25, 50 and 75 Years Ago

February 25, 2019

February 28, 1994

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision to lift a moratorium on farm foreclosures will deal a devastating blow to thousands of working farmers. The labor movement should speak out against this move to protect the profits of the banks and other capitalists at the expense of small rural producers.

Capitalism creates problems for small farmers that go far beyond conjunctural crises caused by bad weather. When farmers have a good crop, the market works to drive down the price they receive for their produce. Either way, farmers are squeezed between high prices for equipment, fertilizer, and loans and the low price they receive from the large processors and food monopolies.

As part of building an alliance the labor movement can put forward concrete demands as a guaranteed living income plus production costs for all working farmers.

February 28, 1969

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Ft. Jackson GIs United Against the War in Vietnam held a press conference here Feb. 15, in response to harassment by the Army brass and to build support for their right to discuss freely the Vietnam war within the Army.

GIs United, an informal grouping of Ft. Jackson servicemen, is circulating a petition addressed to the base commander requesting a meeting to discuss the Vietnam war.

Base officials issued a statement: “The Army does not recognize any collective bargaining unit representing members of the armed forces.”

GIs United responded issuing their own news release: “We have not asked to represent the GIs at Ft. Jackson in collective bargaining. We are asking the Army to provide facilities for GI’s to discuss the war, as is our constitutional right.”

February 26, 1944

The House Military Committee plans to open hearings on legislation providing for the establishment of a 5,000,000 man peacetime army. A bill calling for compulsory military or naval training for all males upon reaching the age of 17 has been introduced. [It] provides that after completion of one year’s training, every man would remain in a reserve force for ten years and during this period would be compelled to take further “refresher” courses under whatever conditions the President might prescribe.

As the plans of American Big Business for world domination have grown more ambitious, the size of the peacetime army has multiplied. In order to “police the world for the next hundred years” the brass hats want to keep the nation permanently militarized. This is the real prospect the capitalist rulers envisage for the American people.