Seniors Hold Symposium

IN opening the Commencement Senior Symposia on "The Search for Peace Beyond Vietnam," Donald McNemar of the Department of Government referred to former President Dickey's convocation address of last fall in which he called for "creative intellectual work to be done on the peace front." Terming those remarks prophetic, Mr. McNemar noted that the search for peace had indeed been a continuing concern of the Dartmouth community this year and especially during the spring. He went on to explain that adding the Saturday symposium to the traditional Commencement activities was an attempt by the seniors to share their learning experiences of the past year with their families and friends.

The day took the form of morning and afternoon panel discussions, highlighted by the remarks of U.S. Senator George S. McGovern (D.-S.D.), who brought the symposium to a close. Nearly 2000 students, family members, faculty and others listened to and participated in the discussions of the problems of achieving peace.

With Senator McGovern presiding, the panel members during the morning session included Richard A. Falk, Milbank Professor of International Law and Practice at Princeton; Dr. David L. Sills '42, Demographic Director of the Population Council; and Charles G. Bolte '41, Vice President of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Professor Falk made the initial presentation and based his remarks on the premise that "the establishment of peace depends on the recognition of social and political realities." He feels, however, that present United States foreign policy fails to recognize many realities in the international scene. To illustrate, he recommends that this nation accept the reality of Red China and stop trying to exclude it from participation in the United Nations. Another reality the United States has been unable to recognize is "the vitality of revolution in the Third World." Forgetting our own national beginnings, says Falk, we cannot seem to accept the turmoil of revolution in developing countries, and instead we throw our support to counter-revolutionary forces, as in Vietnam where we support a minority government. Continuing on this course, he maintains, will only produce additional "Vietnams."

Dr. Sills addressed himself to the threat to peace posed by population growth. He first brought up the point often made that high density population automatically produces aggressive behavior, based on psychological studies of mice under crowded conditions. Sills, however, feels that this conclusion ignores man's ability to adapt to difficult conditions. After all, he noted, the two most densely populated countries in the world are Japan and the Netherlands, where acceptable human behavior has long been the rule. Thus, he believes that population growth rates do not automatically lead to war, but they may aggravate the pressures of poverty that can be a threat to peace. He concluded on a note of hope that man could control and conquer the problem of over-population as he has the problems of disease.

Concluding the morning presentations, Mr. Bolté described a study entitled World Order Models Project, financed by the Carnegie Endowment and directed by Professor Falk. It is an attempt to analyze the present trends of the Third World nations as to good and bad directions of development with an eye to encouraging the former and discouraging the latter. He cautioned that in the search for peace, "patience above all is needed in foreign policy."

THE afternoon session with Mr. Bolte as moderator was characterized by briefer presentations by panel members and more audience participation in the discussion. Joining Professor Falk and Dr. Sills were a Dartmouth faculty-student panel that included Jonathan Mirsky, Associate Professor of Chinese; William W. Ballard '28, Sydney E. Junkins Professor of Biology; Stephen E. Stonefield '70, a Senior Fellow concentrating in Asian studies; and Kul Gautum '72 from Nepal. Speaking from the perspective of a citizen of a Third World nation, Mr. Gautum criticized United States foreign policy for viewing the world only in terms of a struggle between communism and democracy. This strategy draws developing nations unwillingly into the conflict when they want only to be left alone to grow in their own ways. In the same vein, Professor Mirsky commented on United States fears that a North Vietnamese victory in Vietnam would mean a Red Chinese takeover of the area. He pointed out that the current ties between North Vietnam and China are a break in their historic enmity and a reaction to United States' actions in Indochina.

Professor Ballard addressed himself to "the job at home" and the problems relating to ecology. "Too many people," he said, "are pressing too hard on the earth trying to get too much out of it." Educational programs should be revised, he believes, to teach students about the problems American society faces in racism, poverty, decaying cities, and ecology. Mr. Stonefield also emphasized the need to solve domestic problems before there can be any hope for peace abroad.

Following an introduction by President Kemeny, Senator McGovern began his remarks by expressing approval of the way Dartmouth conducted itself during the student strike. He praised especially the Continuing Presence in Washington and characterized it as "the most effective single lobbying effort in his experience."

He then turned to a presentation of his views on United States foreign policy. He believes this nation should get away from a negative foreign policy based on fear of communism and have a policy based on what we stand for. We should have learned from Vietnam, he said, that choosing one's enemies or friends on the sole basis of anti-communism is not always in the nation's best interest.

We should also have learned, he continued, the folly of relying on military power as a test of national strength and influence. "Complex socio-political problems cannot be solved by totaling up the amount of rice and ammunition captured." In the same way, he noted, internationalism, as opposed to isolationism, should not be measured by numbers of troops in foreign countries.

As the United States approaches its bicentennial celebration in 1976, Senator McGovern called for a new effort to match the ideals of this nation with actions. "We have wandered from the goal of the Declaration of Independence," he said, "and we must reaffirm the ideals of 1776." Similarly, he emphasized, the Cooper-Church and McGovern-Hatfield amendments are efforts to make the Constitution function, as the founders intended, to serve a humane society. S.L. society.

Overflow crowd at the morning session in Spaulding Auditorium.

Chief figures in the Symposium program were (l to r) Prof. Richard A. Folk,Charles G. Bolte '41, David L. Sills '42, and U.S. Senator George S. McGovern.