Economists at War

Wartime is not just about military success. Economists at War tells a different story - about a group of remarkable economists who used their skills to help their countries fight their battles during the Chinese-Japanese War, Second World War, and the Cold War.1935-55 was a time of conflict, confrontation, and destruction. It was also a time when the skills of economists were called upon to finance the military, to identify economicvulnerabilities, and to help reconstruction. Economists at War: How a Handful of Economists Helped Win and Lose the World Wars focuses on the achievements of seven finance ministers, advisors, and central bankersfrom Japan, China, Germany, the UK, the USSR, and the US. It is a story of good and bad economic thinking, good and bad policy, and good and bad moral positions. The economists suffered threats, imprisonment, trial, and assassination. They all believed in the power of economics to make a difference, and their contributions had a significant impact on political outcomes and military ends.Economists at War shows the history of this turbulent period through a uniquelens. It details the tension between civilian resources and military requirements; the desperate attempts to control economies wracked with inflation, depression, political argument, and fighting; and theclever schemes used to evade sanctions, develop barter trade, and use economic espionage. Politicians and generals cannot win wars if they do not have the resources. This book tells the human stories behind the economics of wartime.

“"This is a nice book, containing a number of biographies with a specific focus. The author offers engaging portrayals of special men in unusual circumstances, while adding descriptions of the main economic ideas they developed or put in practice. In short, Bollard wrote a thoroughly enjoyable read, for economists, (economic) historians, and scholars of international relations alike." -- Edwin van de Haar, OEconomia "A book that reads like a novel and which is very hard to put down until you have read the last page. Alan Bollard successfully proposes a book that is at the same time remarkably erudite and informative and for any public." -- Ariane Dupont-Kieffer, History of Economic Ideas "The economists profiled in Alan Bollard's Economists at War were all cursed to live in interesting times... Bollard provides us with compelling models -- both positive and negative -- for how economists operated within and with governments to manage the rolling crises that built the twentieth century state... Economists at War offers us a diverse series of case studies in men who were thrust into an epic collective struggle by history and employed their energy and genius in that struggle imperfectly. This makes it an important work for economists trying to reimagine a world where there are collective solutions to collective problems." -- Andrew Bossie, EH.Net”

The biographical focus on these economists before and during World War II provides insight into their similarities but also highlights their differences. While each chapter can stand alone as a mini-biography, Bollard takes care to show connections across the various economists, exposing a veritable web of intellectual influence and contemporary associations. J. C. Hall, CHOICE
This is a nice book, containing a number of biographies with a specific focus. The author offers engaging portrayals of special men in unusual circumstances, while adding descriptions of the main economic ideas they developed or put in practice. In short, Bollard wrote a thoroughly enjoyable read, for economists, (economic) historians, and scholars of international relations alike. Edwin van de Haar, OEconomia
A book that reads like a novel and which is very hard to put down until you have read the last page. Alan Bollard successfully proposes a book that is at the same time remarkably erudite and informative and for any public. Ariane Dupont-Kieffer, History of Economic Ideas
The economists profiled in Alan Bollard's Economists at War were all cursed to live in interesting times... Bollard provides us with compelling models — both positive and negative — for how economists operated within and with governments to manage the rolling crises that built the twentieth century state... Economists at War offers us a diverse series of case studies in men who were thrust into an epic collective struggle by history and employed their energy and genius in that struggle imperfectly. This makes it an important work for economists trying to reimagine a world where there are collective solutions to collective problems. Andrew Bossie, EH.Net

Alan Bollard is a Professor of Economics at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. He formerly managed APEC, the largest regional economic integration organization in the world, and was previously the New Zealand Reserve Bank Governor, Secretary of the New Zealand Treasury, and Chairman of the New Zealand Commerce Commission. Professor Bollard is the author of Crisis: One Central Bank Governor and the Global Financial Crisis (Auckland UniversityPress, 2013) and A Few Hares to Chase: The Life and Economics of Bill Philips (Oxford University Press, 2016).

Wartime is not just about military success. Economists at War tells a different story - about a group of remarkable economists who used their skills to help their countries fight their battles during the Chinese-Japanese War, Second World War, and the Cold War.1935-55 was a time of conflict, confrontation, and destruction. It was also a time when the skills of economists were called upon to finance the military, to identify economicvulnerabilities, and to help reconstruction. Economists at War: How a Handful of Economists Helped Win and Lose the World Wars focuses on the achievements of seven finance ministers, advisors, and central bankersfrom Japan, China, Germany, the UK, the USSR, and the US. It is a story of good and bad economic thinking, good and bad policy, and good and bad moral positions. The economists suffered threats, imprisonment, trial, and assassination. They all believed in the power of economics to make a difference, and their contributions had a significant impact on political outcomes and military ends.Economists at War shows the history of this turbulent period through a uniquelens. It details the tension between civilian resources and military requirements; the desperate attempts to control economies wracked with inflation, depression, political argument, and fighting; and theclever schemes used to evade sanctions, develop barter trade, and use economic espionage. Politicians and generals cannot win wars if they do not have the resources. This book tells the human stories behind the economics of wartime.

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