If You Ask Me
by Eleanor Roosevelt

This type of corruption exists not only in government but in the business world as well. The only way I know to change the situation is through education. The sooner our young people are taught that service to the community, to the family, and to our country can bring as much recognition as material success, the sooner we will see a change in standards and values. When one discovers the pleasures that come through service to others, the desire to snatch at money and power, obtaining them by any means whatsoever, may be every much lessened.

I would not approve of such a combination. I have always felt that there were differences between the services and that we should recognize them. Certainly, functions such as procurement might be combined; but each branch of the services has its own particular character and pride, its own special traditions, uniforms, music, and even its own heroes; and some type of friendly competition among them is probably important for greater efficiency and esprit de corps.

I don't think this cancellation meant that the administration has stopped reading what its critics have to say. It was perhaps an expression of the feeling that, on certain policies, there had been unfair coverage. My husband was always careful to read the opposition; but if he decided that a particular columnist was predictable in the position he would take, he sometimes felt it was a waste of time to read that person's column every day or week.

I cannot remember ever having any racial or religious prejudice forced on me either by environment or by precept or example. As I have grown older, I have worked closely with questions where prejudice plays a very great part; but my own difficulties have rarely arisen from prejudice. They come much more frequently, I believe, from the natural tendency to like or dislike an individual. I have often found, however, that someone I disliked at first sight, I later learned to like as I came to know him well. It was lack of knowledge and understanding that created my first feeling of personal antipathy.

I don't see how this could have been fulfilled. We have no diplomatic relations with Communist China. How, therefore, would arrangements have been made for participation? I should be very much surprised if the commission made such a request.

I think we have to realize that it is much more important to have the respect of other peoples than to have their love. We sometimes seem to believe that just because we give material things to aid others, they must of necessity like us. This is, of course, untrue. Liking comes when a sufficient number of people know one another and have real understanding and enjoyment in their contacts. But in dealing with other nations, our government should primarily seek to command respect for the United States.

I think it is quite possible that women will achieve job equality with men in all but a few specialized jobs. There is already under way an inquiry into the civil-service system, which should be valuable to women.

Originally, I was a full delegate. Now I am, at my own request, just an adviser. I attend meetings when I can, but I have no obligations for committee work or even attendance at General Assembly meetings of the United Nations.