The Reform Mentality, War, Peace, and the National State: From the progressives to Vietnam

That the modern reform mentality has been imbued with a statist philosophy leading to imperialism and war is perhaps no surprise to libertarians. They may not always be aware, however, of the extent to which a statist philosophy, vaguely Neo-Hegelian, has characterized both American reform movements and European social democracy. Indeed much of American reform. from the Progressive Era to the New Deal and after, in its program and development has been similar to European social democracy. It owes more to the European example than to previous reform movements in the United States. Thus, American social and political reforms in the 20th century have been nationalistic, collectivist, and statist, rather than liberal in any traditional sense.

Volume 3, Number 1 (1979)