Semester Test Blog

SEMESTER TEST BLOG

Driving Ideas for Semester Two:

1. What were the causes of the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression?

Great Depression
- "Sprial Era". Main cause was crash of stock market, nobody made any money. Deflation caused banks to fail, banks wouldn't make any money. They would shut down. Businesses would fail because they would invest a lot before the depression but then they didn't have anything to invest so they ran out of money. Then they lost their jobs. Deflation is when they produce so much that the prices go down to try to sell the product. Decrease in Trade was when people got scared because of the crash so we stopped trading with county. Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act ended up hurting us in the end because we tried to make it just american buying but we couldn't make anything. It has Hoovers idea. If people buy american products, it's good because they can stop charging us so much cause they need our products. It hurt us so much because they would do the same to us. The dust bowl made everything dry, couldn't make any crops. When people tried to buy food or make it but you couldn't because of the dust bowl. Global Pulling was everyone trying to help with each other's depression.
- Overproduction of goods
- Under consumption of goods by consumers
- Agricultural slump due to overproduction
- High protective tariff policies of the 1920's
- Taxes benefiting the rich-rich got richer, poor got poorer
- Stock market crash
- Stock Market Crash of 1929
  - Buying on Margin
    - People would put int 5% of a full priced ítem to buy it, or a stock when they didn’t actually have the money
- Over-Production
- Banks
  - Gave out so many loans. People were wanting their money, and the bank didn’t have it either
- Stock Pooling
  - Rich people would go buy a bunch of stocks then sell them
- Black Tuesday/ Black Thursday
  - The days big stock market conondrums occured

2. What impact did the stock market crash and Great Depression have on the lives of people in the United States?’

Stock Market
- Businesses were doing badly but stock prices were going up, so people started to panic and sell stocks. Banks and businesses had to shut down so everyone had to lose nice things like cars and homes. The depression caused about 23,000 suicides. People lost a lot of their possessions because they lost all of their money and the bank took their things away because they couldn't put it away. People lost faith in the stock market. In 1922 it went up 10% each year til 1929 and then it dropped. Everyone taking money away made all the banks closed and along with other businesses couldn't get money, so they closed too. Wages went down 40% so they bought less which made even more businesses go out of business. The unemployment rate raised 25% and they lived in crappy towns.
- Great Depression
  - Crime rate increased because people didn't have money so they would go steal food and money from people who had money. A lot of people were trying to move out of the country to the city because they weren't getting money from their crops which didn't work out well. Higher education was out of reach because no one could afford it. Divorce rates dropped because if people didn't divorce then they would have more money. Even if they didn't love each other, they stayed together for financial reasons. Cities all around the world were affected, especially big companies. A lot of them shut down and people didn't get jobs. The GD made the Gov. stronger. The FDIC was created for banks. The unemployment rate went up because nobody could afford to have jobs or didn't need them because nobody was buying a lot.

3. What did the United States government do to help alleviate the problems the Great Depression brought to our country?

President Hoover

He was born August 10,1874. His dad died when he was 6 and his mom died when he was 9, so he moved to Oregon when was 10. After he graduated from Stanford w/ a mining major, he traveled all over the world. He was pointed head of US food Admin. by Woodrow Wilson. Before that he had worked on a project to send aid and food to Europe during WW1. After the war was over he stayed in that position and then was appointed secretary of commerce by Calvin Coolidge. He also said "Children are our greatest nat. resource" and believed that the kids should have their own bill of rights and wrote one. He was a big supporter of the progressive party and Theodore Roosevelt, that's when he became a republican. When he was elected president he hadn't had a political place or job before it. He was elected president in 1929. The crash was 7 months after the stock market crash. They called their crummy homes "hoovervilles" and blamed it on him. He believed in laissez faire, which was when the government should stay out of businesses. He believed in rugged individualism when he would just let individual people take care of themselves. He believed in the trickle down theory which was when they give tax breaks to the wealthy to hire more people and then the poor people can get jobs and make money. He passed the Hawley Smoot Tariff which slowed down trade world wide because everyone ended up raising their tariffs after we did, due to the Hawley Smoot Tariff. The Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) was meant to help aid farmers and businesses and it's not around anymore today. The act gave loans out to businesses and he expected them to create more jobs with that money. RFC is trickle down theory in action. He gave $25,000 of his own money to people who needed jobs. During his presidency WW1 veterans marched down and demanded a check from 1924 that contained money they knew they would eventually get paid and wanted it then because they didn't have any money then.

