We did not build the industrial base from scratch in WWII. It was already there. We just expandned on it.That's quite preposterous considering how much industrial capital and technique was developed *during* WWII. People build machine tools, dude, not other machines. Machines are (relatively) cheap, and getting cheaper as productivity continues to rise and the cash value of manufactured goods continues to crash. What matters in the new economy is knowledge more than capital.
Quote: That's quite preposterous considering how much industrial capital and technique was developed *during* WWII. People build machine tools, dude, not other machines. Machines are (relatively) cheap, and getting cheaper as productivity continues to rise and the cash value of manufactured goods continues to crash. What matters in the new economy is knowledge more than capital
o.k. Country B decides to go to war with country A. So if country A has say 10 machine tools and country B has 100 and a war pops up and either country needs to produce 500 machine tools to win the war who is going to replicate the machines the fastest??? Machine tools replicate machine tools. Yes people make the machine tools (with other machine tools) but if people are standing around waiting to get their "nre" machine tool where does that get you??
And I agree we developed capital during WWII but we had a very strong base to begin with. Today all the old machine companies in the northeast are all gone. The few "specialized" companies that yuo call it would not be enough to get the ball rolling in quick order.