It was imposed with greater force in 1945, after the Second World War, with a scene of great economic depression, workers' struggles, social inequality and capitalist exploitation of the working class. Analysts define it as a way of organizing the state from the combination of a capitalist system, a democratic system and without forgetting the eye on achieving social welfare. The pillars on which it is based are the provision of subsidies to those inhabitants in vulnerable situations such as the unemployed and the elderly; universal and free health care system; guarantee education for all; an adequate and conscious distribution of wealth; and provide decent housing. The Welfare State is a very recent phenomenon that had a lot of momentum in different parts of the world in the 20th century due to the different economic crises, wars and conflicts of various kinds that meant very harsh and difficult consequences for a large part of the populations. Westerners.
The Welfare State is a political concept that has to do with a form of government in which the State, as its name says, cares about the welfare of all its citizens, that they lack nothing, that they can satisfy their needs. basic needs, providing in this case what they cannot achieve by their own means and then taking charge of the services and rights of a large part of the population considered humble or impoverished. System of government in which the state intervenes to provide the most vulnerable classes with help to get them out of that situation
Pillars that sustain it
Origin
The idea of a Welfare State has existed since the middle of the 19th century when different social groups (especially workers) began to fight for the recognition of their rights at the international level.
Since then, and especially in the 20th century, from events such as the Great Depression of 1929, or the postwar times after the 1st and 2nd World Wars, the notion of a State that is in charge of providing those humble or disadvantaged sectors with certain services and assistance to complement what they cannot obtain in an unequal or unjust system such as the capitalist system.
The influence of the economist Keynes
It has been supported especially by the theories of the British economist Keynes who promoted state intervention to solve economic problems.
A controversial and criticized proposal
Keynes's economic proposal has garnered numerous criticisms since its appearance and to this day that consider that the problem is partially solved and worsens when spending by the state leads to an economy that fully uses the resources it has available, and even you spend more than you have in cash.
Inevitably this state of affairs will lead to a serious inflationary situation, in which the state will be forced, if not changed course, to issue more currency to meet the stipulated expenses.
Now, the fault is not with Keynes since he had proposed that once the equilibrium is achieved, aid should be restricted and interest rates increased, but of course, very few political leaders wanted and want to assume the political cost of a measure of this type, reducing public spending and therefore subsidies, because obviously it is an unpopular measure and much more in times of electoral campaign.
The 1929 crisis was a major blow to capitalism as it caused a very important part of Western society to fall into misery.
Given these circumstances, the development of a State capable of containing misery, poverty and hunger was a phenomenon of great importance and great need.
For the Welfare State there are three elements that are relevant: democracy, that is, the maintenance of non-authoritarian or autocratic political forms; social welfare, that is, the provision to society of the economic and social support necessary for progress; capitalism, since for the Welfare State capitalism is not necessarily a problem, but often involves coexistence with it.
According to the defenders of the Welfare State, a greater state intervention in the economy is one of the most important guidelines since if the market is the one who regulates socio-economic relations, there will always be disadvantaged sectors and the growing wealth of a few can lead to to a great imbalance resulting in deep crises.
Thus, the Welfare State regulates issues such as employment, production, access to housing, education and public health, etc.
Due to the significant budgetary expenses that a State of this type can mean for a nation, today this political form has been somewhat discredited and systems that combine access to the public with significant private intervention are often preferred.