Roosevelt-New Deal(Goals/1st and 2nd):

The first thing he wanted to do was for gov. to take responsibility for economy. He wanted to raise prices and wages- it was the first goal. He wanted to get them out of the depression. 3 r's: Relief, recovery, and reform. Main goals of the new deal. Relief is to help out people, recovery is to get the economy up, and reform is to change the economy and how it works, so that this doesn't happen again. Liberals vs. Conservatives: Liberals supported new deal, conservatives don't.The first new deal lasted 1933-34. That was the first 100 days was when he went to congress and for 100 days they discussed new acts and corprations to set up. Because of his first 100 days. Emergency Banking Act created a bunch of new banks. During the time there was a banking holiday. EMA provided money to banks so they could get back up and running. The 21st amendment ended prohibition, it got people more jobs, everyone liked that. National Recovery Administration set limits for the work force. It had a set wage, work hours, and prevented child labor. The 2nd new dealwas 1935-38. The social security act was to help disabled, non helped people. The Wagner Act made it possible to go to any company and get hired and join the work union. The works progress administration is what a lot of money got poured into because it hired a ton of people to do a lot of projects around the country like highways, airports, shipyards, etc... The Wealth Tax Act was an act to equalize the economy between rich and poor. It was set to put large tax, 80% on incomes over 5 million. The Housing Act was to abolish slums, make houses, and provide for them. The 2nd new deal was more focused on helping individual groups of people like elderly, unemployed, etc... The 1st deal was based on helping banks and businesses and the stock market fixed up and more secure.

4. What were the causes of WWII?

Germany invaded Poland because they wanted to get more land and better resources and they wanted revenge over World War 1. The U.S. was not involved in the war until Japan bombed us at Pearl Harbor. Germany really started the war by their invasion of Poland.

5. What impact did the United States have on WWII?

The war made us stronger as a country. After Pearl Harbor we came together more as a country. It changed our women and families on the home front. Women began to work in factories and have male-like jobs while they were all away. Children became more responsible at home. Some women also participated in the war as nurses, disguised as men, or flying aircrafts.
Manhattan Project: General Leslie Groves. 1939-1945. It was supported by the UK and Canada. German scientists came here from Germany because they didn't like Hitler and they helped us make it. Einstein wrote a letter to FDR so they would take it seriously.
Japanese Americans: 1942-1944. Japanese were taken to internment camps. They were separated from their families and were in very poor conditions. They lived in Barracks. 10 camps in 7 western states. After everything happened, they passed the Japanese American Redress Bill in 1988. This gave $20,000 to the Japanese families affected by this.

6. What were the goals for the US during the Cold War?

Stop the spread of communism
“Destallinization”
Peaceful coexistence
Stop the domino effect of communism spreading throughout the world

7. What were some of the major events that took place during the Cold War?

THE BERLIN CRISIS (JUNE 1948-MAY 1949)

In 1948, the three western controlled zones of Germany's (US, France, UK) were united, and grew in prosperity due to Marshall aid.
the west wanted the east to rejoin, but Stalin feared it would hurt Soviet security.
In June, 1948, Stalin decided to try to gain control of West Berlin which was deep inside the eastern sector
He cut road, rail, and canal links with West Berlin, hoping to starve it into submission
The west responded by airlifting in the necessary supplies to allow west Berlin to survive
In May 1949, Russia admitted defeat and lifted the blockade
We sent supplies to help the people in Berlin!

