Both advocates and opponents of nation building say that the United States played a key role in helping post-war Germany become a democracy. In fact, a close look reveals that, from the standpoint of democratic nation building, the U.S. occupation of Germany is actually a lesson in what not to do.

James L. Payne is a Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and Director of Lytton Research and Analysis.
Defense and Foreign PolicyDemocracyEconomic History and DevelopmentEconomyEuropeGovernment and PoliticsInternational Economics and DevelopmentPhilosophy and ReligionPolitical HistoryPublic Choice
Other Independent Review articles by James L. Payne
Winter 2017/18 The Government Nobody Knows—nor Wants to Know
Summer 2016 Government Fails, Long Live Government! The Rise of “Failurism”
Fall 2014 The Real Case against Activist Global Warming Policy
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