TL;DR version of PTHF, tailored to relevance to COVID-19 crisis: The secret to American WWII mobilization was contracting, while maintaining democracy. /1
WWII was a giant public-private partnership. The federal government took the country to total war by nationalizing the MECHANISMS of the economy. /2
The federal government was the first-in-line buyer. Fulfilling federal contracts took priority over everything else. Anything or anyone deemed non-essential had to wait. /3
Example: the military went to the auto industry and asked today's Big Three to "sponsor" types of military equipment. The Big Three held the primary contracts and managed their own production processes, supply chains, labor needs, and sub-contractors. /4
The military oversaw the contracts and intervened to solve "bottlenecks." When the bottlenecks got too many, the federal government began shutting down other areas of the economy to redirect resources. /5
The military didn't put all their eggs in one basket. For four-engine bombers, they contracted with Boeing for the B-17 and matched Consolidated and Ford Motor Company for B-24s. /6
The military harnessed the forces of competition, but also shared among contractors what worked. They also enforced contracts by threatening and allowing public shaming. The press was happy to oblige. /7
Re Today: With the caveat that I'm sitting alone in my apartment in Silver Spring MD reading Twitter, if I were the press, I'd focus on the medical equipment shortages and monitor labor utilization issues (the right people with the right skills in the right place and time). /8
Maybe the National Governors Association can coordinate production and redirect labor, but with mighty props to Governor Hogan, it is not his job to take care of the country! He has enough on his plate taking care of Maryland. /9
Folllowing the WWII model would mean setting up really good and fast federal contracting for critical goods (led by which agencies?), working in partnership with Governors and businesses, and developing a system giving a nation's eye view of emerging labor problems. /10
On democracy: FDR let democracy flourish in certain domains. The press ran exposes and people contacted their members of Congress to register complaints and alarms. /11
There was also a ton of "bottom up" problem-solving that eventually filtered across the nation. These feedback mechanisms were intentionally created and played critical roles. /12
Today: how do we shore up these feedback mechanisms in our public health and essential services infrastructures? /13
Note: WWII is not a good model for keeping us non-essential folks going economically: they quickly had full employment and labor shortages. /13
In conclusion: history may not have the answers, but it is good for raising questions.
Love to everyone out there; hopefully someday soon our major problem will be how to do demobilization. /end
Love to everyone out there; hopefully someday soon our major problem will be how to do demobilization. /end
