Talk:Decartelization/Archive 1

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BetacommandBot 11:25, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Germany

I've removed this section: Free market

While there have been many cases of alleged monopolies and many settlements, the only true example of decartelization (when an entire national economy switches to a free market, rather than being controlled by cartels) is the economic restructuring of Germany, after the fall of the Third Reich in 1945. In 1945, it is safe to say that there was no German economy whatsoever: the country was destroyed utterly and almost completely. No heavy industry, no agriculture, no light industry, and no commerce, wholesaling, or retail selling occurred outside of the black market, rationing, etc.

By 1948, however, the German economy had begun to rebound thanks to the Marshal Plan and proactive help from the victors of the war to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Europe. By the 1950s and 1960s, one speaks of the "economic miracle" of Germany as it became the leading industrialized economy in Europe and one of the top 10 economies in the world (ever since).

It made a number of very strange assertions. First, German industry certainly was not significantly destroyed during the war. See this example. The only place damage was effective was the bombing of communications which hindered the transport of coal to the industries, (which didn't happen until very late in the war), and of course the bombing of residential areas, see Area bombing directive. Germany did indeed have an economy when their armed forces surrendered, the problem was that the Allies soon managed to significantly shut it down in their efforts to "restructure" the economy in order to create a weaker Germany for the future. The U.S. policy was to turn Germany into farmland.

(See UK Cabinet meeting minutes from 21 October 1946)

b) U.S. policy was pastoralising (Morgenthan) until Stuttgart speech. They supported R. & Fr. case - to point of reducing steel prodn to 5.8 m. tons. And during Loan talks, cdn´t oppose them too strongly.

For anyone interested in the dismantling of German industry I can recomend:

• Frederick H. Gareau "Morgenthau's Plan for Industrial Disarmament in Germany" The Western Political Quarterly, Vol. 14, No. 2 (Jun., 1961), pp. 517–534
• U.S. Economic Policy Towards defeated countries April, 1946.
• Freda Utley "The high cost of vengeance". (1948)
• Victor Gollancz, "Germany Revisited", London Victor Gollancz LTD, 1947
• Picture of demonstration against dismantling (7 June 1949) Workers in the Ruhr demonstrate against the dismantling of their factories by the Allied forces of occupation. (requires Flash Player)
• Picture: dismantling the Iron and Steel Industry ‘We want to work, we will help you to rebuild Europe' Workers at dismantled plant protest. (requires Flash Player)

In 1947 former U.S.President Herbert Hoover in one of his reports from Germany, dated March 18, 1947, argued for a change in occupation policy, amongst other things stating:

"There is the illusion that the New Germany left after the annexations can be reduced to a 'pastoral state'. It cannot be done unless we exterminate or move 25,000,000 people out of it."

The real reason for the change of policy in late 1947 can be found here:

"Coal was the central issue at Paris. And coal meant the Ruhr and Germany. Without Ruhr coal, and without the German industrial output which depends on Ruhr coal, the rest of Europe cannot recover. A Swiss delegate explained it this way: 'We have found that Country A needs something which Country B can provide, on condition Country B can get something from Country C, which the latter can provide if she can get something from Country D; and Country D can provide that something—on condition she gets something which only Germany, and the Ruhr in particular, can produce. Whatever article we take, we finish up against a blank wall—Germany. It is the fact that Germany is not there which paralyzes our calculations.'"

"To help remedy that paralysis, the U.S. last week issued a new directive to Germany's occupation chief, General Lucius D. Clay, superseding Joint Chiefs of Staff Directive 1067 (which had directed the U.S. commander to take "no steps looking toward the economic rehabilitation of Germany . . .")."

The decartelization in Germany was simply a part of the Morgenthau plan, for those still in doubt I recomend

• Vladimir Petrov, "Money and conquest; allied occupation currencies in World War II." Baltimore, Johns Hopkins Press (1967)

where the decartelization topic is described in detail.

Also, the Marshall plan had a role to play in the German recovery after these American missteps, but is was relatively minor, see Wirtschaftswunder. The important thing for the recovery was that the Allied boot pressing down on the (West) German economy let go somewhat of its pressure, although it remained in place in various areas until 1955. --Stor stark7 ^Speak 18:31, 12 June 2008 (UTC)