Discussion: Total cost of the Second World War?

You know the broken window fallacy, the idea that war and destruction stimulating technological and economic growth makes as much sense as a child creating wealth by breaking his fathers window?

What I'm wondering is, put simply, exactly how many windows did Hitler break since becoming Chancellor?

In how many ways, and in what magnitude, did the world, specifically Europe, have to pay because of the war and/or the regimes of Germany, Japan and Italy, what was World War II's total 'opportunity cost'?
 
What I'm wondering is, put simply, exactly how many windows did Hitler break since becoming Chancellor?

Well aside from some 60-70 million people, which included some really talented and intelligent individuals, I imagine the damages probably run into the trillions.
 
Well aside from some 60-70 million people, which included some really talented and intelligent individuals, I imagine the damages probably run into the trillions.

Or even more... Way more. The economy of virtually the entire world, that is some 90% of it, was for the better part of 6 years entirely dedicated to wartime production. Almost everything produced was meant for war, one way or the other. Basically, the factories spent this time turning perfectly good steel, aluminum, zinc, magnesium, copper and what not into soon to be burned out hulks on the battlefield. Or bottom of the sea.
 
Well aside from some 60-70 million people, which included some really talented and intelligent individuals, I imagine the damages probably run into the trillions.

60-70 million is a lot of deaths but it was brutal. How much technology did the war accelerate? How much was it made for the country?
 
60-70 million is a lot of deaths but it was brutal. How much technology did the war accelerate? How much was it made for the country?

Some technologies would certainly have developed slower (nuclear energy, rockets) but others might have developed just as per IOTL or even accelerated.

The thing is that while war tends to accelerate technological development, scientific development actually slows as the government's step in and direct the efforts and energies of scientists mostly goes into how to apply knowledge that is already discovered rather then then discovering new knowledge.
 
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