Anti-liberalism and Collectivism. The Politics and Economy from World War II to 1970s, based on Example of Polish Reconstruction Plans Written during the War

Anti-liberalism and Collectivism. The Politics and Economy from World War II to 1970s, based on Example of Polish Reconstruction Plans written during the War The article is an attempt at reconstructing the views and motivations of statism, nationalization and the planned economy – dominant in the world economy (including in the so-called capitalist world) from the 1930s, and particularly after World War II. The author invokes one little-known example of particular interest to the Polish reader, that of the manifestoes of underground political parties written during World War II, both under occupation and in emigration. They all envisions fundamental changes in Poland’ s economic structure after the war: both the left and the right (while differing significantly) assumed a greater role for economic planning and nationalization of key industries (including banking, transport, energy and large industrial enterprises). Authors from the left to the right side of the spectrum associated the free market with irrationality, ineffeciency and chaos. Without an understanding of this state of mind, it is impossible to understand economic policy from the end of World War II until at least the 1970s