Mises Institute World War I as the Triumph of Progressive Intellectuals
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Nov 11, 2025 Murray N. Rothbard, a pivotal libertarian economist and historian, explores World War I as a victory for Progressive intellectuals. He discusses The New Republic's coalition of business and collectivists, highlighting John Dewey's shift towards pragmatic support for wartime social reforms. Rothbard examines how intellectuals envisioned war as a catalyst for permanent collectivism, while also critiquing their avoidance of military service. He concludes with reflections on Dewey's postwar interventions in China and the looming influence of progressivism on future conflicts.
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Progressive Intellectuals Allied With Big Business
- Progressive intellectuals and big business formed an alliance centered in The New Republic before WWI.
- This alliance promoted collectivist planning and nationalized solutions as modern progress.
Dewey’s Shift To Statist Enthusiasm
- John Dewey shifted from postmillennial Christian statism to secular progressive statism while keeping evangelical zeal for social salvation.
- Dewey embraced war as a tool to expand government planning and permanently socialize industry.
War As A Mechanism For Social Reform
- Dewey argued force is merely a means and supported U.S. entry into WWI to achieve broader social aims.
- He believed wartime planning could permanently replace private interest with public social control domestically and internationally.