The Danger of Drifting.

The article reports on the public's desire for economic security and a trend toward the welfare state and labor unions, which support state-guaranteed plans for security in the United States. Industrialization improved workers' quality of life, but automation diminished their sense of achievement in the work place. Business is concerned that a welfare state will lead to economic stagnation and reduced industrial productivity. A solution is government programs encouraging individual responsibility for self-sufficiency--not dependence on the state. Topics include the distinction between welfare society and welfare state, profit and loss economy, appropriate mix of "freedom from" and "freedom to" in a social movement, and management incentives to promote private initiative.