Benito Mussolini leader of the Fascist government in Italy stated, "If the XIXth century was the century of the individual (Liberalism implies individualism), we are free to believe that this is the 'collective' century, and therefore the century of the state" (Mussolini: 149 & 150). Mussolini's statement is defensible on so many levels, but the claim cannot be made for the entire century, it was only the first half of the 20th century. In the first half of the twentieth century, governments were more focused on power of the their state, and not the well being of their individual citizens of that certain state. After the First World War, many countries tried Democracy as a form of government in an attempt to steer clear of a Second World War. But with the world economy in ruins during the Great Depression, countries shied away from democracy because they believed capitalism could not work. Other events such as Hitler's rise to power, the Spanish Civil War, and the Cold War are more reasons and events that support Benito Mussolini's declaration that the 20th century was the "collective" century.
             With the culmination of the First World War, countries that were previously controlled by totalitarian regimes, turned away from that style of government. Countries such as Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, which were all previously ruled or dominated by Russia, turned to certain forms of democracy as their style of government. Also democracy was instituted in Austria and Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. These new states believed in their independence, and democracy looked like a desirable blueprint for success – in part, due to the allied victory. These countries instituted constitutions developed according to liberal principles. However, political polarization and economic collapse soon endangered these governments.
             High inflation rates from wartime d...