INANE LEGISLATION

Of all the misguided pieces of legislation this country has ever seen, the Teachers' Oath Bill takes the cake. Now let there be no mistake. The bill is law, and as such must be obeyed. Never will Harvard set the precedent for disrespect or violation of any legal statute that remains in force But every group in Harvard, every individual, is entitled, for the good of the State and the country at large, to make it quite apparent what the supposedly most intelligent sector of public opinion feels about the Massachusetts law.

The Teachers' Oath Bill, is, first, unnecessary. If there is genuine radicalism in America, it cannot be rooted out of existence' by legislation. Second, it is dangerous. A mere glance at postwar European history shows that the first step towards Fascism has invariably been measures whereby the State attempts to control the life and thought of its citizens. Third, it is bound to be disobeyed; there is even less possibility of its enforcement than there was for the Prohibition amendment.

America's greatest enemies are the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the American Legion. These are the organizations which, relying for emotional stimulus on outworn sentimentality, turn nationalism into a menace, and patriotism into a hypocritical mockery. These are the organizations which, parading under the banner of Americanism, are paying the way for an American Mussolini. One such was happily removed front the scene. But there are others on the horizon.

Given another few years of economic distress, given another diabolically clever demagogue, given the Legion and the D.A.E., and given another few Teachers' Oath Bills-and the political liberties on which this country was founded will be shorn of their already rapidly diminishing meaning.