Was the perceived "Golden Age" of the US during the 1950s merely a product of a war-ravaged world economy in which all other advanced nations had their production capacities crippled?

by ghost_of_s_foster

What other reasons may account for this rise in wealth (or was there any at all) and has there been a good analysis written of the economic impacts of WWII in the US?

Thanks!

thatirishguyjohn

Paul Krugman has addressed this question on his blog a few times. http://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/krugman/2012/11/19/the-europe-in-rubble-excuse/

The basic answer is that because Europe served as both an economic competitor AND as a customer for much of our export goods in the postwar era, the destruction wrought by WW2 was not beneficial to our growth. They couldn't compete with us but they also couldn't buy from us, so it was a wash. Our growth was mostly a function of rising domestic consumption, the causes of which can be argued, but which have nothing to do with Europe's devastation.

Edit: Bad link; changed it to mobile.