HI125 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Collective Bargaining, Centrality, World Trade Organization
Document Summary
Three points: after world war ii, america must provide the capital and raw materials to. World war ii: massive devastation, 40 million dead, 35 million wounded, one-fifth of poland"s total population dead, germany: 20% of pre-war dwellings destroyed, sex ratio: 100:77 in germany in 1950 (ages 25-45) Europe c. 1945: reparations, lessons from world war one, communist threat, rebuilding western europe. The united states: united states must provide the capital for europe to rebuild. July 1945 america sends billion into europe- basic humanitarian aid: 1947 fears about soviet expansion and communist threats to the western governments. Marshall plan: only western europe, recipient nations decided where the aid would go, funds disbursed beginning 1948-1952, approximately 13. 3 billion spent on commodity purchases, aid is critical to recovery, germany 1947-49, 57% of countries imports financed. It worked: but post-war boom for much of europe, depended on influx of us aid, government intervention and planning.
