Timed to coincide with America's get-tough-with-Russia policy and touched off by President Truman's pre-1948 political housecleaning blast, open season on all Communists of fact or fancy is now in full sway. Relies of Dies Committee days are back at their old stand on Capitol Hill, several state legislatures, including Massachusetts, are operating up-to-date star chambers, and in words strangely reminiscent of the days when Shirley Temple was labelled a dangerous red, Hollywood has been threatened with now investigations. Only the Cincinnati baseball team has escaped censure. Pounded for years from press and pulpit, the American public has allowed itself to approve the red-hunting game one which can do more harm to the United States than to any Communists caught in the process.

At a time when the big stick has become an atom bomb, it is dangerous for the United States to lump foreign policy and domestic political-economic problems together in one pocket. We have been doing just that regarding our relations with the Soviet Union and with home-baked Communists. America may oppose Russian expansion towards the Dardanelles or Middle East oil, but we cannot do so simply because Russia is a Communist state and we dislike the American Communists. Similarly, it is a fallacy to oppose American Communists simply because we disapprove of Russian foreign policy.

A Czarist or Bull Moose Russia could very conceivably have the present Soviet Government's aims in world affairs. Assuming this, the United States could still oppose Russian aims and distrust American Communists. But there would be no connection between our attitude towards Russia and our feeling towards Communists. The point, then, is that we should deal with Russia as we would with any great power and keep the issue of American Communists out of the realm of foreign affairs.

Of vital concern to all, along with keeping an undistorted view of foreign policy, is the issue of political freedom for Communists at home. To out law the Communist Party, denying its members freedom of political activity, would be to demonstrate the weaknesses the Communists charge us with. Until, to use the trite but indispensable phrase, a clear and present danger to our Nation can be shown, it is better to let Communists have their say; if our system is as sound as we believe, it can withstand any debate or criticism. Just as red-baiting is an admission of weakness and frustration at home, so treatment of Communists conditioned by our attitude of the moment towards Russia is a confession of our inability to find a sincere and forceful foundation for our policy towards them. When America faces these facts, it will have gone a long way towards solving the Communist problem.