TRADE WAR AND FINANCIAL DICTATORSHIP

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 81, 2 May 1949, Page 4

TRADE WAR AND FINANCIAL DICTATORSHIP

Sir,—Recent items from the Melbourne Argus 5/2/49 state: Trade rivalry between countries seeking a favourable balance of trade, is returning; and that in spite of America’s war production, and Marshall aid to Europe, unemployment in the U.S.A. continues; and prices are reduced. There are those who contend that ‘harder work and more production will solve our problems. Note, the Argus says: 4 ‘Lean Times in Belgium.” Why lean times? Not because of any failure to remove controls and produce sufficient; but because the Belgian people have insufficient purchasing power to buy their tremendous output. While 270,000 are unemployed out of a population of eight million, in Brussels the bars are empty and the shops are full of merchandise, which people cannot afford to buy, the Belgian Socialist Government says it cannot find markets for its goods. Britain is short of food for the same reason (the insane dictatorship of the dollar and Marshall Plan) and we are approaching the same stage, if we are foolish enough to take it. Remember how Sir Denison Miller, Governor of the Commonwealth Bank, held up the powers that be in 1920-21 when they started to follow the other banks abroad; Sir Denison pushed to the rescue; he increased his advances and released £23,000,000 of additionally currency as a slight hint as to what he would do if necessary; and deflation was deferred. Sir Denison Miller died in June 1923. The hour of the private banks had struck, and the Commonwealth Government (Bruce-Page) strangled the Commonwealth bank. Yours etc., W. BRADSHAW.