"The Honeymoon Is Over"

The Year of Our Lord Nineteen Hundred and Forty-seven has witnessed the return and triumph of Gamalielese conservatism in American domestic politics. But thanks to a bipartisan foreign policy this swing to the right has not yet produced a noticeable withdrawal from the international arena. Isolationism and pacifism are still discredited, and the United States seems conscious of its responsibilities as a "super-power" even if sometimes confused in their execution.

But the real test of this nation's intent to play a leading role on the world stage is still to come. Britain's request to discuss certain aspects of the recent loan, the admitted inability of the Security Council to resolve the Balkan squabbles, the Russian penchant for hiding behind her veto--all are ideal ammunition for those who desire to belittle the benefits of international cooperation. Some Congressmen and editorialists are already saying they--"knew all along" that the United States should stay out of other peoples business.

The influence of these cynics is increased by the traditional American faith in the infallibility of the written word. Our Constitutional experience has bred a belief that once an organization has been set up, and its rules put on paper, things will practically run themselves. But events in the U.N. are demonstrating that the problem of maintaining peace is more than just finding the magic formula and writing it into the law of nations. The struggle for peace and security is a continuing one. The next few months may well be crucial in the formation of the public opinion that will guide Congress when it meets next year to determine the extent of American backing for various international undertakings.

Already some of the glamour of world wide responsibilities is fading. The United States is beginning to feel more like a father, with financial obligations and less like a gay young blade out on a fling. Only by resisting the temptation to slacken the drive for international cooperation now that fewer and fewer tangible results are forthcoming can America insure that the policy of internationalism, undertaken with such great hope is given every chance for success.