Italian austerity economists blamed wartime gains for working-class moral decline

Evidence

Pantaleoni’s characterization of the Italian working class was conspicuous in its timing: war had brought “undeserved” wealth to the Italian workers thanks to higher nominal wages and government price controls on foodstuff s and other social services. In Pantaleoni’s telling these same workers, rather than saving, had indulged themselves to a point of moral and economic degradation (1922, 58): Th e working classes basically don’t save and spend everything in plea- sures [godimenti], with the consequence of a remarkable decay of their moral qualities. — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 1142

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the British savings committee efforts by Blackett and Niemeyer discussed in earlier chapters — same moral-campaign repertoire deployed against workers. — connects to: Economists blamed working-class morality for postwar inflation. — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 13; Italian economists framed public employment as destroying the work ethic — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists…, 1241; Postwar Italy’s citizenry was seen by economists as needing taming after revolt — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists…, 1123 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Fascist economist Pantaleoni blamed rising wages for moral decline #expands (0.82) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 198
• IMF austerity economists reused the fascist playbook of labor discipline #corroborates (0.72) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 231