DEFENCE WARNING FOR AUSTRALIA

"The United States would have to abandon its allies in the Western Pacific if war broke out on a global scale with the Soviet Union, a former U.S. navy chief said today. The only chance to save Europe in a conventional war would be by the reinforcement and that could only be done on the necessary scale with naval support, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt said. 'Such support could only be obtained by abandoning the Western Pacific and towing ships from the Pacific into the Atlantic in the crisis buildup phase. There are plans to make such redeployment."' - John Hamilton in The Herald, Melbourne, October 12th.

Admiral Zumwalt was giving evidence before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that is holding hearings on the proposed Panama Canal treaty. John Hamilton questioned the Admiral, who headed the U.S. Navy for four years until 1974 and is a former member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, if he meant that America would not support Australia with its navy in the event of a war.
Admiral Zumwalt replied, "I didn't intend it to appear that we would not support Australia and New Zealand in the event we were at war with Russia." But he went on to say that the odds of a U.S. conventional global war with the Soviet Union shifted from favourable to unfavourable in 1971 and had become progressively worse.

Admiral Zumwalt said that the proposed demilitarisation of the Indian Ocean "can only be causing exultation" in Moscow, pointing out that Soviet has a number of bases around the Indian Ocean, even if it does not fly the Russian flag over these bases. "If we offer them Diego Garcia, I will be astonished if the Russians don't grab the deal - they should."

Admiral Zumwalt has on previous occasions warned of the vital importance of Southern Africa to the defence of Western Europe. A realistic Australian defence policy would reverse the present suicidal anti-Southern African stance, face the truths enunciated by Admiral Zumwalt, and set in motion a programme for the maximum self-sufficiency in defence.

It is a criminal scandal that Australia's vast unused productive capacity is not being used to build up a defence system which, while not large by American standards, would ensure that Australia could do something effective in the event of an outbreak of military conflict, even if only on a regional scale. Defence Minister Killen should be pressing for a policy of self-sufficiency instead of passively accepting the dictates of the Treasury and its insane anti-inflation programme.
(Recommended reading: The Defence of Australia, by Brig. R. Eason. $1.00 posted.)

THE WENTWORTH RESIGNATION

The resignation of veteran Liberal Mr. W.C. Wentworth, from the Federal Liberal Party, and Mr. Wentworth's expressed intention of standing for the Senate, is a straw in a wind, which will eventually reach gale force unless the Fraser Government changes its finance economic policies.

Although many regard W.C. Wentworth as a brilliant, but erratic and slightly eccentric man, he has demonstrated an integrity which is refreshing. He has stood almost alone in refusing to do the "kowtow" to the Chinese Communists. He has consistently condemned the Government for its "soft" stand on Communism. And as he observed in his resignation speech at Canberra last week, he had been proved correct by events concerning the Government's economic policies.

He reminded Mr. Fraser and his colleagues that two years ago he had predicted that the Government's economic policies would lead to "long-term, low grade depression." Mr. Wentworth said that instead of honestly acknowledging his errors, Treasurer Lynch "pushes forward recklessly and relentlessly along the same path." He found the last Budget and the recent overseas raising of loans too much for him.

Following his resignation address in Parliament, Mr. Wentworth told a press conference that unless the Fraser Government changed its policies the Socialists would not only win the next elections, but would be successful in moulding public opinion with acceptance of their ideas. Mr. Wentworth made it clear that while he thought he could gain the support of many Liberal and Labor Party supporters as a Senate candidate, he would not join Don Chipp's Party. As he put it, "Don's is a party in search of a policy. I am a policy in search of a party."

While Mr. Wentworth has been a consistent critic of the Fraser Government, there is no doubt that he will, as he says, have a "little more freedom" to vote against the Government, if necessary, in the months ahead. This will increase his effectiveness in the Parliament. We have not agreed with Mr. Wentworth on many issues, but we are satisfied that his move towards independence will help to improve Parliament. The last effective Independent in the Federal Parliament was the late J.T. Lang, a constant thorn in the side of the Chifley Government.

If Mr. Wentworth can be more effective as an Independent, it is conceivable that he may encourage enough Liberal and National-Country Party Members to revolt against present policies. We trust that Mr. Wentworth is encouraged in his stand by a flood of letters of encouragement and support.

BRIEF COMMENTS

In a bid to ensure it has another three years in office, the Liberal-NCP Coalition threatens to hold an early election on 'Who is running the country?' Does this mean that the Fraser Government is at present not running the country? If this were the case, then the re-election of this Government would change nothing. Industrial unrest would increase. And yet Government spokesman, when it suits them, claim that industrial unrest should be made an election issue.
Mr. Anthony has returned from overseas with the claim that overseas investors have a poor view of Australia because of its poor industrial state of affairs. But the day before Mr. Anthony's statement, Federal Treasurer Lynch said that Australia has a 'triple credit rating' overseas.
Industrial unrest in Australia is too serious a question to be used as a slick political gimmick.
Even Premier J. Bjelke-Petersen's critics agree that he is a shrewd realistic politician. The Queensland Premier has wisely made it clear that he does not want Prime Minister Fraser or deputy Prime Minister Doug Anthony to intervene in the Queensland State elections on November 12th. "We don't want the bad Federal record rubbing off on us", he says.
A major issue in the Queensland elections is whether Mr. Bjelke-Petersen can maintain a majority for the National Country Party and continue as Premier.

British Foreign Secretary, Dr. Owen has provided another sickening example of how low British politicians are prepared to sink. He met with the Communist dictator Brezhnev last week in Moscow, and assured him that the British Government was firmly committed to getting rid of the "white minority" regime in Rhodesia. Dr. Owen said later that Brezhnev was "obviously deeply committed to the whole issue of detente." Presumably "detente" is being advanced by Brezhnev's client Cuban troops in Africa. Dr. Owen told the Soviet dictator, "we want to do more business with you." In other words, the British Socialists are prepared to join with mass murderers, but not with their own kith and kin in Rhodesia.

Speaking in the United Nations Assembly, Singapore's Foreign Minister Mr. Rajarathnam, has warned that "There is a responsible body of opinion which contends that a second Great Depression, far more catastrophic than that of the '30s, is possible within the next few years'.' The current deepening worldwide crisis, with 15 million unemployed in the industrialised nations, and growing trade friction, has its roots in finance economic policies, which are mathematically certain to destroy the free society unless modified in the near future.

Reports from Washington last week reveal that prices are moving upwards in a new inflation. This is the inevitable result of a "reflation" policy which expands the credit -money supply as a debt, carrying interest charges, through further capital expansion, this creating more financial costs which must be recovered, if possible, through still higher prices. New credits for reducing taxation and financing consumer price discounts is the only alternative to progressive inflation, arrested temporarily by recessions, which become more convulsive.

A feature of the crisis of what remains of Western Civilisation is the so-called "Marxist-Christian Dialogue". A new breed of' "intellectual" Christians has been convinced that Marx was a "great thinker", and that Marxism cay be synthesized with Christianity. The basis of Marxism is the philosophy of "dialectical materialism", a philosophy that is diametrically opposed to the Christian philosophy. Communism is a major error and the only realistic role for the Christian is to oppose it, not to try to make deals with it, no matter how plausible these may sound.