Back in the 80s, I wrote a college term paper arguing that FDR’s economic policies actually prolonged the depression, Of course, it wasn’t until WWII that we finally got out of it though a war economy. It was well researched and footnoted. Grade=D. The prof was in love with FDR. So, even if one understands economics and/or history, the student who challenges the Left will be slammed. In many ways, the war has been lost. The Left dominates the media, entertainment, education and, to some extent, the corporate community. There isn’t much left.
“it wasn’t until WWII that we finally got out of it though a war economy.”
I would argue that “war economy” was only an acceleration of New Deal foolishness, this time toward an admirable goal. If a war really can pull you out of a depression, why don’t we just have a war every time we’re in trouble? My sources indicate that GDP did not reach pre-1929 levels until 1954 (!).
Seriously though, federal spending as a share of GDP skyrocketed, employment went up. That did not mean the economy was more productive. Trillions of dollars were funneled into bombs and bullets, but you can’t eat those. There was the rationing; there were the wage and price controls, and we all know how well thsoe work. No one says you can’t force an economy to hum, especially if everyone’s willing to fight for their very existence. But you can’t sustain it.
It is accurate to say that the war reversed our fortunes. Not right away, but eventually. I don’t know, maybe the two decades of large-scale planning tuckered the socialists out.