Unit+6

=US Steps to Joining WWI:=
 * 1) Declaring Neutrality in 1914
 * 2) 1915 - economic boom in US b/c nations in war needed supplies
 * 3) 1915 - US became arsenal of Allies & ignored German blockade
 * 4) Great Migration of blacks from south to north ; larger black comminuties in north produced race riots
 * 5) 1915 - Woman's Peace Party formed ; tried to keep US from intervening in war as the "mother half of humanity"
 * 6) 5/7/1915 - Germans sank British ship //Lusitana,// which angered Americans
 * 7) 1915 - Wilson demands Germany to stop unrestricted submarine warfare, but he is ignored
 * 8) 1915 - Wilson launches preparedness program ; large+rapid increase of US armed forces
 * 9) 1916 - Wilson reelected b/c of "kept us out of war" campaign
 * 10) 1917 - major German offensive in France
 * 11) 2/25/1917 - British gave Wilson intercepted Zimmermann telegram from the Germans that asked for Mexican help against US
 * 12) 3/1917 - Russian revolution ; Russia's new republican gov. promised peace (by dropping out), land, and bread ; US could now ally
 * 13) 4/6/1917 - US declaring war on Germany & joining the Allies

** Postwar America Key Characteristics - 1920s (1919, 1920, 1921) ** · Extremely high Euro casualties = low morale · Huge US war debt of $32 billion – tried to pay off asap · 100,000 businesses bankrupt · Many blacks in the North now after “Great Migration” · 1920 economic bubble burst – gross national product decreased while inflation + unemployment rose · More nativism & racism - 1919 Chicago race riots · End of reform era after 1920 19th Amendment was passed · New League of Nations created to make peace · Gov. contracts were cancelled · Strikes · Postwar recession · **// Economic problems, labor unrest, racial tension, & intense antiradicalism //**

2/7/11 **Ch24 : The New Era - The Roaring 20s **
 * affluence = wealth+ prosperity
 * conservatism = valuing the status quo and tradition - not wanting too much change
 * cultural frivolity = spending, leisure, socializing, consumerism, entertainment, etc. - what the culture was based on
 * had a lot of contrast in the era w/ tension between conservatism v. experimentation
 * a lot of social, economic, & political change
 * peaceful decade of growth + prosperity, which all changes in 1929 when the Great Depression starts after stock market crash
 * KKK reaches peak membership, which means that theres great racial tension
 * more magazines develop that reveal a greater sense of culture and change that will be acccepted (like with the new "flapper" image of women)
 * //The Jazz Singer// = 1st feature-length sound motion picture, which helped bring Hollywood to fame
 * National Origins Act of 1924 passed probably because of a rise in nativism
 * more technology is developed as forms of entertainment (ex: radio, computer, etc)
 * women + immigrants + blacks were considered unimportant and weren't treated equal in the work force - women had "pink-collar" jobs
 * birth-control movement became quite large among women
 * prohibition of alcohol failed

2/8/11 The "self-made" man was an idea of rags-to-riches based on hard work and talent, but it declined and eventually became known as a myth since education was mainly needed for jobs. Today there are certain standards that make education necessary for success. Even back when the idea originated, most of the men weren't really successful.
 * The Decline of the "Self-Made" Man**


 * Dance Halls:**
 * Great Migration brought new forms of jazz to North, where it became popular b/c of phonograph + radio
 * mainly visited by new distictive youth class & new wants for socializing - prohibition closed saloons/taverns, so dance halls were the place to be
 * larger dance halls could hold 1000s of people in the evenings & showcased most famous bands of the day + most famous performers (known through radio performances + recordings)
 * jazz was exciting, esp. to youth b/c it encouraged uninhibited, frenetic dancing that was expressive, athletic, + sensual
 * "taxi-dance" ballrooms : men could buy tickects to dance w/ "hostesses" - usually closed due to prostitution + "leud" dancing
 * dance halls gave a chance for working-class immigrants to escape & diversely mingle (even though inside the halls each ethnic group generally stayed together in their own section)
 * drew people to growing mass culture that started to overwhelm close-knit ethnic cultures
 * The Cinema:**
 * **Americans took over the movie industry w/ 40% of all the worlds movie theaters after WWI -- became global ; you had to describe movies by companies instead of its country**
 * majority of all movies seen around the world sparked contoversy (like Russia's Anti-Mickey Mouse movie)

2/10/11
 * Herbert Hoover Elected President:**
 * believed in laissez-faire capitalism w/ minimal gov. interference in economy
 * Commerce Secretary for 8 yrs -- experienced w/ trade

2/11/11
 * How does the stock market work? What role does it play in the economy?**
 * people who buy shares from companies get part-ownership
 * to be in control, most owners/creators make sure they have at least 51% of the shares
 * buy low, sell high
 * bankruptcy makes shares worthless
 * public can buy shares when company is public -- when its not public then they usually have private investors
 * more shares than sales = more $ for company
 * stock market prices plummet when there are 1000s of shares being sold
 * 10/29/1929 : stock market begins to crash -- too many shares being sold w/ overproduction
 * 1920s: stock markets prices rise but companies dont have $, only value
 * company $ goes to production materials, employees, & maybe ads

2/14/11 1. overproduction + overexpansion -- too much supply 2. declining exports -- low demand for US goods from overseas 3. too much borrowing (esp. farmers) & shaky banking system (risky, unregulated) 4. global debt structure -- result of WWI 5. too much economic focus on only a few industries -- automobiles + construction 6. small % of Americans controlled a high % of the $ 7. overspeculation on stocks -- risky amounts 8. stock market crash
 * Causes of the Economic Downturn:**
 * Steps to make a downturn into a depression:**
 * major banking collapse
 * huge amounts of layoffs
 * less money being spent
 * business shrinking
 * less production
 * How does a depressed economy recover?**
 * consumer spending starts again
 * new jobs developed
 * return to a healthy loan system
 * war
 * Security and Exchange Commission regulating stock transactions
 * banking regulations
 * shift government spending to create jobs
 * social security
 * Federal Depositors Insurance Corporation

2/15/11
 * Hoover's Attempt to fight Depression:**
 * tried to get voluntarism, but it failed
 * Agricultural Marketing Act, where gov. spent $ to buy surpluses of crops in order to keep some crop prices in control - failed
 * Hawley-Smoot tariff w/ increased protection on 75 farm products - failed b/c Euro nations responded w/ same type of tariff & slowed down global trade
 * Reconstruction Finance Corporation helped provide jobs & tried to give government loans for troubled businesses, but it was overall limited + inaffective
 * gov. funded some fed. public works projects (fixing streets, making parks, building schools, etc) in order to create more jobs
 * - Hoover wasn't going to win the election, but it was even more cemented by the Farmers' Holiday, the Bonus Army, & the emergence of FDR.**
 * Hoover Video:**
 * Hoover was 1st pres. west of MI River
 * orphan, entrepenuer, then millionaire ("self-made" man)
 * often seen as big-business Republican
 * "the only thing bad about capitalism is capitalists" -- sounds somewhat like Carnegie
 * couldn't inspire during Depression ; lack of charisma
 * "Hoover Hotel" = cardboard shack
 * "Hooverville" = shack city
 * "Hoover Flag" = empty pocket turned inside out, symbolizing poverty

2/16/11 media type="custom" key="8392016"

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2/28/11

**Legacies of the New Deal:**
- changed role of fed. gov. ; got more power - unemployment insurance - insured bank deposits - Securities and Exchange Commission : protected stock market
 * -** social security