ABSTRACT
The democracies were caught by surprise in October of 1917 when the second Russian Revolution overthrew the Kerensky government and the Bolsheviks took power. Veblen's final view of the Treaty of Versailles is spelled out most clearly in his review of John Maynard Keynes's The Economic Consequences of the Peace in 1920. This chapter examines what particularly engaged Veblen's attention was the American reaction to the second Russian Revolution. Veblen then describes the response to Bolshevism: Bolshevism is a menace to the vested rights of property and privilege. Veblen thought at times that they might give up without a fight; at other times, Veblen considered armed combat likely. The Civil War began when Veblen was four; it ended when Veblen was eight. Confused by the technological world, people sought to find ways of explaining for themselves and others what was happening. The peace that emerged at Versailles Veblen considered an attempt to reinstate Victorian culture in the post-war European order.
