Fáklyaláng, 1961. február-október (2. évfolyam, 2-10. szám)
1961-10-23 / 8-10. szám
4 Hungarian Torchlight LET US LIGHT CANDLES... On the fifth anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution and Freedom Fight of 1956 let us light our humble, simple candle which reflects lights in our hearts, ft does not mean only that we pay our tribute to our dead as it was a tradition for thousands of years for those who remember their departed beloved; it also means that we must think and meditate - including those who, for obvious reasons, wish to forget it - over the meaning of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, and of its teaching to mankind trying to shape its own destiny, candle light takes us back to the basic meaning of human destiny which is obviously lost at the light of shining lamps and limelights. When this Revolution shook the world it was regarded as a turning point in History. It was believed that the waves of Bolshevism broke on the cliffs of the will of the Hungarian people, and that the time of turn in the tide arrived: that it means the forward thrust of Communism came to a sudden and deadly halt, and that from now on it will fade away. Thousands of statements were issued condemning the Russians, protesting against Soviet actions and brutality. Former die hard Communists openly defied the Communist Parties in the various countries of the world and tore up their membership cards, and tearing apart some of their past, too. Writers on both sides of the Iron Curtain saw the oncoming of a new dawn. Statesmen of the past and present were speaking enthusiastically about the heroism, unlimited unselfishness and love of freedom and country of the Hungarian people which fought with the weapons and means of medieval knights, who dazzled the world with their high sense of responsibility and historic mission. Budapest became not the name of a city but, as President Eisenhower put it in his second inauguration speech, a symbol of human determination to live in freedom and dignity. Public sentiment was aroused so much that Soviet invitations were rejected, decorations returned to Moscow. The Soviet leaders degraded themselves in the eyes of the world to an unprecedented low level. Even the callous New York newspapers had to herald the victory of the Hungarian people over the forces of tyranny and after a few days of hesitation had to turn against the Soviets whose actions they attempted to defend so many times, and defend nowadays again. After five years let us state that after the lefthanded political dilettantism that was characteristic of the closing phase and after-war period there was no political event, process, fact or phenomena which would have contributed more to the victory of Communism than the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Its psychological impact went beyond any imagination. It showed irreparably to all people and thinkers of the world that the Soviet Union can recur to the most hideous of crimes, mass murder, genocide, may slap mankind in the face, may challenge mankind, may degrade human dignity without any fear of retaliation or that anyone would raise a word of protest if the crime committed does not directly or drastically concern the material interests of her opponent. If there ever was an inhuman, cruel and infamous crime of a mass scale which treated like dirt those principles which were regarded sacred by the United States ever since its founders drafted its Declaration of Independence and its Constitution then it was, beyond any doubt, the Soviet brutality with which the Flungarian people’s will of freedom was crushed. And the United States failed to do anything, did not issue any serious and proper statement which would have shown some real opposition and not equivocal, sometimes childish and left-handed half-gestures against the most sinister mass murder and crime of our century. Thus, the Soviet Union righteously drew the conclusion that the cords may be further strained, pulled, than she had ever believed. On the other hand, people in the non-Soviet part of the world came to the realization that something must be wrong in the leadership of the United States because this country lost its ability and strength to act, at least for a while. The United States - although this was never admitted publicly, broke down and lost its spirit which, any way, was badly damaged at Yalta, Potsdam and in Korea. This change can be seen in all its actions in the field of international politics. The people most directly hit by this lack of leadership, the Hungarian people, turned off their radios in the Valley of the Danube and Tisza rivers, and sadly came to realize that they had been tragically deceived. And in fact: the pace of Bolshevization increased considerably ever since. The waves of this inimical flood swept away more and more of the non-Soviet part of the world as the days passed. And today, it seems to be an impossible task to guess when and where a turn to the better may be expected. If the heroic struggle on the streets of Budapest and the inhuman brutality of the Soviet forces in Hungary could not prompt to action the free world then it must sadly be realized that such action, motivated by human solidarity, cannot be expected in our timedespite the many sophisticated words and messages to the contrary. Prince Bulow, Chancellor of Imperial Germany, was known as the diplomat of lost opportunities. During his time in office Germany’s position in the world sank so low that war seemed to be the only alternative. If such a connotation can be given to country, than it most certainly can be used in connection with the United States: it is the country of the lost opportunities resulting from its policy since 1945. And that such a policy, as shown by Bulow’s example, can lead to tragedy seems to be most obvious. Looking into the core of the problem three outstanding facts may be observed as the motivating factors of present day American policy: the mode of living of the American people (or rather its basic
