THE AMERICAN THESIS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP78-03362A000100010003-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 21
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 17, 1998
• Sequence Number: 3
• Content Type: SUMMARY

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In this Basic Intelligence Course (CS), you have been introduced to
a number of significant units of information. We have attempted to show
you what national security is, what intelligence is and how it is produced,
and what its objectives are. During the last week of the course we have
tried to make clear the basic theories and tactics, and the organizations
through which the theories are implemented, of our primary opposition at
the present time - the Soviet Union and world communism.
In your training program a number of things are, of course, still
lacking. The implementation of clandestine operations will be the subject
matter of the course of study most of you will take next. And in other
courses you will be introduced to the functional organization of CIA which
was presented here only in general terms. But at this particular time,
among the other things which seem to be needed, we feel is a reintroduction
or reorientation to some of our own basic premises - which, for want of a
better term, we have called The American Thesis. There are two important
reasons why we consider this to be advisable. First, our thesis, our way
of living, is under constant at.ack by our opponents (and sometimes by our
friends and potential friends). Some of the criticisms are justified;
most of them are completely unfounded. Since we have devoted some attention
to the theories of those opponents, a statement of our thesis is in order,
particularly since we believe that it is incomparable better than that of
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One of the greatest attributes of this country - yet philosophically
one of the most difficult - is that our social and political beliefs are
more in the nature of a tradition and a tendency than a well-knit doctrine
or unified theory. Our beliefs are more in the nature of a series of values
which Americans have found to provide a better, more flexible guide to
social, economic and political activity than any of the so-called systems.
As one eminent philosopher has put it: "It is one of the signs of a
democracy's vitality that attempts to define it or turn it into a creed
fall short of the truth and general-:;;.y sound. silly. If we ever take to solemn-
ly rehearsing slogans and formulas, we shall be near the end of our rope."
If there can be any single characterization of the American way of
living, it would seem to be that it is experimental. Our attitudes more
often than not have been historically experimental in the search for the
"good life". With some notable exceptions, of course, the general tenor of
the American Thesis in our experiment has reflected over many years pluralism,
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practicality, common sense, adventure, flexibility, and (not as incongruously
as some might think), religiosity.
I think we can agree with a concept which many would call typically
American - that finality of judgment is not a prerogative of man and that
therefore our experimental approach to the quest for the good life roust Be
continuously reviewed and the evidence of results continuously weighed.
As Sidney Hook has said, "It is the willingness to reconsider first prin-
ciples in the light of relevant evidence ... which is the sign of the
liberal and mature mind.11
Evidence of this is that by and large we have been concerned with
practical rather than theoretical philosophy. And as a result we have been
more interested in the direction our beliefs point to, the results they
produce. It is true that this concern with the practical has made us vul-
nerable to the criticisms not only of our enemies but also frequently of
our friends. The charge is that because of our practical, experimental
approach, we have become too absorbed with mundane matters and have given
too'little thought to spiritual and kindred affairs. Naturally, absorption
with the practical has made materialists out of many Americans.
Yet it is nevertheless true that our rationalism has led many Americans
to strong, idealistic points of view on many subjects. Consider the vitality
of religion in this country. Certainly one explanation for that fact, which
often has been ignored o misunderstood abroad, is that by and large
Americans of all religious persuasions have rejected the notion that the
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Religion is, or at least we recognize that it should be, a dynamic force
which itself implies that we must examine and know what we profess, for
otherwise it may not be true. The essential fact that God exists need
not, or may not, be submitted to constant questioning. Yet the peculiar
vitality and the remarkable expression of faith which characterizes
religion in America does not come from mere acceptance of our fathers'
religion, but rather from our constant demands that it be our religion
as well and that it work. Faith and reason are not mutually exclusive.
Americans evidently understand this, and it has been our concern with
practicality, among other things, which has led us to this mature com-
prehension.
In all aspects of American living there has come the general accep-
tance of the notion that reason and feeling must be accepted not as
conflicting forces, but as a team without whose equal pull little or no-
thing could be accomplished, that only a limited acceptance of a single
point of view is valid because it must be modified by an acceptance of
other viewpoints and attitudes.
When we come to contrasting the American approach with that of the
Marxist to the quest for the good society and the solution of problems
standing in the way, we should indicate at least that they stem perhaps
from the same rational basis in that we try generally to guide and hold
most of our opinions by the use of reason - as they say they do. But
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the major distinction comes in the completely different way we have of
holding and applying our opinions and beliefs.
