E SIX
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN, LAWRENCE, KANSAS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1942
The KANSAN Comments...
Our War-Minded Congress
The congressmen are at it again. This time they are studying a bill, which if passed in its present form, would be a blow at freedom of speech and the press.
The bill is evidently designed to replace the present "voluntary" censorship of the people, approved by the President. It was introduced by Attorney-General Biddle, for the purpose of repressing discussion of subjects of secret or military nature, and carries a heavy penalty of fine or imprisonment for violation. Such a bill, specifically worded, would undoubtedly be of aid to our war program, but the bill, as it exists, is so general in its wording that a reporter could be imprisoned for the mention of the moral turpitude of a Congressman, if that legislator wished to classify the information as secret.
Congress has been our biggest bottleneck since our entry in the war. Scarcely had the smoke cleared away from Pearl Harbor when certain members of Congress demanded a court martial of the commanding officers. This was before any facts were definitely known in this country. As it turned out, they were justified, but it would have been the same, whether or no.
Following this enterprise, the solons took a deep breath and voted themselves a pension plan. At the same time, they were howling about record-breaking expenditures. As the public rose in protest against this measure, many of the congressmen began to backtrack. Our own Arthur Capper admitted he had voted for the measure, but defended himself by saying that he didn't know for what he had voted.
This heart-warming incident was followed by an uproar over the appointment of Melvin Douglas and Mayris Chaney to positions in OCD. Invective and charges of inefficiency and meddling were heaped on the head of Mrs. Roosevelt. The main objective of the "exposure" was to settle attention and public censure on someone other than congress.
With the administration facing criticism because of its conduct of the war to date, it seems nearly time that congress starts to do something constructive. Or have our senators and representatives lose sight of the fact that we still have elections here?
Why Not Knuckle Down?
There have been recent accusations that the American people are not taking this war seriously enough. Even our allies in England have been told of the complacency over here. This accusation makes some people angry, but the real trouble lies in the fact that the criticism is true.
We certainly cannot boast of our conduct in the war up to the present. We have lost heavily in the Far East. We must share the blame with England for the Japanese successes in Singapore, Wake, the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Malaya.
There is no indication that the war with Japan will soon be over—at present we cannot even be sure of ultimate victory. And the fact remains, that should Japan be knocked out, we still face Germany and Italy—the former a very able foe, the latter of some nuisance value.
Present military plans call for an army of slightly less than four million men by the end of 1942. That is a lot of man-power, but ten million or more American boys will probably be needed in this struggle before its end. To
train, feed, and equip these men is a tremendous problem, and one we have only begun to solve.
The war budget set by President Roosevelt is a staggering sum, calling for an all-time high in war expenditures. The money is here, but the people are going to "go without" to a much greater extent than they now realize to pay for the war.
Our main hopes lie in the overwhelmingly superior production facilities and raw materials in this country, and the fact that our pre-war high standards of living will absorb much of the shock of "going without." But the American people must realize that we are still very much on the defensive. We will not be prepared for an offensive war for many months.
OFFICIAL BULLETIN UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Vol. 39 Thursday, February 19, 1942 No.88
Notices due at News Bureau, 8 Journalism, at 10 a.m. on day of publication during the week, and at 11 a.m. on Saturday for Sunday issue.
There will be a meeting of Kappa Phi at 5:30 in the Methodist Church Friday evening, Feb. 20. Covered dish luncheon—Doris Hodson.
K. U. Young Republican Club: There will be a meeting of the club Thursday, Feb. 19, at 8 p.m. in the Kansas Room of the Memorial Union building to make plans for the state convention.-Lloyd Woodburn, Sec.
FALL SEMESTER GRADES: Grades for the fall semester may be obtained from the Registrar's office this week, according to the following schedule of names:
Thursday ... T to Z inclusive
Friday and Saturday —Those unable to appear at the scheduled time.
James K. Hitt, Ass't. Registrar.
NEW ADDRESSES FOR DIRECTORY SUPPLEMENT: Students who changed addresses between semesters and who have not reported new addresses to the Registrar's office should file these addresses at once so that corrections may appear in the Directory Supplement. James K. Hitt, Assistant Registrar.
Newman Club: Corporate Communion for the Newman Club will be held Sunday. A breakfast and discussion meeting will follow the Mass and the Rev. E.J. Weissenburg will preside. All Catholic students are urged to attend.-Lloyd Svoboda, vice-president, Newman Club.
NOTICE TO ALL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS—Dr. E. T. Gibson is at the Watkins Memorial Hospital each Tuesday afternoon from 2 to 4:30 P. M. for discussion with students on problems of mental hygiene. Appointments may be made through the Watkins Memorial hospital. Ralph I. Canuteson, Director, health service.
Employment for Women Students: Additional opportunities are available for women students who wish to work for meals, or for room and board. Anyone who is interested may call at the office of the Adviser of Women, 220 Frank Strong Hall, for suggestions.—Women's Employment Bureau.
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Student Paper of THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Lawrence, Kansas
EDITORIAL STAFF
Publisher ... Kenneth Jackson
Editor-in-chief ... Charles Pearson
Editorial associates ... Maurice Barker and
                  Floyd Decaire
Feature editor ... Bill Feeney
NEWS STAFF
Managing editor ... Heidi Viets
Campus editors ... Betty Abels and Floyd Decaire
Sports editor ... Chuck Elliott
Society editor ... Saralena Sherman
News editor ... Ralph Coldren
Sunday editor ... John Conard
United Press editor ... Bob Coleman
BUSINESS STAFF
Business manager ... Frank Baumgartner
Advertising manager ... Wally Kunkel
Subscription rates, in advance, $3.00 per year, $1.75 per semester.
Published at Lawrence, Kansas, daily during the school year,
except Monday and Saturday; published as second-class
book, on March 17, post office law at Lawrence,
Kansas, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
While entertaining several Pi K. A. pledges on an early morning ride last week, actives Bob Royer, Bob Green, and Charles McVey, grew disgusted when they were beset with motor troubles a few miles from their destination. Not knowing that they were eight miles northwest of Lawrence and having been ditched by the freshmen who were more familiar with the country than they, McVey, Royer, and Green couldn't even qualify for the Boy Scout cross country, as they groped their way home.
Delta Gamma freshmen have a new and equisite means of torturing their actives. They render goodnight songs in heinous four-part harmony with a lusty good will every night in the freshman dorm. That is, until some active's nerves go pffft, and she comes down to muffle them.
Fred Mitchelson, of the Baxter Springs branch of the family, is being suspected by some of the members of his class in elementary equitation, of pulling something or other over Gayle Mott's eyes. The class is primarily intended for those souls who are so ignorant about horseflesh that they think withers is a disease peculiar to seniors. This guy under discussion rides like something out of Vol. II of Errol Flynn, and his classmates are afeared he's pushing the grade average up.
. . . for industrial research!
In these critical times engineers at Western Electric are at work harder than ever developing advances in the art of manufacture.
These are being applied in producing the latest types of military communications equipment now being turned out on a large scale for our fighting forces on land,at sea and in the air.
All this is in addition to our greatly increased job as manufacturer, purchaser and distributor for the Bell System. Meeting the abnormal telephone needs of America at war is a tremendous task, complicated by shortages of many materials. Even record-breaking production cannot fill all civilian requirements now, for Uncle Sam comes first!
Western Electr
is back of your Bell Telephone service