BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9 1947 BOLSHEVIST BOGEY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 5, 9 December 1947, Page 4

BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9 1947 BOLSHEVIST BOGEY

Mr Fraser has accused the National Party of being in alliance with the Communist Party. Often of late National Party spokesmen have hinted at an alliance between Communism and Labour. Probably neither charge has much foundation in fact, but anyone who knows anything of Communist organisation might be prepared to believe that the Reds have men planted throughout the Labour movement. '

That is in line with their policy—the “cell” system of whiteanting existing organisations until they can control them and turn them to their own advantage. But the Labour Party of today is far from being Communist, or anything like it, and the Communists have probably as little' respect for it as _ they have for any other capitalist party. But from their point of view, it is likely to be more useful than the National Party. For anyone, much less anyone with Mr Fraser’s political experience, to suggest an alliance between the Nationalists with their clearcut insistence on the rights of private enterprise and the Communistic doctrine of public ownership of everything is just ridiculous. It is to be regretted that a man in his position should have allowed himself to indulge in petty mud-slinging at a time when-many problems of much more serious magnitude face this country.

It is seriously suggested that both parties could serve their country better without selfish factional bickering.

Undoubtedly, the structure of capitalist society the world over is menaced by Communism. And the only answer to the Communist challenge is to find and apply a constructive, efficient alternative to the system it propounds.

As far as New Zealand is concerned, the greatest protection against Communism always has been the New Zealander’s pride in his initiative, his aversion to regimentation and his sturdy independence. But of late there seems to have been a growing tendency to let events take their course. We have accepted some recent impositions on our personal liberty a little too meekly. We have failed to demand effective action from our Parliamentary representatives in matters such as the housing problem, industrial disputes over trivialities, the holding up of vital industries on puerile pretexts like the West Coast beer boycott. Maybe we are getting ripe for Communism. Maybe we are losing the will to run our own affairs our own way. Maybe we were wrong to resent Randolph Churchill’s description of us as “sheep-like.”

It is time New Zealanders took more of an interest in the running of their own country. It is time we snapped out of the idea that a Government can produce comfort and security for us like a conjurer producing a rabbit out of a hat. It is time we realised that work, hard work, is the only way of turning our resources into lasting, solid prosperity. And it is time our politicians realised that accusing each other of being Communists or any other sort of “ists” will not solve any of the immediate problems they are elected and paid to handle. Moreover, their surest defence against any foreign “ism” is to get their backs into the job of showing us that the present system can and does work efficiently.