"THE OUTLOOK”

White Ribbon, Volume 19, Issue 4, 1 May 1947, Page 1

"THE OUTLOOK”

All of us today look at the world with great tear for the future of mankind. \\ e read and hear of more and more terrible weapons of destruction that are being perfected with feverish haste. Only now are being revealed the most horrible effects of the atomic bombs that were dropped in Japan eighteen months ago, and a fortnight ago we read of a new gas discovered in America, the capacity of which for destroying human beings is perhaps greater even than that of the atomic bomb. We know that many countries are maintaining and training vast armies, and are possessing themselves of strategic areas of the earth. It is clear to all that unless there is a complete change of outlook, mankind cannot survice. What then can lx* done* In what way ' can we women of the YY.C.T.U. most i effectively work while there is still time? It seems to me that the two changes most desperately needed—apart from the bade need to feed the hungry everywhere arc the development of what 1 call a “\V orld Loyalty,” and drastic measures of disarmament. This is not something new to us as Christians, as we teach that all members of the human race are brothers, children of God. What we need to-day

Itvait at Dominion Conference

is for this teaching to he put into practice. We must begin to feel our kinship with other jxoples as with English. One organ of the United Nations that gives most hope, and whose work 1 urge all to sup|>ort, is UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. The aim of this body is to cultivate the world loyally I have mentioned, particularly through the ways mentioned in the title. It will

strive by means of radio, films, and printed matter to make jieoples of the world better known to one another. We now seldom liear of the good attributes of other jieoples; tar too often we hear Ci the had things they do. UNESCO is to make a survey of the textbook u>ed in schools in different count "it s to find out bow far they teacii wring ideas or facts about other nations, and have them eliminated if possible. We know that some history books contain teaching that tends to inflame national hatreds and passions, rather than to lead to peace. Sometimes history liooks contain false information, or derogatory facts about other i>eoples. UNESCO will try to alter this. The question of an international language is being explored, so that all peoples will be able to understand one another, and not be separated by the language harrier as at present, and it is hoix*d to set up a World University which will help to develop a world culture. All these activities promise much in the way of removing misunderstandings among peoples and promoting world peace. They are i>erliaps more tangible ways of seeking world jieace than the

removal of poverty and other economic causes of war; but they are no less inil>ortant because of that. I licry come more particularly in the woman’s sphere also, as we are the main educators of the future generations in their most formative years. 1 urge all members to interest themselves in, and to promote supfiort for the activities of UNESCO. The other great need of the world is drastic disarmament. We canot develop a spirit of peace until we have ceased piling up armaments with which to destroy one another. Disarmament would “clear the international air” in many ways, and would foster the psirit of j>eace to an unforseeable degree. Further than that, disarmament would put back into the production of food and goods many milions of men who are now quite unproductive. It is a terrible commentary on us all that at a time when people are dying for lack ot food ard clothing and shelter we should be maintaining millions of men in the armies.ot the world. In England alone, something like 1,500.000 men are under arms while the country does not know where to turn for workers in industry and on the land. What is more, huge areas have been taken for this purpose, and though much of it is not of high productive capacity, large areas of good agricultural land have been taken while the people are short of food. The ancients used to say, “Those whom the gods destroy they first make mad/ and it seems that we modern men and women are marching to destruction unless we can act soon to change our way of life and outlook, and particularly unless we can learn' to “love one another” without distinction of race or country. E. M MACK IE, Dorn. Supt. Peace Dept.