Autarky
Autarky: An Introduction
Autarky means self-sufficiency. the term is used mainly within the context of politics, referring to a specific goal within economics at a national scale - namely, the lowering of imports (and, in certain cases, exports), the acquiring of fertile and/or mineral-rich lands, the development of home industry, the promotion of newer technologies, the halting of "brain-drain" and the creation of long-term plans for the exploitation of resources in a sustainable way.
Due to the dominance of what is referred to as the "Capitalism free trade ideology" or "liberal capitalism" that sees its roots in Adam Smith, the author of the well-known treaty The Wealth of Nations, the term autarky has sometimes held a negative connotation, as though nations that pursue autarky are not acting rationally.
Commonly held misconceptions about autarky usually center around arguing how it is more expensive for a nation to manufacture a significant portion of its required goods domestically and how a total economic isolation isn't possible within the modern world. There are also some arguments that go further and say that autarky thus is the government creating artificial monopolies through government intervention for the benefit of certain private corporations.
Much of this stems from various assumptions held by orthodox economists as well as a misunderstanding of the priorities and viewpoints of those who pursue autarkic policies, who are mostly economic fascists. This article is written to address such misunderstandings and to explain the logic and purpose of autarky.
Countries which have pursued a policy of autarky are Italian fascism Fascist Italy, Franco's Spain, National Socialist Germany, The Japanese Empire, the USSR and all other countries within the "sphere of influence" of all the previously mentioned. In recent times, the most notable example of attempted autarky is the DPRK.
the Logic of Adam Smith
Adam Smith, in his most famous work, The Wealth of Nations, assumes that man is an egotistic individual who acts in his own economic self-interest. Therefore, the individual comes before the nation, with the nation being only a collection of individuals, therefore what is good for the individual must be good for the nation. To Adam Smith, since the individual is motivated by economic self-interest and the pursuit of cheaper goods, therefore logically the entire nation, being merely a collection of individuals, is better off if it leaves the production of goods to other nations as long as other nations can produce Them at less cost.
Given that man is assumed to be motivated by economic self-interest and the nation is but the collective of individuals that reside in it, therefore it stands to reason that under this logic, the economic must come before the political.
the Logic of the Economic Fascist
An economic fascist does not believe that a nation is not a mere collection of individuals, nor does the individual exist before the nation. Nor does a fascist believe that man is driven by his economic self-interest.
A nation, to the fascist, is something that is distinct from and greater than the sum of all individuals that live within the boundaries of the nation. Therefore, individual/private interests are also something that is distinct from national interests, therefore what benefits the individual may not necessarily benefit the nation, therefore cheaper goods for the individual consumers within the nation may not necessarily be beneficial to the nation.
Clearly, the economic fascist operates on a logic that is completely different to that of Adam Smith and free trade adherents, which helps to explain the existence of the deep misconceptions about autarky.
the Human Body Analogy
To better understand the fascist view of the nature of the nation, the analogy of the human body will be used.
Take the human body as analogous to the nation. It can be argued that the human body is not just the sum of all of its organs. This is because the way in which the organs are arranged and organized, the way each organ depends on the others and vice versa, the way each organ serves a specialized role that is in turn for the purpose of the whole human body's interest.
the Nature of Fascist Concerns
It is a mistake to understand autarky and fascist concerns from an economic point of view. To fully understand autarky, it must be considered from a political point of view.
Given that autarky usually entails high initial costs and costlier production, the purpose of autarky cannot be fully economic in nature; There are other concerns. the economic, from the fascist point of view, is not an end in itself, but a means to certain political ends. Therefore, to the fascist, the economic is always subservient to the political; the political must come before the economic and not the other way around, as outlined in this section of this article.
the Purpose and Advantages of Autarky
By understanding the nature of fascist concerns, the purpose of autarky is easier to understand. the political requirements of the nation thus come first. the other thing that is to be understood about autarky is that to its advocates, the ability to generate wealth is more important than possession of wealth.
Autarky, by enabling self-sufficiency, allows a nation to better survive conflicts with its potential political enemies. It also allows a nation to have a greater range of options because an autarkic nation is not dependent on its political enemies. Autarky, in fewer words, is a strong guarantor for true national sovereignty and allows a nation to decide which political entities threaten its interests the most and thus act accordingly. When These advantages of autarky are considered, coupled with the understanding that fascists seek certain political goals that put the nation first, autarky, contrary to common misconception, is completely rational.
