The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

206 THE FREEMAN AprilAggressive Nationalismfollows InterventionWhile everyone is agreed thatthe cause of war is aggressive nationalism,the position here is thataggressive nationalism is the necessaryoutcome of government intervention.In other words, statismfosters nationalism. An in-depthstudy of nearly 1000 wars foughtin the West from 500 B. C. toA. D. 1925 was conducted by thesociologist, Pitirim Sorokin. Incontrasting the size of the casualtylist to the corresponding population,he determined that thewar magnitude of the first quarterof the twentieth century stood at52 per 1,000,000 (compared with17 for the nineteenth century)leading Sorokin to conclude that"the twentieth century will unquestionablyprove to be the bloodiestand most belligerent of allthe twenty-five centuries underconsideration."1- These figures are in accord withthe two salient contentions of thisarticle. If a general date can begiven for the beginning of theabandonment of the principles oflaissez-faire for those of governmentintervention and control, itwould be the 1870's, highlightedby events such as Germany's appointmentof Bismarck as Chan-1 As quoted by Edmund Opitz, Religionand Capitalism (New Rochelle: ArlingtonHouse, 1970), p. 268.cellor and the emergence of thefirst effects of Britain's ReformBill of 1867. Since that time, thetrend has been conspicuously awayfrom limited democracy and laissez-faireand toward governmenteconomic interference. We cansay, generally, that the age ofclassical- liberalism was the nineteenthcentury and that the ageof statism extends from the latterpart of that century to the present.In applying Dr. Sorokin's findingsto that of our historicalsketch, two things we have notedbecome manifest. On the one handis the relative peace and tranquilityenjoyed by a world embracinglargely laissez-faire principles. Onthe other we see, with the substitutionof the deification of thestate and rise of the controlledeconomy for the principles of classicalliberalism, the concomitantrise of war and international conflict.The question to be considerednow is why government intervention- whether it be socialism or a"mixed" or welfare economy, andwhether for humanitarian or insidiouspurposes - engenders internationalconflicts and war.Domestic Ramifications of StatismThe free market is perpetuallyheading toward equilibrium.Wages and prices are alwaysheading toward a point at which