P eter C. C aldwell . Democracy, Capitalism, and the Welfare State

The German welfare state—probably like most other welfare states—is a beast. Its complexity makes it difficult even for experts to comprehend all details, not to speak of recipients of support who have to navigate the complex system, understand decisions, and recognize mistakes welfare administrators make. At the same time, many Germans across the political spectrum take pride in their “social market economy,” which is a peculiar combination of a capitalist market economy and social welfare institutions and regulations that mitigate effects of the market, such as unemployment, or shield against general risks of life, such as sickness. What do those institutions do to democracy; freedom, including the freedom of the market; the family; and morality? Does an industrial mass society require some sort of social welfare state to facilitate freedom and security necessary for democracy, or is the bureaucracy of the welfare state undermining this very freedom, making it a...

Democracy · Economic growth · Economics · Market economy · Morality · Order (exchange) · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Social Welfare · State (computer science) · Unemployment · Welfare · Welfare capitalism · Welfare state · Communism, Protests, Social Movements · Finance · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · Law · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies