StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

The Cold War Economy - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
An author of the essay "The Cold War Economy" claims that it was through e the establishment of varied acts and strategies, which economists of the day though would not only boost the private sector but also the entire economy (Whitfield, 2008)…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER91.1% of users find it useful
The Cold War Economy
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "The Cold War Economy"

The Cold War Economy Essential question: Which of these terms best describes the American Cold War economy: 'laissez-faire,' 'mixed,' or 'command' (socialist)? Why? In its quest to evade fiscal anguish similar to the period after WWI, American regime resulted to the use of mixed economy. This entailed the then incumbent president through state’s respective authorities come up with effective authorities meant to support private sector (Whitfield, 2008). This was through establishment of varied acts and strategies, which economists of the day thought would not only boost the private sector but also the entire economy (Whitfield, 2008). This is by availing its population with reliable employment opportunities and other essential services like housing, education for the veterans and other services, hence comprises some of the strategies during then aimed at empowering private sector. The American regime during cold war adopted or utilized mixed economy in its quest to evade fiscal anguish evident in the way it boosted private sector. In order to ensure the then depression did not cripple banking industry, the state intervened with the intention of cushioning loaning process especially. As Mooney explains, “The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) established during the Great Depression to revitalize the real estate and home construction industries played a central role in creating postwar suburban America (Mooney, 147).” Hence, boosting housing market by instituting FHA such that private sector did not have doubt in recovering their invested resources. This is through subsidizing long-term loan mortgages that acted as a great boost to the private sector towards doubling their efforts. This led to the creation of American suburb areas, which the private sector during then could not manage. The government in its efforts to empower war veterans economically, it embarked on devising effective strategies aimed at making their lives easy through education besides other benefits for a predetermined period until they acquired means meant to be stable. As Mooney expounds through G.I. Bill of rights, it “rewarded veterans for wartime service and eased their reentry in three ways, it provide one year of unemployment assistance; it assisted veterans who wanted to go to college or technical school; it also helped millions of veterans purchase homes by guaranteeing mortgage loans made by private lenders (Moony, 139).” The aim of this Bill entailed to evade burden of the returned population from the war as they started to age. Since, once they do not have anything to rely on will be the burden of the state to cater for their respective upkeep in terms of medical care. By imparting them with appropriate knowledge and varied skills within few years, they will be able to depend on themselves. In addition, the government will channel financial support meant for their care to other sectors, hence boost economy. The government also came up with tight laws meant to secure firms’ interests such that employees backed by their respective unions could not result to “wildcat strikes” which extremely expensive. According to lecture notes, “1947 Taft-Hartley Act established certain Presidential powers to be used to retain order in certain emergency situations (such as a strike or lockout that would likely cause adverse effects on an entire industry or would threaten national health, safety or security) (Lecture notes, November 13, 2013).” Hence, showing the then relationship between private sector and central regime in ensuring both private sector, which in this case encompassed industries and workers coexisted well. This is by ensuring both parties once there were any misunderstandings they were capable of resolving them adequate and effectively without resulting to injurious incidences. Some of these injurious or detrimental incidences encompassed unnecessary strikes and sometimes firms retrenching workers due to their respective union persuasions. The government also embarked on boosting varied scientific projects with the intention of enhancing its technological knowhow. Compared to other projects, boosting of technological advancement remained the most core agenda for the American regime, which is evident by the long duration and even big percentage of its involvement in terms of resources. As stated by Janeway in his speech, “federal sources accounted for more than 50% of national R&D (Janeway, “Can government play a positive role in economic development?”).” US’ dedication into enhancing technology is still evident to date whereby as a superpower intends to be the leading state not only in economy but also in the way it undertakes varied processes technologically. Similarly, this was also evident in other sectors including those encompassed security where US did not assume but embarked on full involvement in terms of resources. As Eisenhower explains that, “…the peace is our military establishment (Eisenhower, “Farewell Address”).” The government through its varied initiatives encouraged specialization in the industrial sector, which led to the venturing of numerous emergent players whereas those who were in the field like ford focusing on areas that they could deliver as necessitated. As relayed by NPR staff, “... companies such as Ford built everything from jeeps to bombers (NPR Staff, “Ike's Warning of Military Expansion, 50 Years Later”).” However, monopolization by one corporation came to an absolute end after Korean War whereby more players came in with each specializing on a certain field. This step besides encouraging more players in the field contributed to the increase of revenues not only for the respective firms but also by the government through tax. This is evident in the U.S. News and World Report that stated, “Profits, though, will be favorable in many industries this year. Worker efficiency often will be higher”. Similarly, enhancement of private sector was also evident in the boosting of the then greatest project that intended to highway. According to lecture notes, “National Highway Act was the biggest public project in the America history (Lecture notes, November 11Th 2013).” In conclusion, American regime during cold in order to strengthen and advance economically yielded to embracing mixed economy whose focus encompassed boosting private sector. This is in terms of devising strategies that intended to ensure both the government advanced simultaneously with private sector. For instance, it resulted to funding R&D project, educating war veterans to establish themselves economically, devising laws that will ensure harmonious coexistence between workers and industries besides prompting more players to venture in the industrials sector, which led to both specialization and revenue increment. Work Cited “Ike's Warning Of Military Expansion, 50 Years Later.” NPR. 17Th January 2011. Eisenhower, Dwight, D. “Farewell Address”. 1961. Janeway, William H. “Can government play a positive role in economic development?” 27Th December 2012. Lecture notes. 11Th November 2013. Lecture notes. 13Th November 2013. Mooney, Matthew. History of the U.S. To 1865; Researched and written especially for SBCC History 101. 2013 Fall. Print.  U.S. News and World Report. "Newsgram from the Nation's Capital" 26Th May 1950. Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“The Cold War Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
The Cold War Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/history/1495554-the-cold-war-economy
(The Cold War Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
The Cold War Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words. https://studentshare.org/history/1495554-the-cold-war-economy.
“The Cold War Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/history/1495554-the-cold-war-economy.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF The Cold War Economy

