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| | {{HS_American_History}} | | {{HS_American_History}} |
| − | [[American History Lecture Eleven|Lecture Eleven]]<!-- [[American_History_Homework_Eleven|Questions]] [[American History Homework Eleven Answers|Student Answers]]--> | + | <!--[[American History Lecture Eleven|Lecture Eleven]] [[American_History_Homework_Eleven|Questions]] [[American History Homework Eleven Answers|Student Answers]]--> |
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| | In this lecture we will cover through World War II. In the next lecture we'll cover until the election of [[Ronald Reagan]] as president in 1980, and then the final lecture will be about the Reagan Administration up until the present. | | In this lecture we will cover through World War II. In the next lecture we'll cover until the election of [[Ronald Reagan]] as president in 1980, and then the final lecture will be about the Reagan Administration up until the present. |
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| | If you like the excitement and mystery of court trials, the anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti were executed in 1927 despite having political support by liberals. Their crime was to commit murder in 1920 during a bank robbery, and to this day some have doubts about their real guilt. But reconsideration of their case by independent reviewers has concluded that, yes, they really committed the crime. | | If you like the excitement and mystery of court trials, the anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti were executed in 1927 despite having political support by liberals. Their crime was to commit murder in 1920 during a bank robbery, and to this day some have doubts about their real guilt. But reconsideration of their case by independent reviewers has concluded that, yes, they really committed the crime. |
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| − | In 1928 the Kellogg-Briand Pact (or Treaty) was a silly international attempt to outlaw war. It proved to be ineffective because only a war can force a nation to stop doing something! A country would have to start a war to make another country obey the treaty, and that would defeat the purpose of the treaty. | + | In 1928 the Kellogg-Briand Pact (or Treaty) was a silly international attempt to prohibit war. It proved to be ineffective because only a war can force a nation to stop doing something! A country would have to start a war to make another country obey the treaty, and that would defeat the purpose of the treaty. |
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| | == The Great Depression == | | == The Great Depression == |
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| | Economic misfortune then greeted him. In 1929, the stock market suddenly crashed. The era of prosperity was over. The Great Depression had begun. Historians blame this partly on speculators driving up stock prices to ridiculously high levels, but no one really knows what the real cause of the Great Depression was, and people still debate it to this day. Unemployment increased until it exceeded 20% in 1933, meaning that one out of every five families was out of work and likely without money too. | | Economic misfortune then greeted him. In 1929, the stock market suddenly crashed. The era of prosperity was over. The Great Depression had begun. Historians blame this partly on speculators driving up stock prices to ridiculously high levels, but no one really knows what the real cause of the Great Depression was, and people still debate it to this day. Unemployment increased until it exceeded 20% in 1933, meaning that one out of every five families was out of work and likely without money too. |
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| − | Many historians blame tariffs as a greater cause of the Great Depression than the stock market crash was. In 1930, Congress passed the Hawley-Smoot Tariff to increase tariffs, setting off a worldwide round of tariff increases in 1931, which worsened the worldwide Depression. Historians also blame the Great Depression on the gold standard, a concentration of wealth among the relatively few, and unregulated speculation in the financial markets. There is probably a political motivation (bias) in those claims about the causes of the Great Depression. | + | Many historians blame tariffs as a greater cause of the Great Depression than the stock market crash was. In 1930, Congress passed the Hawley-Smoot Tariff to increase tariffs, setting off a worldwide round of tariff increases in 1931, which decreased trade and worsened the worldwide Depression. Historians also blame the Great Depression on the gold standard. Other possible causes were a concentration of wealth among the relatively few, and unregulated speculation in the financial markets. There is probably a political motivation (bias) in some claims about the causes of the Great Depression. |
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| | '''Debate: What do you think caused the Great Depression?''' | | '''Debate: What do you think caused the Great Depression?''' |
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| − | Hoover's reaction to the Great Depression was to seek voluntary wage and price controls. He opposed new federal programs sought by the Democrats. | + | Hoover's reaction to the Great Depression was to seek voluntary wage and price controls. He generally opposed new federal programs sought by the Democrats. But in 1932, Hoover did create the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, which was a federal agency that lent money to banks, and later lent money to businesses also. |
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| − | In 1932, Hoover did create the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, which was a federal agency that lent money to banks, and later lent money to businesses also.
| + | Hoover had to face a pathetic march in D.C. by poor soldiers from World War I, who demanded a bonus. Called the "Bonus March," this ended in riots and was a political disaster for Hoover. Future generals George Patton, Dwight Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur put down the riots using tanks and troops, fearing that the nation was on the verge of a communist revolution.<ref>http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWpatton.htm</ref> Today troops are almost never used inside our country to deal with violence among Americans, because our troops should defend all Americans, and not fight against some. |
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| − | Hoover had to face a pathetic march in D.C. by poor soldiers from World War I, who demanded a bonus. Called the "Bonus March," this ended in riots and was a political disaster for Hoover. Future generals George Patton, Dwight Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur put down the riots using tanks and troops, fearing that the nation was on the verge of a communist revolution.<ref>http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWpatton.htm</ref> Today troops are almost never used to deal with violence among Americans, because troops should defend all Americans, and not fight against some.
| + | The Great Depression caused many voters to switch to the Democratic Party, which took control of the Presidency (through FDR) and Congress in 1932. After winning control of Congress and the White House, the Democrats ended Prohibition by passing a constitutional amendment to repeal it. They argued that the sale of alcohol would help boost the economy, but it did not. Democrats also began enacting many new laws and programs supposedly to try to generate jobs, but none of them pulled the nation out of the Great Depression, which continued throughout the 1930s. |
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| − | The Great Depression caused many voters to switch to the Democratic Party, which took control of the Presidency (through FDR) and Congress in 1932. After winning control of Congress and the White House, the Democrats ended Prohibition by passing a constitutional amendment to repeal it. They began enacting many new laws and programs supposedly to try to generate jobs. | |
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| | == FDR, the New Deal, and Preparing for War == | | == FDR, the New Deal, and Preparing for War == |