Congressional Record
SEVENTY-FOURTH CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
AMERICANISM VERSUS COMMUNISM
ADDRESS
OF
HON. PATRICK J. HURLEY
FORMER SECRETARY OF WAR
AT THE
UNITED STATES FLAG ASSOCIATION PROGRAM
July 4, 1935
[Printed in the Congressional Record of July 10, 1935]
The United States Flag Association is a nonpartisan, non-profit, patriotic organization. I congratulate the association on the aggressive leadership of its president general, Colonel Moss, who without salary has for 11 years faithfully, intelligently, and courageously directed its activities. The national anticrime conference held by the United States Flag Association in 1933 was the forerunner of that excellent anticrime conference conducted by the Department of Justice in 1934. The United States Flag Association is endeavoring to focus public attention upon the crime conditions existing in the country, and is helping to create and galvanize into action public sentiment for the enforcement of law and the defeat of communism in the United States.
AMERICANISM VERSUS COMMUNISM
Today we celebrate the one hundred and fifty-ninth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. By that document the people of the Colonies declared to the world their right to assume among the powers of the earth the "equal station to which the laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them." The Declaration also maintained "that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, and among these are life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness." The signers closed the Declaration with this sentence: "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." We have quoted these passages from the Declaration of Independence, which is the foundation of Americanism, to emphasize the fact that the basis of Americanism is theism--that is, a belief in the existence of God. The basis of communism is atheism, that is, a denial of the existence of God. Belief in God has no sectarian limitations. It includes Protestants, Catholics, Jews, and all others who worship a supreme being.
We are continuously told that communism is merely a theory of economics--a panacea for humanity's present economic troubles. The fact is, however, that economics is only one of the elements of communism. Communism destroys personal liberty. It dictates and controls personal relations, political conduct, and all social relations, including marriage, education, and religion. The people under communism have no choice but to accept the edicts of their dictators. Communists assume that a dictator, or a small group, can think better for the people than they can think for themselves.
The system of laws by which the American people govern themselves, the spiritual, social, and economic objectives to which we aspire, constitute Americanism. Americanism is predicated on liberty with the sovereign power vested in all of the people. Communism and every form of collectivism are predicated on absolute power vested in an individual or a small group. The fundamental purpose of all government should be to assist the people in achieving their national objectives. The objectives of that system of government and economics which we call "Americanism" are to administer justice; to maintain liberty and equality of opportunity; to promote education; to eliminate poverty, intolerance, and crime; to provide a sound economic basis for the equitable distribution of production; to protect everyone in the pursuit of cultural and spiritual, as well as material happiness; and to guarantee to every citizen the enjoyment of the rights of man enumerated in the Constitution of the United States. The golden rule is the true foundation of Americanism. The American system has not achieved its ideals, but notwithstanding our present serious difficulties, it has more nearly approached its ideals than has any other nation at any time.
Liberty, of course, must have limitations which should be imposed and enforced by the people themselves. The limitations on liberty are as sacred as liberty itself. It takes an intelligent citizenship to maintain liberty. The lower the degree of intelligence, the more readily the population submits to communism and dictatorship.
We condemn all those among us who have made a license out of liberty, who have been guilty of the twin evils of stupidity and greed. We contend, however, that the overwhelming majority of the American people are honest and are worthy of self-government and that the dishonest minority can be punished and controlled without having to put the honest majority into the straight-jacket of communism and absolutism.
The people of this Nation cannot expect to remain free if they cease to be vigilant. In a democracy good government cannot exist where a majority of the citizens fail to discharge the duties of citizenship. Militant, intelligent citizens can compel the enforcement of all laws. If the laws now in existence were enforced every racketeer in business and in crime could be stopped at the beginning of his career.
Freedom of speech and press are guaranteed by the Constitution. This gives everyone a right to advocate any form of government and any system of economics, whether it be Americanism, communism, fascism, socialism, or any other "ism." We may disagree with everything--with every word these absolutists and communists say, but as good Americans we must defend their right to say it. The communists have taken advantage of this freedom to advocate the overthrow of our Government by violence. That, of course, is sedition.
Shall we, as Americans, quietly surrender our liberties and our right to self-government and submit to the rule of a collectivist dictator, or do we still possess the intelligence and courage to govern ourselves? The time has come for every American who still believes in liberty and in God to meet both crime and communism in the open and overcome them.
74649--12911
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1936
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