How did the Cold War shape the American economy, society, and politics from 1945 to 1992

Cold War and American Society, Politics and Economy the cold war that started after WWII was unlike any conventional war.... Cold War and American Society, Politics and Economy the cold war that started after WWII was unlike any conventional war.... Though racism did not have a direct impact on the cold war, it had to be corrected.... The direct effect of the cold war on America society was on Hollywood.... The fallout of the cold war politics was that an arms race started....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Decline of USSR after the Cold War

the cold war lasted from the mid-1940s until the end of the 1980s and this intense rivalry between the US led allies and the USSR led Allies is best understood in terms of the opposing political ideologies that they upheld: "democracy and capitalism in the case of the United States and its allies, and Communism in the case of the Soviet bloc.... hellip; During the cold war, USSR had to undergo severe economic crisis and the war in Afghanistan added to the misery and discontentment of the people....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

The Main Participants of the Cold War

The paper "cold war" tells us about Soviet Union and United States.... A major problem for the historians analyzing the impact of military expenditure on the usual working of the economy of a country just after the war is the fact ignored by the liberal economic theory.... While accepting necessity to plan the wartime economy, most British economists considered that after the hostilities and War activities, the resources will be allocated to the market as usual....
10 Pages (2500 words) Essay

American Security and International Economic Policy during the Cold War

the cold war years, spanning from the end of the Second World War in 1945 to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, were complex times in terms of security and international economic policies in the United States.... In particular, the two sets of American policies were suddenly much more intertwined than they had been in previous years: with the tense foreign relations of the cold war era, American governments were never certain which countries were a threat and which weren't, and to maintain national security foreign economic policies had to be carefully considered....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

The Rise of China during the Cold War

The essay 'The Rise of China during the cold war' is devoted to the global geopolitical, military, economic and ideological confrontation in the period from 1946 to the end of the 1980s between two blocks of states, and specifically the rise of  People's Republic of China during the cold war.... The rise of China during the cold war was followed by the weakening rule of the Nationalist government and strengthened its long-time Communist rivals, preparing the way for renewed and intensified civil conflict....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

The Risks of Post-Cold War Globalisation

Globalisation is said to have began at the dawn of the… The end of the cold war however, had made globalisation the new world system substituting for the bygone era of bipolar system that the cold war had brought.... The end of the cold war ushered in by the the cold war, after all, albeit essentially a geopolitical divide spawned a great economic divide between two blocs that characterised the world set up since the end of the World War II until the late 1980s....
11 Pages (2750 words) Essay

Impacts of Cold War on the US between 1947 and 1953

This is due to the occurrence of positive changes that occurred in its economic, political, social and cultural aspects after the Cold… The following essay depicts the positive changes which occurred after the war in the United States, politically, socially, and economically. Economically, after the cold war the United States experienced a strikingly rapid growth in its economy.... between 1947 and 1953 Although the cold war had disastrous effects on the Western and USSR countries, the United States emerged as the major beneficiary of this war....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

How the Cold War Shaped the US Socio-Political and Economic Landscape

This supremacy battle led to the cold war, which was a state of military and political tension after World War II between the Western bloc and the Eastern bloc.... This paper discusses how the cold war shaped the socio-political and economic landscape of the U.... As the cold war came to dominance, most of American policies toward the rest of the world, attitudes about immigration and immigration policies began to change.... The war was a cold war-era proxy war that started in November 1955 and lasted for 20 years....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us