It was one thing for German visitors to Detroit to be infatuated with Fordism; it was quite another for industrialists, trade unionists, engineers, and economists to restructure the troubled German economy along American lines. From 1924 on, few disputed the need for dramatic economic restructuring--or rationalization, to use the term preferred by Germans-- but controversy did surround what form rationalization should take. Which American economic principles and practices could be adopted and which were valid only in the circumstances of the New World? Did Fordism have to be implemented in toto or could one pick and choose among its elements and still attain the desired levels of profitability and prosperity? Would economic modernization along American lines automatically bring about an Americanization of society and culture? German proponents of Fordism and Americanism quickly found themselves embroiled in a far-ranging and often acrimonious debate about America's past and present and Germany's future.

The secrets of American economic success such as Fordism, were interpreted in contradictory ways. German commentators disagreed about the relative importance of natural endowments, technological achievements, and innovative products. Some identified mass markets as a cause of prosperity; others, as a consequence. Many Social Democrats insisted that farsighted, resourceful, and daring entrepreneurs created the American economic miracle, whereas industrialists singled out America's ostensibly enthusiastic, hardworking, and apolitical workers as the critical factor.

German proposals for imitating the American economic model were . . .