Bay Of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. WEDNESDAY, FEB. 1, 1950

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 93, 3 February 1950, Page 4

Bay Of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. WEDNESDAY, FEB. 1, 1950

SIGNIFICANT MESSAGE * A significant message was delivered by Dr G. F. Morton, of Leeds, in his address to the Whakatane Rotary Club on Tuesday night, when he referred to the “red sky in the morning”—meaning the rising tide of Communism in the East—as a warning to all who would preserve what is best in western civilisation.

Perhaps more clearly than anyone else who has discussed the subject publicly here lately, Dr Morton put his finger on the real problem when he referred to Communism as being caused by social injustice, and when he said the only cure for it is social justice. There is no doubt that the Communist creed is one that thrives on discontent, and it is probably fair to say that most people are sufficiently reasonable not to be sufficiently ented to want to do something' violent about it without some iust cause. But, while recognising the truth of Dr Morton’s remarks, it is not the easiest thing in the world to give a definition of social justice that would satisfy everyone, or even a sufficiently large majority of the people in the world to rule out all possibility of strife. Some there are who would consider themselves unjustly treated so long as there was one other on earth who had more wealth and power. Others would be quite happy with a bare sufficiency for their daily needs.

Those, however, are two ends of the scale. The vast majority would consider they had social justice if world conditions permitted them to have a comfortable standard of living, and to fear and educate their children without the hardship, worry and want that has always been the portion of the greater part of humanity. Dr Morton strikes a disturbing note when he points out that, with today’s greater expectation of life, lowered infant mortality, and expanding world population, we shall be fortunate indeed to avoid famine unless we make every possible effort to produce more from every possible acre of land. This is a view that is being widely shared by world leaders today. There has been the drive for production in Britain, dollardominated, but constructive none the less. There is our own Prime Minister’s reminder that the only possible way to bridge the widening gap in our financial affairs is to produce more. Russia, weak from war, revolution and famine, recognised under Lenin’s leadership that the road to renewed vigour as a nation lay in production, and drove her masses with all manner of incentives to achieve miracles of work.

But we must go further yet. The need for social justice must be recognised on an international basis, and the nations must come to realise that by quarrelling amongst themselves they inevitably lose more than they gain. What is needed is vastly expanded production in every country, and more efficient and fairer distribution on a world scale. . v

Thus and thus only can the fear of famine, war and revolution’be abolished. But, until the nations see that the destruction involved in wars can lead only to a reduction in world supplies and ultimately to more misery and world chaos, those fears must remain with ,us. World co-operation in the cause of humanity is possible, if sufficient people throughout the world will have the Christian courage to believe it possible.