Reading Eagle (August 30, 1944)
Pegler: Free speech for victory
By Westbrook Pegler
New York –
Free speech for victory.
The thing we all love most about the glorious old United States of A.
Is that everybody, regardless of creed or color, is entitled to have their say.
It makes no difference whether you are a member of the wealthy group.
Or if you are so poor all you have for your humble fare is soup.
It is just the same whether you are of socialistic persuasion
Or vegetarian or any other peculiar denomination.
Everybody is entitled to express their opinion in this wonderful free land of ours.
From the rockbound coast of Maine to California’s tropical bowers.
But that does not mean that discordant elements have any right to abuse
The wonderful freedom of speech by telling any lowdown dirty pack of lies they choose
About our wonderful Commander-in-Chief with his firm hand
Or the great and gracious First Lady of the land.
So if it happens that your mother or your teachers forgot
To teach you true patriotism, we true Americans are ready to tell you what.
He came to rule over us when the poor were clamoring for bread.
And millions were so ill-clad they wished they could be dead.
And the first thing he done was he drove the money changers out of the temple.
And why didn’t Herbert Hoover do it, if you think that was so simple.
His heart is overflowing with sympathy for the common man,
Whereas all Thomas E. Dewey ever did was put underprivileged offenders in the can.
Yet, on every hand all we hear is lowdown, underhanded prevarications
About this and that, and all kinds of character assassinations.
When our great President for twelve long years has been striving with might and main
To sweep out the Aegean stables and set us on an even keel again.
So our little children, instead of being always hungry and weak and cold
Can be warmly garbed and do not have to toil before they are even ten years old,
And the bosses do not have power to push the working man around.
And grind you down until finally they put you under the ground.
So, if you are a patriotic American, please get wise
And do not go around repeating anti-fourth-term propaganda lies.
Freedom of speech does not mean the right to spread disunity
When we are all out for victory over the aggressors with impunity.
And meanwhile our President is protecting our beloved home fires
Only to be the target for anti-fourth-term, pro-Nazi liars.
If you didn’t know the true facts you might think he was a worm
Because he obeyed the people’s command to run for a fourth term.
Freedom of speech is our glorious heritage from Plymouth Rock
But those who don’t use it the right way will get a good sock.
So, everybody, all together, let us stop this discordant repining
And when the war is over, we will find the silver lining.
Any resemblance in the foregoing to current New Deal and Communist verse is purely intentional.