CORRESPONDENTS' VIEWS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIII, Issue 134, 9 June 1942, Page 4

CORRESPONDENTS' VIEWS

more criticism

(To The Editor)

Commander R. T. Bower, in a speech at Leeds, provides another example of bitter, personal, inaccurate. politically-biassed criticism of our war leaders and especially of Mr. Churchill. Such attacks degrade the terms "criticism ' and fieedom of speech." and those who thus abuse treasured liberties forfeit the right to enjov them.. It would he unprofitable and perhaps unnecessary to traverse all of Commander Bower's wild statements, but he says: "I sometimes suspect that Mr. Churchill would sooner go down with the sinking ship than see ,-omeone else bring it safely into harb-.iur." Is there anyone who will dignity this mean stigma with the name of "criticism" or "freedom of speech?" He caps all by this next wi'd disregard of fact. Speaking of our reverses, "so far they have end yd by losing half the Empire in a fewweeks." Half the Empire! We still have Great Britain, Canada, about a third of habitable Africa. India, Australia, New Zealand and many colonies as the surviving "half/' Commander Bower's other "half" is Malaya and Burma! We all value the liberty of freedom of speech and of criticism, but each has its limits; ann those who exceed reasonable limits debase the verv freedom thev claim. JOHN' C A UGH I. PLY.