Mr. C. W. Carter, the federal representative from the constituency of Burin-Burgeo, rose to speak during the debate on the speech from the throne. In his address he covered numerous subjects embracing the most serious problems facing this country — the monetary system, labour-management problems, Communism, etc. His remarks and comments are remarkably in the spirit and according to the mind of Social Credit. Below follow excerpts from his discourse. The italics are ours for emphasis.
Most speeches from throne are described as being more notable for what they omit than what they contain. I doubt whether in the history of this parliament there has been an emptier speech from the throne than the one under debate. The beginning of a new decade seems to me an appropriate time to review the past and take stock of ourselves to determine our mistakes and take whatever decisions are necessary to avoid repeating them in the future.
For my own province the decade just ended has been the most important in our 450 years of history. In 1949 Newfoundland made the momentous decision to give up her independent status as a British dominion and become a part of Canada. It was an act of faith because once in there is no way to get out...
That trust has been severely shaken by events which have taken place during the past two years, and many sincere people in my province are wondering whether it was ever justified.
But as we look over the nation as a whole we see even greater problems — tight money, inflation, unemployment, labour-management relations, dominion-provincial relations, wheat surpluses, defence problems and trade deficits. These formidable problems face the Canadian people as a whole; and unless we can find solutions or make reasonable progress towards solutions during the next ten years there is great danger that our economic structure may collapse.
The common factor in all these problems is the money problem. During World Wars I and II, we saw nations accumulate debt burdens until they collapsed. Then we saw these same countries, having got rid of their debt burdens, make an economic recovery so strong and so rapid that within a few short years they were able to compete successfully with those nations whose economies had suffered no set-back whatsoever. Germany has demonstrated this phenomenon twice in less than fifty years. On the other hand the creditor nations suffered no lasting ill effects from their failure to collect these huge debts. Then there are cases where interest charges are such that the original loan is repaid several times over and the borrower still finds himself in debt. No thinking person who ponders these facts can help feeling that there must be something wrong with a system which produces such results.
Money is a man-made device. It was invented to facilitate the exchange and distribution of the things we produce. Money was meant to be man's servant but it has become his master. From a relatively simple concept as a medium of exchange it has become more and more complex, until today it has become a sort of Frankenstein which men can no longer control, a monster capable of exercising the power of life and death over man through its influence on employment and other economic factors upon which his livelihood and welfare depend.
To me it is significant that not a single new idea for the improvement of our monetary system has emerged during the past 100 years. It has become a sacred cow. Surely the human brain which can make atom bombs and put man made satellites into orbit, is capable of developing a simpler and better monetary system than we have today, one that is simple enough for the average Canadian to understand and that will at the same time satisfy our economic requirements without the disadvantages and paradoxes of our present system.
...Our present monetary system makes the rich richer and the poor poorer. If tends to make big corporations bigger and small firms smaller. It facilitates the development of those parts of our country where industrialization is already high and retards the development of those parts where industrial development is low... the time has come when a royal commission or some other body representing all sections of our society should be set up to study four monetary system and make recommendations for its improvement.
...We must diversify our foreign markets, but we cannot take the risk of permitting ourselves to become dependent on trade with the communist bloc. We should make a special effort to expand our trade with Japan, which promises to become an important market for our surplus wheat and coal.
...However, as soon as we increase our imports from Japan our own industries cry out for tariff protection to keep Japanese goods out. We should bear in mind that the lower priced Japanese articles benefit the Canadian consumer and leave more money in his pockets to spend on local products...
But before labour can play its full part it must get back to fundamental principles. The fact must be recognized by both labour and management that every individual whether he be a labourer or employer, has worth within himself as a created being, that he has certain God-given rights, which must not be circumscribed or interfered with by the state, by management or by a union. The employer has the right to make his own decisions in accordance with his conscience in carrying out his responsibilities to the nation. The worker has the right to join the union of his choice. He has also an equal right not to join if he so desires. The right to associate is no greater than the right not to associate.
NO ORGANIZATION, WHETHER IT BE A CORPORATION OR A UNION, IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE INDIVIDUAL. No organization can be permitted to place itself above the law of the land, and the national interest must always be paramount. Freedom is indivisible, and no individual worker or employer should be compelled to forfeit these inalienable rights or be penalized for exercising them. However labour and management must realize also that their prime task now is to make the classwar obsolete, just as obsolete as any other kind of war, and that the use of strikes in the settlement of disputes is just as outdated as the use of other forms of force. It is futile to try to settle a dispute, on the basis of who is right, because neither party is ever 100 percent right.
Granted good will and the right kind of human relationship, it should be possible for management and labour to work out agreements that would ensure that the benefits of increased productivity would be passed on to the consumer in the form of lower prices...
...the Minister of Finance is anxious to balance the budget, but the welfare of the individual and his family should be the first charge upon our economy.
The ideological struggle between the communist world and the free world has now entered a final and decisive stage, and whether democracy will survive or perish will depend upon whether we of the free world will awake to our peril in time, and whether we will have the courage to arm ourselves with an ideology that is superior to communism...
...Peaceful coexistence is a beautiful theory and very attractive to those who do not wish to face reality.
During the past two years we have seen the communists gain a foothold in the Caribbean, right in our own backyard. It was done so quietly and unobtrusively that some of us do not yet realize what has happened. Certainly we have not shown any particular concern about it, apart from the academic question of whether Premier Castro is or is not a communist.
That question is completely beside the point. The facts are that the control of the Cuban economy is now in the hands of Ernesto Che Guevara, a trained communist. The armed forces are under the control of Raoul C. Castro, Fidel's brother who was trained as a communist in Prague. The land reform institute (INRA) is being run by three well known communists, namely Antonio Nunez Jiminez, Waldo Medina Mendez, and Oscar Pino Santas.
The point is, therefore, that regardless of whether. Premier Castro is a Communist, the control of Cuba is now completely in communist hands, and they are consolidating it as a beach head for the ideological invasion of Latin America.
So anxious is Mr. Krushchev to sell us this idea of peaceful coexistence that his propaganda machine is working overtime trying to frighten us into thinking that we must choose between coexistence and war. These, of course are false alternatives.
"In the communist dictionary 'coexistence' means take-over by every method short of a shooting war. How can there be coexistence when the communists have decided to fight until they rule the world? Communism would not be communism if it were not a fight to the bitter end." (R. Vaitheswaran).
These words coming from a man who spent six years as a member of the communist party, and who spent two and one half years in jail for his convictions should carry great significance...
...All mankind is longing for a world that will be free from fear and hate, and greed. The only way to that kind of a world is along the road of absolute moral standards and divine guidance.