Toledo Union Journal

From The Desk
of
Melvin Schultz
President,
Local 12, UAW-CIO

Since the first of July, it has been most interesting to observe the reactions of the public to the ending of OPA. Newspapers have been full of accounts as to what Congress is doing or expects to do and giving reports on what is happening in various parts of the Country.

As for myself, one of the most interesting happenings occurred when I purchased a hot-dog on Monroe Street, slightly beyond our City limits, which cost me 16 cents It is not so long ago that I have yet forgotten that a good many of my meals consisted of a couple of hotdogs and a cup of coffee. At that time the hotdogs were 5 cents. This is about a 300 per cent increase in the retail price and, of course, there must have been a profit made when they were selling hotdogs for 5 cents

The incident above may be small in itself; however, it does reflect the change in the cost of living in an outstanding way. Labor, also, allowed a 15 per cent adjustment under the War Labor Board; under Wage Stabilization, 18½ cents per hour, and this together, at best, would be a from 30 to 35 per cent increase.

Now producers, as it has been reported, have been opposed to Government subsidies.

Yet, with OPA out of the picture, you would believe by the radio announcements that they had been always in favor of these subsidies as they are certainly using them as their excuse for further increasing their prices.

I recognize that the cost of War was tremendous and that probably the only way of liquidating the excess burden of this cost is by an expansion of currency. However, just an expansion of our currency for the citizens of our own Country will not help the average worker in the long run as eventually foreign imports and the catching up of production domestically will produce a competitive situation which will give America a worst depression than has ever previously been experienced. I think it is high time that the representatives of the people look farther into the future for the welfare of America and its citizens instead of just from election to election.

The investigation of war contracts which is now being brought up proves an inadequacy of our so-called Democratic System of Government. Instead of giving representatives immunity from this or that, I think ways and means should be devised to put a greater check upon their activities, as well as to create a greater amount of security for them, thereby, increasing the possibility of truly representative Government.

The fight on the OPA revival is a good public demonstration for the benefit of the people as to who should be re-elected and who should be defeated in the coming elections.