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Your Land And Mine 1947-01-20 Henry J Taylor
00:14:07
Your Land And Mine 1947-01-20 Henry J Taylor
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- [00:14]
Announcer
General Motors presents Henry J. Taylor. When the speaker says what he means, Henry J. Taylor, whose voice you will hear presently from a great Pennsylvania city, leaves no listener in doubt as he looks across your land and mine this evening. What he sees happening now and the clear headed thinking he applies to the future, can help us all to go forward to a better, a fuller and a more secure life. General Motors presents Henry J. Taylor, noted author and journalist, in another friendly and significant talk in his series, your land and mine. Mr. Taylor is speaking tonight from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Mr. Taylor?
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Henry J. Taylor
I first visited Pittsburgh in Orobo. I was touring the downtown section in a little flat bottom skiff and going past the William Penn Hotel, I hit the top of a traffic tower, the skiff tipped over, and I swam for the window ledge of the William Penn. I'd come, of course, to report on the Pittsburgh flood, and it turned out to be an eyewitness account. All right. This city was paralyzed by high water. The lights were out, everything stopped. The whole country was interested in the catastrophe, an act of nature paralyzing Pittsburgh. Well, since then, not by acts of nature, but by collusion, Pittsburgh and many other communities have been equally paralyzed by the effects of lopsided laws permitting cloud bursts of authorized and unauthorized strikes, downpourings of local and national disasters. At the moment, and on purpose, such troubles are more or less suspended so that the vote of public opinion won't be rocked pending new labor legislation in Congress. But the troubles and dangers have by no means been cured, my friends. In fact, so far, of course, nothing has been done about them in Washington at all. The quiet may confuse you or me. The lull may even lull Congress and the Senate to sleep. For there are important indications in Washington that Congress is being urged quietly to forget its responsibilities to ordinary people, bow to special political pressures, soft pedal or sidestep any really effective corrections, and take refuge under the umbrella of let's not be too hasty about labor legislation, which is the political way of saying let's not do anything at all. But the public can't afford to have Congress talk much and do nothing. There are points and corrections which Congress should not tuck under the bed on account of political cowardice or because of threats or for any reason. Let's start with the so called right to strike. And then let's get down to cases. Let's speak about rights, all kinds of rights. For example, in terms of this radio now, my friends, I have the right to speak on the air. The right of free speech is fundamental, as you know, it's recognized as Such in the Constitution. But let me remind you that I cannot use profane language at this microphone or urge you to turn the street lights out where you live or the lights in other people's homes. The right of free speech is regulated as to the ways it is used. And how about property rights? They're fundamental. Why, if you or I had enough money, we could have the right to buy a whole city block in the heart of Pittsburgh, but we couldn't erect a powder mill on it and manufacture explosives. And so it goes in civilized democratic life. Rights on one hand and on the other, protection against the abuse of rights, no matter how fundamental they may be. For as supreme court justice Holmes once said, all rights are derived from the purposes of the society in which they exist. Above all rights rises duty to the community. And I'm quoting him. And that, kind friends, must apply as well to what is called the right to strike. Well, let's look at it from the working man's viewpoint and let's look ahead. First, let's agree that striking is conceived in the idea that without the strike, you or I, as workmen, might be abused by an employer. It's a weapon to fortify the strength of unionism so that unions and individual employees can be stronger in collective bargaining. But in the field of collective bargaining, the decisions on both sides of the table, as you know, must be made in the long term interest of any business and hence its customers and the public as well as the employees. Whatever is done must always be under conditions of restraint on the freedom of action on both sides of the bargaining table. In the public's protection. That's the important thing. In the public's protection. It isn't possible that this can be done when either side, the business side or the union, has been allowed by law to grow so monopolistic, so powerful and so uncontrollable that no restraint is really effective in a pinch. And today this is happening. For there is too much power in the hands of leaders of giant interlocking combines, too much power in the hands of a few. The abuse of this strength, this tremendous bargaining power, whenever and wherever it occurs, is a national calamity, a governmental disgrace. Now, the supreme court may or may not sustain the government's right to control. John L. Lewis, for example, I don't know. But this I do know. If the laws under which humanism operates were not lopsided and wrong, there would be no question about it. The fact that there is a question proves the point. Our government is established under the constitution, is strong Enough to serve us all honorably and well. The Constitution gives Congress the power to regulate the conduct of any individual or group of individuals in the interest of tranquility and the public welfare. If Congressmen and senators themselves only have courage enough to ignore the claims of professional labor leaders that none of their power should be reduced at all. To be anti trust is not to be anti business. And to be anti union combine is not to be anti labor. From the point of view of the health of the American labor movement itself, it seems to me the labor leaders battle to hold tight to all possible powers is a great injustice. A big mistake. As big as the trust made some generations ago. Congress should know this. The need for correction in the lopsided labor legislation is obvious and should be obvious to any fair minded citizen. Within the leaders of organized labor