Covenanter Witness Vol. 55 - Rparchives.org

eactors,"Current EventsBy Prof. William H. Russell, Ph.D.ATOMS FOR PEACEThe U. N. atomic conference at Geneva, Switzerland,proved to be a great success. The two-week meeting was attended by 2,000 delegates and observers from 72 countries.Tens of thousands visited the technical exhibits. Scientistsfrom Iron Curtain countries mingled freely with those fromthe West, and a great deal of information was exchanged.Some have called it the greatest scientific congress of alltime.The major emphasis was on atomic power, which maybecome as cheap as other types of fuel within a few years.Already good progress has been made in the development of"breederwhich produce more fissionable material than they consume. There is even good hope of gettinguseful power from a fusion-type explosion, such as occurs inthe hydrogen bomb. The industrial and medical use of radioisotopes, and the possible genetic effects of radiation, alsowere considered. In the future there probablywill be lessatomic secrecy, as the conference seemed to show that secrecy has caused expensive duplication of effort, withoutpreventing any major country from securing vital information. Another such conference probably will be held in 1957to 1958.HARD BARGAININGOur latest Geneva talks with Red China seem to havebecome deadlocked. Peiping began by releasing the elevenAmerican fliers whom it had convicted of spying. But theforty-one civilians whom the Communists still detain inChina apparently are being kept for bargaining purposes.Peiping seeks not only full diplomatic recognition, but control of all Chinese citizens in this country. There are about4,000 Chinese nationals in the U.S.A. who entered on passports issued by the Nationalist government, which Peipingdoes not recognize. They are all free to leave if they wish,but Red China wants the right to try to persuade them toreturn, including the names of their relatives back in Chinaso that pressure may be applied there. The basic characterof Peiping'struce talks.SURPLUS WATERdiplomacy has not changed since the KoreanThe hurricane season began nearly a month early thisyear, with Connie and Diane smashing at the Atlantic coast.The greatest disaster of the early season came not fromwinds, but from heavy rain. The rain which followed Conniesoaked the northeastern states. Then when another delugecame in the wake of Diane, rivers from Maryland north toMaine went on a rampage. The floods came so suddenlythat over 200 persons were killed, and the damage may havereached over a billion dollars. Roads, bridges,and telephonelines were wiped out, and helicopters were the only meansof communication for some areas. Eastern Pennsylvania andConnecticut suffered the heaviest losses. Better forecastingand warning surely would have made the floods less disastrous. This year's entire appropriation for the U. S. WeatherBureau is less than 3 per cent of the damage done by thethree big hurricanes last fall.August 31, 1955HIGH STANDARDSPresident Eisenhower has issued a new Code of Conductfor service men, dealing especially with the conduct expectedof prisoners of war. This problem has been thoroughly reexamined in view of the torture and brainwashing used bythe Communists in the Korean War. Over one-third of theAmericans taken prisoner there died in captivity, one of theworst records in modern warfare. Of the 4,428 who survived,only 192 have been charged with misconduct. The new coderecognizes that every man has a breaking point, but stillcalls on prisoners to give as little information as possible.They are expected to resist to the utmost any disclosure ofvital information or disloyalty to their comrades or country.This is a high standard, and some will feel that it is notrealistic. The problem is basically one of character-trainingwhich the armed services have usually tended to ignore.SAAR CONTROVERSYA bitter campaign has begun in the Saar, the disputedcoal and iron district between France and Germany. On October 23 there will be a popular referendum on the accordbetween France and West Germany, concluded last winter,which provides for "Europeanizing" the Saar. The districtwould still be economically attached to France and politically autonomous, but its defense and foreign affairs would beunderthe Western European Union. Recently organizationsdemanding the Saar's return to Germany have broken upmeetings of the European Movement, which favors theWEU plan. The Premier of the Saar has called on WestGermany's Chancellor Adenauer to disavow the action ofthese pro-German groups. He has also asked two localCatholic bishops to use their influence against "Christian"parties which are stirring up trouble. However, the plans forthe referendum specifically prohibit any foreign interference,so it is doubtful if Adenauer will act.SLAUGHTER IN NORTH AFRICAFrench North Africa has had its worst fighting in onehundred years of European rule. Nationalists in Algeria andMorocco engaged in bloody battles with French troops onthe second anniversary of the ouster of the sultan of Morocco. Over a thousand persons may have been killed. TheFrench in Morocco have tried to get the present sultan totake the nationalist opposition parties into his government,but he is not in favor of this and the nationalists will notcompromise. The French colonials living in North Africaare equally bitter, and insist on the use of more force. Ifthe issue is not soon solved, it may lead to the fall of Premier Edgar Faure's government at Paris.COCKTAILS ALOFTA bill will be introduced at the next session of Congressto prohibit the serving of liquor aboard commercial airlines.Representative Thomas J. Lane, a Massachusetts Democrat,has announced that he will sponsor such a measure. Severalof the airlines now offer free cocktails before meals on theirfirst-class flights. Other planes have a lounge where drinksare sold. Mr. Lane calls this "a thoughtless invitation to anew kind of disaster," as well as an offense to non-drinkerswho want to use the airlines.131