Franklin Roosevelt -vs- Ronald Reagan

[PKT_VOL]

and many think that without WWII FDR's programs would have prolonged the depression. Essentially he "lucked into" (another debate) the war saving this country

This.

 

[JayVols]

This.

Playing devil's advocate, that's pretty much admitting that FDR's programs didn't spend enough govt money in the New Deal. After all, it's the massive gov't contracts and employment during WWII that brought about the end, correct?

 

[PKT_VOL]

Playing devil's advocate, that's pretty much admitting that FDR's programs didn't spend enough govt money in the New Deal. After all, it's the massive gov't contracts and employment during WWII that brought about the end, correct?

If you take the Keynesian approach to economics...

 

[n_huffhines]

Playing devil's advocate, that's pretty much admitting that FDR's programs didn't spend enough govt money in the New Deal. After all, it's the massive gov't contracts and employment during WWII that brought about the end, correct?

That's the widely accepted explanation, but in my opinion, it's pretty illogical. If you look at GDP figures you can conclude that it went up in 1939 due to war manufacturing, but then it came down a lot in 1944-45 and didn't stop declining until 1947.

What this means is GDP increased simply because of government expenditure. It wasn't real growth. It didn't result in improvement of standard of living. This article calls war time spending a "prosperity mirage" and that's exactly what it was.

Escaping the Great Depression – and Extending the Greater Depression by Doug Casey