itself. There should be an awakening, I think, a better realization that it is honest and proper for the welfare of the public to come first. For as Americans, they must know that when laws are made and enforced with the idea of the public welfare in mind, they aren't measures of discrimination. Not anti this or anti that or anything. Such laws are pro community, pro American, and should be accepted in that spirit. In our grandfather's generation, business trust, the Beef Trust, Oil Trust, Copper trust and whatnot. Battled the whole idea of antitrust laws stupidly, selfishly. Trust leaders, as you recall, only brought discredit and public resentment on themselves by being unreasonable and fighting any and all changes that gave them less power. This fact should make union leaders think carefully today, I believe, for this is no time for anybody to be blind. Injunctions against violence or law breaking, injunctions against intimidation or hijacking are not yellow dog injunctions. Injunctions can be granted by fair courts of law without endangering civil liberties. Court injunctions in protection of the public welfare are just as practical, just as fair and decent in respect to labor activities as in regard to business activities or any other matters affecting our lives together and our public safety. Any contention to the contrary is preposterous and in poor spirit. At bottom, the question of industrial peace requires a legally enforced, balanced approach by government and labor organizations and by business alike. In short, what work is going to be done? What's going to be produced for the pay? How faithfully are agreements going to be lived up to? That's not an unreasonable approach to new legislation. What enforceable guarantees are there to be against wildcat or other work stoppages during a contract so that producers can plan production efficiently and establish low prices to the public without Knowing that their production can be steady? Are corporate organizations and union organizations to have equal legal responsibility in the event of strikes? Is the closed shop to be permitted the hand of compulsory union membership to fall on every man? Are strikes going to be kept out of union and inter union politics so that whole industries are not tied up by personal political fights inside unions and in which they have no part? And so that innocent bystanders are not hit by the rock, swamped by waters of disaster as paralyzing as the Pittsburgh flood. Restraint must be enforced against super power, come what may. This is due us both on principle and under the Constitution. No anger or bitterness need be or should be involved in the matter of new legislation for the public's protection. The principles are the things to grasp. Now let me spell out several simple points. Objectives, kind friends, listen if you will. New labor laws or modifications of old lopsided ones must be. One, economically sound. Two, they must be fair and square to everyone. Ethically sound, socially sound, legally sound, enforceable, practical, understandable. Three, the laws must recognize the principle that we can all have more only if we produce more. They must reward effort and thrift and recognize that laziness has penalties. Four, the laws must recognize the right to work, the right to compete for a job and earn a better living. Five, and last, new legislation must recognize that labor monopolies, like any other form of business monopoly, are intolerable in a free country. They must be regulated by the government and brought under the general laws of our land. This is not a business matter. It is a national matter. Someplace in here, the basic safety of our nation is at stake. We should not wait until a general strike may be pulled to find that out. I'm not predicting such an interlocking general strike, although there's talk of it in some circles. And on top of what we've seen here in Pittsburgh, whole communities like Rochester, Oakland and other places have tasted general strikes already. But a general strike is possible and legal today. That's how far we've gone down the road to ruin. Now the giant interlocking labor combines must be regulated in the public interest like the old time trucks were regulated. We're all Americans, all of us organized and unorganized. A lot. It is up to every American to advocate principles because right is right and wrong is wrong. And no soft peddling or excuse for abuse is pertinent. Congress has clear duties to the whole people. Congress must look around and look ahead, right to wrongs, wherever found, in the laws on which you and I depend. Congress must help all of us to go forward to a better, more secure, fuller life, marching behind the banner of duty to the community and common justice for everyone in your land and mine.
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Announcer
You have just heard Henry J. Taylor in another talk in his series, your land and mine. Mr. Taylor spoke this evening before a group in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. These Taylor talks are recorded in attractive pocket size booklets, useful for your own future reference. For classroom purposes or discussion groups. They're available without charge. If you would like one or more copies of the Taylor Coffee Hook just heard right through General Motors Detroit or impair the station to which you are listening, you know that hundreds of men are scouring the country to find materials and supplies to keep production rolling in. General Motors clamps They're doing just that for building more and better things for more people is our business. We shall keep on trying until we are going full bling to bring you the car you have so patiently waited for. When it does arrive, it will embody everything you've come to expect in a General Motors value.
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Henry J. Taylor is presented twice weekly.
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By General Motors, producer of aaa Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick and Cadillac automobiles, Fisher Bodies, GMC trucks and coaches, Chevrolet trucks, Pigeonire Products, Delco Heat diesel engines, Diesel locomotives and other products. GM products may be purchased on below cost General Motors Installment plans. Look to General Motors for more and better things. For more people, listen to another Taylor drop next Friday evening at this same time. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System.