We have no complete, absolute metaphysical explanation of reality,
based upon an abstraction such as the dialectic. We have not arrived at
one sin?-le, fundamental philosophic belief. We have no ready-made, pat
formulas which offer guaroptees of attaining our goals and solving our
problems. Even in times of great crisis we have not consciously sought
THE answer to our problems, THE way out of our difficulty. Fortunately
for us, we have not had to subscribe to the false doctrine that there can
be ONE and only one solution.
If we can agree that the American approach and the Marxist approach
are similar in that they both try to be rational, we should quickly say
that there the similarity ends. Marxist application of reason has resulted
in rational-materialism, called "historical-materialism{", which claims a
scientific basis and a complete answer to the problems of philosophy, morals,
economics, politics and every other phenomenon in man's experience. The
particular way in which this belief has been held by the Communists has
resulted in a completely irrational absolutism. Theirs is a system which
refuses to recognize the validity of any other explanation of reality or
of man's historical processes. Theirs is a system which refuses to re-
examine its own beliefs in the light of new evidence, except to rationalize
it in such a manner that the new evidence will conform with the dogmatic
beliefs.
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The appeal of this system has resulted from the, fact that it does
provide neat and seemingly reassuring answers to those who feel the need
for final solutions to the vast number of problems confronting them. For
ourselves, we can recognize the fact that the Marxist has ready answers
for most of these problems, and we can further realize that ideally
solutions to difficulties of all sorts are desirable. But because of
practical historical experience, we know that the answers in the form of
a monolithic world view are false.
Since, then, we have rejected the Marxist approach and have reasoned
that our practical, non-abstract philosophy is more valid, what can we say
about our concept of truth? We can say, I think, that if an idea which
some say has in it the quality of truth, the idea must get itself accepted
in the market-place of ideas. This is, as we have seen, the typically
American, experimental philosophy which has an inherent distrust of ab-
stractions. This has been called Pragmatism - an approach to philosophy
which may be defined as the doctrine claiming that the meaning of concep-
tions is to be sought in their practical bearings.
William James has this to say:
The truth of an idea is not a stagnant property inherent in it.
Truth happens to an idea. It becomes true, is made true by events:
its verity is in fact an event, a process: the process namely of
verifying itself, its veri - facation. Its validity is the process
of valid - ation . . . The truth is the name of whatever proves itself
to be good in the way of belief, and good, too, for definite assignable
reasons.
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In other words, truth cannot be merely an abstraction. Truth is an e-
volving concept, and the principle which is true has become so only after
demonstration of the fact that the principle works in practice.
In the original sense there is an irrationality about Pragmatism. For
the selection of a principle implies an act of will, a choice, which may not
at the particular moment lend itself to rational proof. An illustration of
this is to be found in the case where Americans (not without some historical
precedent, to be sure) assumed that their beliefs were true and acted to
make them so. The value and worth of democracy, of freedom, of equality
were assumed. The consequences of these principles were evaluated and
thereafter Americans have committed themselves to making them work. You
cannot visualize an American believing in Freedom merely as an abstraction.
The fact that it is a true principle is the fact that it works.
. And so the broad formula has become "A belief is true if it works."
Naturally you will quickly see the danger in this axiom. For example,
some would say that slavery "worked." The key word in the phrase is, of
course, "works", which can mean different things in different situations.
It can mean:
a. "cash value" - that is, to "work" means to arrive at the facts or
end which the belief predicts (truth must be found in experience-
empiricism.)
b. Harmony with other beliefs - it must be consistent with and compat-
ible with other things which we believe. (In this respect we could
not say that slavery worked). The total result must be consistent.
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However, if only these two qualifications were taken literally -
pragmatism would encourage each man to adopt the beliefs which worked
best for him - regardless of their agreement with any other person's
beliefs. But - it does not work to be out accord with the beliefs of
one's neighbors. To work perfectly - a belief must also be in harmony
with the beliefs of other people.
Thus - "individual pragmatism" tends to give way to "social pragma-
tism" - which holds that belief to be true which works for the great major-
ity of people in the long run. The truth of a belief can then only be
determined by a long course of social experiment. This seems to be the
prevailing type of philosophy in America today. Those beliefs which we
hold - in religion - ethics - government, etc., are those which experience
shows to promote the welfare of the mass of mankind after long trial.
A further development of this "social pragmatism" is the concept that
the only justification of principles and concepts is achievement - progress
marked out along the lines of the original design. It must be shown that
the system leads to some valuable result which was not there at the
beginning. Also means and ends must be kept in close harmony. Under
certain circumstances which are well-defined and well-understood, the end
does justify the means. The critical point to consider here, however, is
that the notion is conditional upon the fact that it be the same and that
was originally proposed and accepted. This is NOT license.
