Stranica 10 [10]
£ - page ten ¬
the great federalist ideal should not be endangered by the
Atlantic Allusion ess
Such absolutely extreme attitude, on certain specific points at least,
is not entirely apporved by some of the old guard, that haa cooperated
with mounier even before the War. Francois Goguel for example,
commenting on Lapierre's and Ricoeur's statements, omphasized in a
short note (#178, April 1951, p .634-5) his absolute unanimity with
his "friends of Esprit" on the question of French neutrality. he
expressed however his feeling that the denunciation of the Atlantic
pact migit increase the danger of war, by fostering Kussian intzansi¬
geance anc American isolationism.
Last Novembest and December, "Esprit" studied the general attitude
of Franch in political matters and concluded at what it called the
"rottenning" of the public morale. In an editorial, headed *"Putrifica¬
tion", and signed "Esprit" (#184, November 1951, pp.593-5), the review
rumpkkinge complained:
eee Among our statesmen we search in vain for someone who, like
Morrison would frankly declare that he prefers the Abadan
humiliation to a war; and among our socialists we fait to discovei
another Bevan ee. Putrification means dissolution, dissociation ee.
Alain Berger, in "Europe and German Unity" (#185, December 1951, pps
852-858) continued the same thought:
The great mass of the French people lacks interest in foreign
polisy and concentrates on problems which it considers to be at
. its levele The neutralist lists which last Spring had based their
electoral campaign on international issues have cruelly ex¬
perienced this indifference ves That "putrification" previously
denounced by an editorial of Esprit has gained all the aspects
of public life see Resignation is a crime esse
And Berger to recall the main lines of a French policy of peace: refusa.
of a German rearmament, even under the cover of a luropean Army; total
revidon of the European armament policy; cessation of the indochinese
War; relinquishment of the present Atlantic policy, which, by submittin
Europe to the United States, distroyes ali chances for an independent,
thus peaceful continent.
Such strong general attitude on pacifism and neutrslism
necessatrly expresses itself more specifically in strong and bitter
attacks against all aspects of the Atlantic Pact ana the werman re¬
armament and in favor of an attitude of conscientious objections. ¬
Francis Jeanson - one of the central figures in "Esprit", that has
entered the group like Domenach and Ricoeur immediately after the War ¬
writes under the heading™fBhe liberated Corean" (#175, January 1951,
ppel22=131), in refering to the Atlantic Pact:
If one has any wish of avoiding forced sovictization, the idea
might occur - it has already appeared in France but has always
vanished again - that there should be some other means, in‘France
. for instance, to triumph over communism than the policy of
gradually pushing the Communist Party outside the law and of
preparing a war against soviet Russia. Éven supposing that the
USSR should have the worst intentions ess would it really be the
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