Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

ministers'
Current Events
By Prof. William H. Russell, Ph.D.
TEN YEARS AFTER
The tenth anniversary of V-E Day finds the world still
longing for peace. Though no fighting is going on at the
moment, our politics and economy are dominated by the
possibility of war. The anniversary is being marked by a
foreign meeting at Paris, which will restore the
formal sovereignty of West Germany. Few Americans would
have dreamed, in 1945, that we would now be rearming the
Germans; but few then realized the strength of Communist
imperialism. We have had many disillusionments in the past
ten years, and made many mistakes. Gradually, however, the
free countries have learned to cooperate and pool their
strength for defense. American foreign policy has not al
ways been wise, but it has usually been unselfish, and in some
cases extraordinarily generous. How much stronger our lead
ership would be if this were truly a Christian nation!
ITALIAN POLITICS
Italy has a new President, Giovanni Gronchi, who was
elected by the parliament for a seven-year term to succeed
Luigi Einaudi. The presidency of Italy, like that of France,
carries little political power but considerable prestige. Gron
chi was formerly president of the Chamber of Deputies. His
choice is considered a major setback for Premier Mario
Scelba, for Gronchi is a left-wing Christian Democrat while
Scelba belongs to the right-wing faction. Scelba backed an
other candidate but could not command the necessary twothirds
majority. The socialists helped elect Gronchi, and he
also received some Communist votes. Scelba must submit his
resignation on May 12, and is likely to have a hard time
forming a new cabinet. If a new government follows, it will
be more leftist. The Communists have suffered some sharp'
defeats, however, in labor union elections and in the choice
of farm administrators for rural areas.
TUNISIAN SETTLEMENT
Premier Edgar Faure of France has announced a plan
which may bring peace to the troubled North African pro
tectorate of Tunisia. Mendes-France began the negotiations
last summer but was thrown out of office before he could
finish. France will continue to manage Tunisia's defense and
foreign relations, and will keep military control of the
Libyan border and the naval base at Bizerte. Both the
French and Arabic languages may be used in the govern
ment, and the Tunisian and French schools will remain sep
arate. No town council can have a majority of Frenchmen.
The Tunisians will take control of the police in two years,
and of the courts in twenty years. Tunisia's Arabs outnum
ber the Europeans twelve to one, and have a well-organized
nationalist party. If the French National Assembly ratifies
the new plan and the two governments carry it out in good
faith, it should end the disorders in Tunisia and also lead to
improvements in Morrocco and Algeria.
PROGRESS REPORT
If Congress is to adjourn in July, as planned, the law
makers either will have to speed up their work or go home
with little accomplished. The Administration's trade bill,
extending the Reciprocal Trade Act for three years and giv
ing the President more tariff-cutting powers, passed the
May 11, 1955
House in February. The Senate Finance Committee finally
approved the measure after making some concessions to in
dustries which want special protection. More amendments
will undoubtedly be offered on the Senate floor,
and Eisen
hower will have to exert all his influence to get a worth
while bill. A Senate committee has cut the President's am
bitious road-building program to a measure allowing
$21.7"
billion over a five-year period, with an increase in the federal!
gasoline tax. The Administration bill for a large militaryreserve
is also being modified, and it appears that the
sixmonth
"universal" training program for youths aged 17 to
19 will be made voluntary.
CLOSED GATES
Los Alamos, New Mexico, a center of atomic research
since World War II, will remain a closed city according to
a recent decision of the Atomic Energy Commission. A
lively debate among the residents preceded this announce
ment. A majority seemed to favor the continued exclusion
of the general public, to prevent crime and the annoyance of
tourists and salesmen. Others felt that the security restric
tions surrounding Los Alamos were a violation of traditional
American freedoms. It was generally admitted that the con
trols were no longer necessary to protect atomic research.
Oak Ridge, Tennessee, one of the earliest centers for build
ing atom bombs, took down its gates in 1949. The federal
government is now liquidating its real-estate holdings there
and giving up its control of the local schools.
DUST BOWL
Continuing dust storms in the southern Great Plains
have now created a situation as serious as the "dust bowl"
of the 1930's. Under the high prices of wartime, wheat was
planted on land which had barely sufficient moisture. Since
1951 a cycle of dry weather has led to crop failures and
serious erosion in a wide area, centering in western Kansas
and eastern Colorado. Last year's "dust bowl" region was 11
million acres, and has now increased to 14 million. So far this
year the area has had only about half its normal rainfall,
and much of the winter wheat crop has been blown out or
killed. The emergency aid program begun last year is being
continued, with over $7 million being paid out for emergency
tillage and the planting of soil-conserving cover crops. The
Federal
.
Crop Insurance Corporation has cancelled next
year's wheat insurance in nine counties of Colorado, Texas,
and New Mexico. This may seem harsh, but it is certainly
unwise to encourage farmers to keep growing wheat on this
marginal land, when we are already burdened with a
heavy surplus.
MIDGET RADIOS
Germanium transistors, which have revolutionized elec
tronic equipment, are now being applied to ordinary radios.
A transistor smaller than a pencil eraser can do the work of
a radio vacuum tube and take only a small fraction of the
space and current. Hand-size portable radios using transis
tors are not on the market, and a "transistorized" auto radio
has been announced. It requires only one-tenth the battery
power used by conventional auto radios. It also is smaller,
lighter, and simpler and more rugged in design.
291