More than any other single period, World War I was the critical watershed for the American business system. It was a “war collectivism,” a totally planned economy run largely by big-business interest through the instrumentality of the central government, which served as the model, the precedent, and the inspiration for state corporate capitalism for the remainder of the century.
Meet the Author
Murray N. Rothbard
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Murray N. Rothbard made major contributions to economics, history, political philosophy, and legal theory. He combined Austrian economics with a fervent commitment to individual liberty.
The planned economy big business asked for—and never gave back.
The intellectuals did not merely support the war. They had been waiting for it.
[ Editor’s note: With the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence comes many attempts to use the text of the Declaration to support modern political ideologies. Perhaps the most common...