MCARYTHISM

Joseph McCarthy (1908-1957) was a Republican Senator from Wisconsin
In 1950, he gave a speech where he claimed to have a list of 205 Communists in the State Department
No one in the press actually saw the names on the list, but McCarthy's announcement made national news and caused panic throughout the country
McCarthy became one of the most powerful people in the US
Supporters
- Republicans
- Catholics
- Conservative Protestants
- Blue-collar workers
- Joseph and Robert Kennedy
- McCarthy's Downfall
  - In the spring of 1954, McCarthy charged the US army had promoted a dentist accused of being a communist
  - Finally, a TV broadcast showed to the public that the senator was a bully
  - In late 1954, the Senate voted to censure him for his conduct and to strip him of his privileges
  - McCarthy died three years later from alcoholism
  - "McCarthyism" lives on to describe anti-Communist fervor, reckless accusations, and guilt by accusation.

BAY OF PIGS

Known in latin as: Invasión de Bahía de Cochinos
-failed military invasion of Cuba by CIA Brigade 2506
-April 17, 1961
-Eisenhower approved in 1960 for training
-Kennedy authorized invasion plan
-Plan originally called for 2 air strikes against Cuban air bases
-send 1400 men to invade on surprise
-first messed it up when the first air strike missed target, and it was released that we were supporting the invasion, kennedy cancelled second strike
On April 17, the Cuban-exile invasion force, known as Brigade 2506, landed at beaches along the Bay of Pigs and immediately came under heavy fire. Cuban planes strafed the invaders, sank two escort ships, and destroyed half of the exile's air support. Bad weather hampered the ground force, which had to work with soggy equipment and insufficient ammunition.
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CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS

Best music video ever idk i hearted it
Cuba was the hot spot of the cold war in the 60's

BERLIN WALL GOING UP AND COMING DOWN

The berlin wall went up in 1961 to separate east and west
It was put up by East Berlin- the communist side
Wall fell on November 9, 1989

NORTH KOREA

It’s known as the forgotten war.
The United Nations held an election in 1948
The Soviet Union refused to allow participation in the election in their occupied zone
Instead, they handed over power to the North korean Communist Party under Kim IL-Sung
The south elected nationalist Syngman Rhee
Truman did not want to invade China so we didn’t invade China
He made sure that McArthur didn’t make it look like we were invading when we were by their border, Truman ended up hiring McArthur because he wouldn’t listen

8. Why did the US go to war in Korea and Vietnam and what were outcome of those wars?

Vietnam

1964

combat troops were sent in for offense purposes
sent more and more troops throughout the years

1968

was the highest number of troops sent and we had a new president Johnson and then the number of troops decreased.

Gulf of Tonkin resolution

US ships were attacked by north Vietnamese torpedoes in the gulf of tonkin.=gave the power to president Johnson to send troops to Vietnam(to declare war).

Pentagon Papers

papers showed that the gov was lying to the people about the war, the papers were the proof.

Operation rolling thunder

was our code name for our constant bombing of north Vietnam

Why was the war so unpopular?

pentagon papers
tet offensive (people were assuming the war was close to being over)
killing of innocent people
supporting a bad gov in south
power of the press

Escalation 1957-1975

Under escalation, U.S involvement increased over a period of years. started with the deployment of non-combatant military advisors to the south Vietnamese army.
Then started using special forces (green berets) for commando-style operations
use of regular troops whose purpose was to be defensive only
use of regular troops in offensive combat
once u.s troops were in active combat, escalation to the adding of more u.s troops

Gulf of Tonkin

Several US ships were supposedly attacked by North Vietnamese torpedoes in the Gulf of Tonkin
most experts today do not think the ships were attacked
this was Johnson's ploy to get more involved in Vietnam
President Johnson and General William Westmoreland kept saying that with more troops we will win the war
Most Americans tended to believe this at first
The American public's faith was shattered, on January 30, 1968, when the enemy, supposedly on the verge of collapse, mounted the Tet Offensive in which nearly every major city in south Vietnam was attacked
Named after the lunar new year festival which is the most important Vietnamese holiday in South Vietnam
Although we crushed the enemy militarily, the surprising huge offensive attack from an enemy that was supposedly almost defeated convinced many Americans that victory was impossible
there was an increasing sense among many people that the government was misleading the American people about a war without a clear beginning or end
When General Westmoreland called for still more troops to be sent to Vietnam after the Tet offensive

Why were so many people against the war?

