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belief that he was an able, conscientious, public servant who 

 was coddling an impossible task. 



In a regimented economy the laborer believes that his 

 wages are virtually frozen and that the sky is the limit for 

 food prices and other incomes. The farmer believes that food 

 prices are virtually frozen and that the sky is the limit for 

 city wages and other incomes. The businessman is convinced 

 that his income is frozen, but that the sky is the limit for city 

 wages and food prices. This is an inevitable accompaniment 

 of a sudden change from the time-honored distribution of 

 income by a price economy to its distribution by a central- 

 ized regimented economy operating in Washington. 



Labor wants food prices rolled back and wages rolled for- 

 ward; farmers, on the other hand, want food prices rolled 

 forward and wages rolled back. In time of war neither can 

 be rolled back and both will roll forward. 



Administrative Appeasement 



When a food or price administrator irritates the public 

 and/or fails to accomplish his task, there is such a public 

 clamor that changes must be made to appease the critics. 

 The unsuspecting and critical public thinks the wrong man 

 was placed in charge. Therefore the first method is to change 

 the names on the "big front door." This quiets folks for a 

 time, but if the policies are unchanged, the names are again 

 changed, then the name of the organization is changed, and 

 finally a drastic reorganization is inevitable. In that event, 

 the activities are taken over by another agency or are dis- 

 persed among two or three other agencies. 



During June 1943 there were widespread suggestions that 

 there were too many cooks working on one broth and it was 

 contended that the work should be reorganized along com- 

 modity lines. For instance, the fixing of prices of oil, com- 

 munity and civilian rationing, and control of production 