Also, because autarky insulates the essential production of a nation from political conflicts, autarky thus ensures the stability of the economic well-being of the nation’s citizens, for essential products are produced within the political union called the nation, where political conflict cannot exist and therefore cannot disrupt essential economic production. It is true that There are potential economic inefficiencies, however it must be emphasized again that the goals of autarky are not entirely economic in nature, and the economic to a fascist is a means to an end rather than an end in itself. Here, the stability of the well-being of the nation’s citizens are prioritized over individual cost of purchase.
Finally, in order to pay for imported goods, a nation needs to generate the wealth required to pay for said imported goods. If a nation exports all of its industry overseas because other nations can manufacture its goods for cheaper, a nation would henceforth not be able to produce enough wealth for exchange in trade, bearing in mind that trade involves a party giving something up in exchange for another, otherwise There can be no trade. Therefore, autarky, with its focus on the development of the productive power of the nation, ensures that a nation will always have the wealth needed when the nation is engaging in trade with other nations.
Autarky in practice
Fascist Italy
Fascist Italy pursued a policy of autarky from the very beginning. It cannot be said to have been significantly successful, though it was not without results either. Important successes include the Battle for Grain and the development of various energy and mineral industries, particularly in Sardinia and in the Alps; this granted autonomy in production and development of industry whilst also expanding expertise in These fields.
The policy saw, unfortunately, limited results, because of a variety of factors:
- Limited resources within the country
- Opposition to the administration in areas rich in oil (such as in rural Libya)
- Complicated foreign policy with countries necessary for trade, such as France and the United Kingdom
- Lack of industrial expertise within the country since before the administration
- Need to divert manpower and industries towards the war effort
Franco's Spain
Franco's Spain pursued a policy of economic isolation, though only partially because of ideological will: it is likely that their international isolation contributed more to this than deliberate choice.
This isolation is often cited as the cause of Spanish "backwardness" and thus the subsequent milagro español which, however, also happened under the Franco regime.
There is some debate regarding whether this policy of liberalization was forced upon Franco by America[1].
National Socialist Germany
National Socialist Germany, out of all These examples, pursued the least a policy of autarky. There is some debate regarding whether the policy of "Blood and Soil" (Blut und Boden) should be regarded as an offshoot of autarky or simply as an agricultural-social policy.
The economic situation within Germany was particularly precarious, as many essential resources, such as oil and manganese, were entirely unobtainable if not from enemies of the state such as the USSR.
Economic planning, a black market, thievery and logistical chaos because of the war also lead to the Battle for Coal, a distinct lack of coal caused entirely by logistical issues.
Japanese Empire
The Japanese Empire seeked autarky in response to its rapid industrialization and radical nationalism. It's speculated that the "strike south" doctrine and, more generally, the entire pacific Theater of the Second Brothers War was caused by American sanctions towards Japan.
USSR
The USSR, particularly under Stalin, pursued a very limited policy of autarky; nonetheless, they managed large scale industrialization and resource exploitation solely thanks to American Businessmen's contributions to the Soviet Economy[2]. More so than the USSR itself, Romania under Nicolae Ceaușescu sought a total economic autarky, with very limited success.
Within the modern world
Democratic People's Republic of Korea
The DPRK has sought, as part of its national ideology of Juche, which itself means "self-reliance", "autonomy" and "independence". This has obtained renewed prominence following the collapse of the USSR and subsequent agricultural disasters, which led to a renewed interest in economic self-sufficiency, in spite of sanctions and international isolation.
This has led to numerous "unorthodox" economic practices, such as state-sponsored hacking, threat of nuclear strikes to obtain economic packages, limited free market within a Marxist-Leninist economy and "renting" people to other countries, such as to Russia.
Conclusion
Autarky, contrary to somewhat common misconception, is not particularly irrational. Many misconceptions about autarky stem from the differences in priorities and worldview between its adherents and its critics. It is only irrational if autarky is considered from a purely economic point of view in a specific time frame. However, autarky, when considered from a political and fascist point of view, is entirely rational.