In the decades after World War I, every Western government, from the Soviet
Union to the United States, grappled with the challenges of state intervention
in the economy. All believed that some degree of intervention was necessary. There
was, however, little consensus about the best kind of intervention, the scope
of intervention, and even the purpose of intervention. The only point of
general agreement was that the current economic arrangement was unsatisfactory.
Keep this in mind as you review the boxed features on page 890 (Seeking to
Build Socialism in the Soviet Union) and page 919 (The Government Role in
Managing a Free Market Economy) of your textbook. When you're finished reviewing, take at look an online collection of the works of Nikolai Bukharin. Then explore a biography of John Maynard Keynes that includes links to excerpts from his writings. When you're done, consider
the questions below.
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According to Bukharin, what was the purpose of the NEP? Why did he think a "go slow" policy would produce better results in the long run? What kind of economy did he envision in the future
for the Soviet Union?
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Compare and contrast Bukharin and Keynes's ideas about government intervention. How similar were their methods? How dissimilar where their goals?
