The title says it all. In 1920-21 the nations output declined 23.9%, unemployment hit 19% and commercial and financial disruption was rampant. The first world war was over and the Spanish flu was winding to an end. Few people are aware of this depression because it lasted less than two years and ushered in the now famous “roaring twenties.”
So what did government do about this situation? Just about nothing! There was no stimulus. Markets self corrected – the economy simply rebounded on its’ own.
The lesson: Maybe government solutions cause more harm than good.
