Social and Economic Planning

Abstract

This is a talk, delivered at the Fourth (1959) World Congress of the International Sociological Association, Stresa, Italy, commenting upon papers which had been presented by Charles Bettelheim and Gunnar Myrdal. The full text has never been published before. When I was invited to comment on the papers of Professors Bettelheim and Myrdal, I was instructed to pay special attention to planning in my own country. In the case of the United States, however, following this most reasonable directive runs into a major obstacle: it necessitates speaking about something that hardly exists. If I have decided, nevertheless, to be a disciplined participant in the work of the Congress and to comply as best I can with the terms of the invitation, it is because the most tempting avenues of evasion have been effectively barred by Professors Bettelheim and Myrdal. If I should seek a way out by talking about economic and social planning where it actually takes place or where it is at least seriously attempted,This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.