The Economics of NSC-68

My thinking about the economics of NSC-68 began as an undergraduate at the College of William and Mary. During my senior year there, I had the opportunity to write an honors paper on the 1950-1953," in "Economic Aspects of the Truman Rearmament, which the first chapter dealt with NSC-68. At the time, I realized that NSC-68's economic assumptions were worthy of a longer paper on their own merit. Writing this thesis in candidacy for the Master of Arts degree in Foreign Affairs at the University of Virginia has allowed me to expand on my former work and give NSC-68 the attention that it deserves as one of the most important documents of the Cold War.

Writing this paper has been an enjoyable and rewarding endeavor. It was made more so though the people with whom I worked and shared my ideas. Mr. Edward Reese from the National Archives was very generous with his time in helping a newcomer find his way around 13W and locate necessary documents. Professor Kenneth W. Thompson and my father, Jim, Sr., were kind enough to read the entire paper and offer criticism that I believe greatly improved the work; I am very grateful to them both. Finally, I wish to thank Miss Jeanie DeBolt for all her insights and criticism, but especially for her oatmeal cookies which she delivered in the darkest, loneliest moments of writing. They were delicious.