Tet offensive
pentagon papers
injuring/killing innocent people
supporting a bad government in the south
The power of the press

Kent State

My Lai Massacre March 1968

How did people get out of serving?

Went to Canada or Sweden
Went to college (student deferment)
Got married
Medically unfit for service
Joined the National Guard or Peace Corps
Claim to be gay
Be rich

9. Know these major major post-Cold War Events:

-JFK Assassination

November 22, 1963
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lyndon Baines Johnson
Buried at Arlington National cemetery

-Civil Rights

Supreme court ruled that segregation on public transportation is unconstitutional
Supreme court orders Universitiy of Mississippi to admit James H. Meredith, it’s first black student.
Govener Ross Barnett tries to block it, so U.S. Marshals escort Meredith to the school
NAACP secretary is assassinated
Martin Luther King Jr.

-Watergate

Watergate scandal

burglars went into water gate complex and stole top secret documents and bugged phones. it was the headquarters for the democratic party. they were members of CREEP.
June 17, 1972
burglars caught in Watergate complex (big office motel in d.c.)
Nixon claimed he wasn't involved
- later discovered that Nixon was involved
- CIA tried to stop FBI from investigating the water gate
- August 5, 1974 nixon released the tapes
- August 8, Nixon resigns

-Persian Gulf War(1991)

Persian Gulf War
- August 1990-February 1991
- Saddam Hussein (Ba'ath) (Iraq) invaded Kuwait in August 2, 1990
- Operation Desert Sheild
  - sent thousands of troops to Saudi Arabia , right next to invaded Kuwait
  - thought that maybe if we had a bunch of troops next to Kuwait, he would surrender or leave
  - Opeation Desert Storm
    - U.S. invaded Kuwait through ground and air attacks to protect them from Iraq
    - Month or 2 we free Kuwait
    - Never invaded Iraq
    - Results
      - Coalition Force victory, Iraqi with drawl from Kuwait, destruction of Iraqi/Kuwaiti infrastructure
      - Coalition- 482 dead, Iraq- 20,000-35,000
      - 1991-2003
        No-fly zone
        2 lines in Iraq that Saddam couldn't have anyone stationed in
        Weapons Instructors
        check for bad weapons
        WMD's
        
        Saddam Hussein played cats and mice games with the U.S.
        ,How did the Persian Gulf War eventually lead to 911?
        Afghanistan
        We were helping people fight off communist
        Gave them money, weapons, supplies
        Mujahadeen (idk how to spell)
        who we helped
        eventually became the taliban
        Since 1990 we have been in Middle East and they don't like it
        they started attacking us
        think we are trying to take over

-9-11

Al Qeada
2 planes crashed into world trade centers in NYC, NY
1 plane at Pentagon
1 plane in field in Pennsylvania, it’s believed that it was headed for Washington D.C. but passengers took it over so that it wouldn’t happen
September 9, 2011
George Bush was the president at the time and was in Florida when the buildings were hit
Al Qaeda was behind it

-War in Afghanistan

Went to war in October 2001 in result of 9/11
Taliban was harboring Al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden
Taliban was not going to work with us so in October we invaded Afghanistan
Last 13 years we have toppled the Taliban and established a democracy there
The Taliban is still fighting us
The president is going to try and pull out troops by the end of this year
Popular

-War in Iraq

CIA is giving Bush info that Saddam Hussein is getting weapons of mass destruction
We were worried that they had WMD’s because they wouldn’t let inspectors in
We invade
We get Saddam Hussein
We establish a democracy
We rebuild the country
We’ve been out since December 2001
Extremely unpopular because people are like why are we there
Also unpopular because photos of US troops doing bad things to people came out and made us mad
Americans were like “This is what they do to us, not what we do to them”
Bush sent even more troops (very unpopular) called a “surge” which actually helped in the end
Since we’ve left, Iraq has had a lot of terrorists attacks

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