If the means we employ in a given situation are good but the end does
not work, we must re-examine, revise or reject the premise involved. If-the
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end is worth seeking but the means interfere or result in failure, the
means must be similarly re-examined, revised or rejected.
Pragmatism - as a corollary - accepts the fact that there are common
goals - consented to as a result of civilized experience. The study of
history is here in point though its results are not necessarily binding.
Thus the views, the beliefs, the concepts, of Western civilization need
not be jettisoned periodically in favor of some new purely rational
principle; but may be utilized pragmatically after being stripped of un-
founded claims to. represent unchanging facts.
This approach to knowledge and experience (for PRAGMATISM is an
approach rather than a completed system) - although it has not always gone
under the name of Pragmatism which is its American version has a long
history in the political and economic concepts of Western civilization -
primarily in Great Britain from which we inherit so many of our own now
traditional concepts. Many of the conclusions - reached (in a rational
manner, possibly) by political economic theorists in Great Britain - were
adopted b%., the founders of this Country and through the years have been
given the pragmatic test. It has been proved - conclusively - that they
are true beliefs, because they have been found through experience to work.
Perhaps the most significant case here in point if that of John Locke.
Tolerance was one of the cardinal principles for which Locke stood, and
he saw, as the greatest enemy of tolerance, the tendency of men to be
dogmatic in their beliefs as the Communists are. He also concluded that
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this dogmatism - in turn - rested upon an assumption that the knowledge
upon which the beliefs depended was absolutely certain. He then proceeded
to demonstrate that, as a matter of fact, people tend to be dogmatic about
just those beliefs which are least able to make any claim to be demonstrable.
His final conclusion was that - "We should not be so forward - out of an
affectation of universal knowled??e - to raise questions and perplex ourselves
and others - with disputes about things to which our understandings are not
suited . . . It is of great use to the sailor to know the length of his
line - though he cannot with it fathom all the depths of the ocean. It is
well that he knows it is long enough to reach the bottom at such places as
are necessary to direct his voyage and caution him against running on shoals
that may ruin him. Our business here is not to know all thinggs - but those
which concern our conduct."
Locke's approach to knowledge found ecpression in his political views--
some of which remain fundamental to our own political beliefs at the present
time. He determined that absolute authority leads to a "state of nature"
and that those who wield it do not stand in a relation of truth and justice
to their fellow-citizens. Ultimate authority, therefore, can lie only in
the people as a whole -,and the only form of government which can appro-
priately express this principle is that which leaves the executive functions
subordinate to an assembly composed of elected representatives of the people.
He emphasized the necessity (for living well) of freedom and tolerance, free-
dom for the individual to live his own life and maintain certain rights against
the power of his government; tolerance in both politics and religion for all
those who are not themselves, in principle, intolerant.
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These principles expounded by Locke were expanded and utilized in other
fields by succeeding British political theorists - notably Jeremy Bentham
and John Stuart Mill. Bentham applied the principles of experience to the
field of morals - and came forth with the principles of "the greatest good
for the greatest number" - and indicating the necessity of political insti-
tutions and a legal system to adequately achieve that principle. John Stuart
Mill utilized the principles of freedom and toleration in human conduct which
Locke and Bentham had emphasized - and came forth with one of the clearest
expressions we possess of INDIVIDUALISM (On Liberty)
These principles have been incorporated by American political theorists
into the body of our American political concepts and foundations - by Jeffer-
son, Adarss, Franklin, Jackson, Lincoln - and tbeir successors who have popu-
larized and further expounded the principles based upon the general concept
that that belief is best which finds general acceptance through experience
because it works best for the greatest number.
The documents in which these principles are expressed are familiar to
all of us - The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, The Bill of
Rights, the speeches and writings of Lincoln, etc. Those principles are
also familiar to all of us. It is only necessary here to restate them very
briefly - and to affirm the fact that they should not be considered merely
as historical concepts, interesting, but not vital. They are the principles
by which we are now governing our conduct - and with which all of us - as
members of an organization such as this should be completely familiar. We
consider the most fundamental of these political beliefs to be the following
(within the framework of what is called the American version of democracy):
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1. A belief - or faith - in the dignity of man, founded on the considera-
tion that every sin:,-le person is valuable in his own right and for him-
self. The belief that if we permit each individual to exercise his own
capacities to the fullest (within the necessary limitations of a just,
well-ordered society) we will thereby enable him to make a worth'-while
contribution to his family and to the society in which he is living.
And though we believe that since no society is possible without govern-
ment, and since a government cannot be of all, a majority government
must be established. We also believe that it is the responsibility
of the majority to respect the dignity of the individual.
