Communist countries had a command economy that made most of the decisions. Democratic countries, on the other hand, had a market economy in which private consumers and producers made most economic decisions and owned most goods. During the Cold War era, most of the money was spent on developing nuclear weapons, building alliances, making treaties, and combating suspicious activities, such as the Crisis missiles from Cuba. Even though a lot of money was used, countries benefited as they became more powerful and more industrialized. The Soviet Union and the United States were becoming increasingly powerful countries, but they were investing in the development of their countries rather than in social problems, which hurt the economy.