the country ripe for an economic and financial crisis,” the party statement says. ‘The policies of the Nixon ad- ministration made the outbreak of the crisis certain, the party says. The Communist Party state- ment warns that the U.S. crisis “threatens every financial center of. capitalism.” The party’s statement points out that the Administration has persisted in efforts to cover up the seriousness of the situation with “tendencious _ statistics, claiming that recovery is alrea- dy under way,” and “false claims” that the fight against inflation has already been won. “Nixon’s program aims to protect the most powerful mono- polies from crisis-induced los- ses, to increase the hardships of the workers in order to restore the rate of profit. “It cuts back further outlays to meet social needs, threatens the unemployed~ and hungry with more repression. sete TL EL A ||| Cooled off or frozen out? “It persists in foreign aggres- sion and strives to put over a further militarization of the economy... “Simultaneously, Nixon vetoes bills for more spending for edu- cation, health, and water protec- tion, which would provide both employment and needed ser- vices.” Further, the statement points out, a deficit of $10 to $15 bil- lion is now expected during the fiscal year. The Nixon administration has “urged employers to resist wage increases, made’ propaganda against workers’ demands and promoted anti-strike legislation.” Nixon, the Communist Party warns, now has the power to freeze wages, as the result of legislation sponsored *by Demo- cratic politicians, aided by George Meany, president of the AFL-CIO. In the working class, the re- sponse to the economic crisis has been an upsurge in militan- cy, and workers’ struggles. The situati. : demands d strug- gle of the “main organized forc- es of the people .. . for a peo- ple’s way out of the crisis.” The party urges a conference of such organizations for agree- ment on a “common program of aims and tactics of struggle to achieve them.” The draft statement recom- mends the following planks for such a program of struggle: “1. A freezing of jobs. No more layoffs to be permitted. “2. Cancellation of all* pay- ments due by unemployed work- ers for rent, mortgages. house taxes, and installments. Prohibi- tion of repossessions, foreclo- sures, garnisheeing of savings or income of unemployed or partly unemployed workers. “3. Establishment of civilian government programs sufficient to provide jobs to all who are unemployed. “4, Cut of military budget to $10 billion per year: End of gov- ernment interest payments to big bankers ‘and the rich, with maintenance of payments to small savers. End of all govern- ment subsidies to Big Business. “5. Federal government spend- ing of $100 million per year for peoples’ needs, including . . housing units . . . transit sys- tems, schools, health facilities. “6. No wage freeze. Increase | of national minimum wage, 4 | plied to all workers, to $5 P# hour. “7, Enactment of the United Welfare Rights Organizatiol | minimum income program ™ | $5.50 for a family of four. “8. Doubling of all social benefits, extension to all work ers. “9. A complete national health service with no charges agail® workers’ wages. ; “10. Automatic increase inal! wages to match any increase in living costs, with no wag? cuts when living costs decline — “11, Rollback of monopoly prices, rents, medical and hosp tal charges. - Bie “12. Immediate cancellation" of all government contracts where discrimination exists. “13. Requirement of premivm wage additions for dirty, heavy and dangerous jobs at whi Black and Brown workers af concentrated. “14. Expropriation of al! apartment and housing tract dé velopments which exclude mil -ority peoples. e | “15. Radical tax reform 1 — transfer the main burden of ta¥ ation from the working class 10 the rich and the corporations. “16. Capital level of 20 pel’ cent of all stock and bond hold — ings over the first $10,000, 1? finance urgently needed emef gency crash housing, hospital, school, anti-pollution, transit | programs. “17. Democratic _ nationaliza@ tion of munitions industries, r utilities,, communication an@” transportation industries. Pavlov benefited by the active support of Lenin even during the hectic revo- lutionary period. Lenin, whose hun- dredth anniversary is being cele- brated this year, was the first to lay the practical basis for social medicine; this was done during a civil war while the country was also engaged in fighting off foreign intervention. He signed more than :one hundred de- crees related to health. Among them, beginning in 1917, are decrees lim- iting work to eight hours a day, prohibiting labour for young people under 14 years of age, and instituting health insurance and maternity bene- fits for women. At the same time, Lenin gave a preventive orientation to his coun- try’s medicine through a variety of practical measures. He wrote: “Hy- giene is all. It is the preventive measure against all diseases.” In April 1919, Lenin decreed compulsory vaccination against smallpox, and in March of the following year he called upon the citizens of Moscow: “Get out of the filth and serve as an example to the entire country that has been deluged in this filth which engenders epidemics and disease.” Lenin created the first Ministry (Com- missariat) of Public’ Health in the TEK pre ° CANETAP HOMO Can a 4 Borax PMOKy i : Facsimiles of a number of dec. £0 mccannye auiseers coor Nepasec son to finance the war provided tem- world in July 1918, and took count- my af bet f de 5 cei COBETA HAPOMLA KOMNCCAPOB sent by Lenin in the early days after the Soviet Revolution. The decrees were displayed in first-aid posts and railway stations all over the Porary purchasing power to the private economy. The capital in- vestment boom was extended through reckless corporate bor- fo wepar Cophdu ¢ MIRACWEAMMe less measures in favour of social medicine, of which the most impor- tant were free medical care and the Tepe # So2toz- Maposuur Kounccaper NocTenoneat now Poe Kpodemer sexe 2noLopoxnal rowing, as each group of capital. S“pport he gave to medical education country and gave information on stg ST me Case ists hastened to expand andtake 474 training. what measures should be taken Sa ee: gd aie at rca a be against epidemics together with ‘mts EM A lene) “By 1969 the ratioofthe coun- Top right: Lenin helps clean a public details for carrying them out, ae soma far ey try’s debts to its’ production Tore eats UTS ing Pos building in Moscow. reached records heights, while the ratio of corporations’ cash to the amounts they were due to PACIFIC TRIBUNE—OCROBER 16,-1970—PAGE 8 * Reproduced from WORLD HEALTH, the magazine of the World Health Organization, May 1970.