A further corollary of this principle is a belief in the rights of
those individuals grouped together as a minority - to oppose the major-
ity - to criticize the majority - to seek to replace the majority.
Thus we stand for individualism, as opposed to the mass man. We do
not believe in the state as an absolute institution with a will to
which we must conform (as even the majorities are made to conform in
Communist-controlled nations).
2. A belief that governments derive their powers from the consent of the
governed (the key word here is derive) - that government comes from
below, not from above; that it comes fromron, not from dictators; that
government looks to the source of all power in the consent of men.
Jefferson stated quite clearly that it was not only the right of men
to change their government when it failed to serve their purposes,
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he went so far as to indicate that "ideally every constitution and
every law naturally expires with each new generation." "If it be
enforced any longer - it is an act of force - not of right." This
sounds like revolutionary doctrine, but it is revolutionary only in
the legal, sense - as an appeal to the will of the people.
This means - in our society - that the original thinker (which is
heresy in Communist lands) may serve the purpose of challenging or
questioning the a3 sumptions of the code under which we live and thus
keep the code alive, significant, and meaningful. In the USSR and
Eastern Europe, the original has been eliminated and the lies of
the State prevail. In our society - if an administration lies or
does not serve the real interests of the people - we turn it out.
Based upon the concept of man as an individual and his equality with
other individuals we believe, finally, in the historic doctrine of
civil liberties, which states that man is something less than man
unless he is possessed of the right to fair trial and to freedom
of speech, press, association, and religion.
Jefferson, in his First Inaugural, stated this belief eloquently:
"If there be any among us who wish to dissolve this Union - or
change its republican form - let them stand undisturbed as monuments
of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated where
reason is left free to combat it.
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These, very briefly, are the political ideals to which we adhere. To
accept these ideals, however, is to incur a responsibility - the res.ponsi-
bility, brought forth by our pragmatic approach, of making them a reality -
of making them work. If these ideals are soundly conceived, and if they
are within the general scope of human capacities, it should be feasible
to support them with ways of living which have been validated through
experience. They have been validated through experience - they do work -
but only when the following responsibilities are accepted by those people
living under these ideals:
1. The recognition and protection of a wide range of diversities based
on the thorough understanding of the fact that where conformity is
imposed as an external discipline, liberty is thereby excluded. This
means the recognition of varying political ideas, races, religious
creeds, types of education, etc. - and this is what makes democracy
difficult - because forcing people to conform is frequently easier
than tolerance.
2. The acceptance of the fact that ourideals are only partially attain-
able. There must be a recognized margin for error because of the
experimental nature of democracy. In other words, the absolute, all-
or-none, principle is only for dictatorships - and perfectionists
must undergo the discipline of adaptation to partial success.
3. The acceptance of the assumption that means must be consonant with
ends - and adherence to the assumption in the form of a moral be-
havior which tends to protect the ideals. The recognition that if
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humane and liberal ends are desired - one must behave humanely and
liberally. The society or the individual which strives for demo-
cratic goals - must be disciplined in the use of democratic means.
These are our political ideals and responsibilities. Some brief atten-
tion should also be devoted to our economy which, being a capitalistic one
is the aspect of our society which is under most constant attack by our
Marxist opponents. And, since they are governed by an absolutist system
of thought, the description of the inherent defects of capitalism which
Marx propounded - class warfare, increasing misery, inevitable collapse,
and imperialism. - are still held to be above the will of men to change
them.. Hence - the warped criticism which refuses to recognize that the
moral convictions of men (their ideals - if you will) can and have changed
the course of capitalistic development. It may be true that American
capitalism of the turn of the century or before deserved the criticism
which is now being leveled against it - but it is not now valid. Although
the problems which it now faces continue to be momentous ? it has thus far
met the pragmatic test - it has, at least partially, fulfilled the ideals
of individualism and liberty within the necessary social framework and
limitations.
Capitalism in the United States represents an economy which has not
thrown off completely the doctrine of individualism which was once its
sole focal point (stemming from the individualism of John Stuart Mill) -
but like Mill's own individualism, it has been tempered by the concept
that "the division of the produce of labor should be made in concert with
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acknowledged principles of justice." Mill stated the social -problem of
the future to be - "how to unite the greatest individual liberty of action
with a common ownership of the raw materials of the globe - and an equal
participation of all in the benefits of combined labor.', This problem is,
of course, a current one in Great Britain - it represents an individual-
istic version of socialism. It is also the problem, perhaps not so
immediate, in the United States. Our economy - in the course of exper-
ience (and a considerable amount of strife) has been constantly evolving
toward that state in which individualism is tempered by justice. We do
not feel that there are only two absolute alternatives - either a -system
of complete private free enterprise - or a complete state-controlled
collectivism. There are other alternatives.
One of our stated political responsibilities was the acceptance of
diversity, stemming from the recognition that conformity to one principle
alone (or one system alone) brings with it the exclusion of liberty or
individualism. This is equally applicable to our economic concepts. We
feel that there are more varieties of freedom. in a society maintaining
diversity of economic enterprise than in a society in which only one
form is tolerated. In this economy - more varieties of motivation may be
utilized - individual private enterprise - corporate enterprise - coopera-
tive enterprise - and to a certain extent government-operated (or con-
trolled) enterprise. This system, we feel, operates on behalf of the
majority - it brings "the greatest good to the greatest number." And
if all alternatives except one were excluded, only one type of minority
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could enjoy an economic experience - the others, the majority, would be
Our interpretation of recent history indicates that a large measure
of industrial and economic planning is inescapable. We also interpret it
to mean the complete nationalization - over-awl planning - and the
totalitarian state inevitably coalesce, at the cost of all individual
values. There is a difference, in other words, between a totally planned
society - and a continuously annin society. Our experience has led us
to prefer the latter. It provides us with an economy in which there is
still individualistic opportunity, but which at the same time provides a
floor to bolster the economically weak.
Finally - the problem arises of the application of these principles
of the American Thesis to the international situation. The world policy
of this Country - where the American Thesis prevails internally - should
not represent merely a negative anti-Communism; it should present a posi-
tive extension of our internal ideals. It does. Those ideals have been
brought to bear in our international relations. There have been excep-
tions, perhaps, serious exceptions - but, by and large, several important
principles are being stressed and implemented in our dealings with other
countries. These are:
1. The establishment of world peace and security through the organi-
zation of the United Nations - a peace and security that would
give all nations the means of living safely within their bounds-
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ries and all men the assurance that their lives might be lived in
freedom from fear and want.
2. The right of all peoples to choose the form of government under
which they will live - self-determination (hostility to imperialism).
3. The access of all states, on equal terms, to the trade and raw
materials of the world.
4. Full cooperation in the economic field to assure economic recovery
of war-torn areas and economic stability to others.
5. The limitation of armed aggression.
The Communist world at the present time represents an area in which national
aspirations have been subverted and human aspirations suppressed. The ex-
tension of the American Thesis into the-international field is an attempt
to implement the concepts of the dignity of the individual, self-determina-
tion, civil liberties - and an economic security compatible with individual
freedom.
These are our beliefs, or ideals - internal and international. They
represent, primarily, a method for meeting problems. That method may be
summed up as the experimental application of social intelligence - under
democratic control and with democratic responsibility.
If there is general agreement that pragmatism is a typically American
approach to philosophy and our outlook on living, what Jacques Barzun has
to say is, I think, relevant. And certainly it indicates what is our
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great and ultimate reservoir of strength:
"...Pra;hmatism is the only form of thought appropriate to -
I will not say a democratic nation, but even more broadly,
a polyglot planet: for pragmatic relativism is both a
safeguard against absolutes which when ambitious invariably
turn tyrannical; and a safeguard for those absolutes when
their claims to universality remain within the bounds of
decent social behavior. Only a pragmatist will cheerfully
recognize that some persons cannot live without believing that
they exclusively possess the whole truth about ultimate matters.
The reverse tolerance is not to be expected, since absolute
authority cannot in logic or in fact accept, doubt or dissent.'
This is what ~e offer as an alternative to absolutism and totalitari-
anism. Internally - we are making our beliefs, our ideals work - and we
feel, therefore, that they are true beliefs. Internationally - we have not
been as successful as could be desired. We seem to be exhausting the possi-
bilities of overt diplomatic action without outstanding success. We have
demonstrated a willingness to resort to overt warfare, but that can never
be finally successful. We assume, therefore, that is the reason why all
of you are here. You recognize the present necessity and justification
for the use of clandestine methods to implement and protect our principles.
You recognize the incontestable fact that the American Thesis and the so-
ciety which supports it is under constant attack by the proponents of
absolutism. And.you should now be aware of the fact that we feel that
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these clandestine means - so long as they keep the basic principles in
mind - so long as we are willing to review ends as well as means - so
long as our principles do not solidify into monolithic dogma (which would
also make the means wrong) - are justified in protecting the security and
assuring the continuation of the American Thesis.
Approved For Release 19 RDW8-03362A000100010003-4