Through the experience the United States acquired with participation in various wars, the advancement of weaponry and technology has been clearly noticeable. From the slaughtering, barbaric fighting of World War II to the tedious, elongated combat of the Iraq War, a progression is apparent in the styles of combat. As each war came and passed, the technology the United States had available to fight with changed. In some ways, they became more economical; in other ways, they became more dreadful and powerful. What is the relationship between available weapon technology and the way of using these weapons for fighting? Different wars required different types of weapons, as no two wars had identical weapon use. So, what things guide the way to determining what types of technologies are used in a war? Finally, what do we learn from one war to the next regarding what technologies to use and at what times? After a technology is tested and used in a war, does it change? And if so, what determines what changes are made? This paper will examine and answer these questions.

During World War II, the main reason of victory was due to productivity and growth of industry. During the beginning stages of the war, massive troop recruitment brought peaks of almost 8 million people enlisted in the army. Towards the end of the war, over 15 million had served in the fight. Immense quantities of weapons and vehicles were constructed. In his State of the Union Address, President Roosevelt stated, “… we shall produce 60,000 planes, 10,000 more than the goal we set a year and a half ago. This includes 45,000 combat planes.” The president also had some improving future ideas as well. “The rate of increase will be maintained and continued so that next year … we shall produce 125,000 airplanes, including 100,000 combat planes.”

There were more plans to mass produce products other than planes. Roosevelt proposed, “… we shall produce 45,000 tanks; and to continue that increase so that next year, 1943, we shall produce 75,000 tanks.” In addition, “we shall produce 20,000 [anti-aircraft guns]; and to continue that increase so that next year, 1943, we shall produce 35,000 anti-aircraft guns.”

With this massive production rate of weapons and automobiles, the necessity for a battle plan arose. Tactics and strategies could bring victory; but without them, the United States was prone to disaster and chaos. The United States devised a complex tank-infantry cooperation plan to prevent disorder and confusion. First, “The tactics … called for tanks to lead the assault over no man’s land and rake the enemy positions with shell and machine gun fire, pinning the defenders in their trenches.” Afterwards, when the area was generally cleared of opposing forces, the infantry came in. The tanks remained where they were, “for tanks remaining stationary simply rendered them an easier target.” This way, the infantry would survive longer for battle while the heavily armed tanks would receive the fire and take next to no damage.

When there were no vehicle weapons available, there were groups of infantry only with a specific type of weapon. The tactics changed greatly when these situations were the case. For example, there was a group of soldiers with rifles called the Rifle Group. “Its size varied between six and eight men, dependent upon nation and, of course, casulaties.” With limited availability in some cases, infantry had to adapt to what they were faced with. Although sometimes these rifles were slow-firing and at times frustrating, they had the potential to be very destructive in accurate hands. However, at the end, the combination of forms of offense proved to be better. Riflemen were important, but combinations were better: “The evolution of tactics gives that argument some validity, but ultimately without the presence of the individual riflemen the Squad would prove a one dimensional tool.”

However, in some cases, although there were massive numbers of tanks available, each division was limited to one tank, or even less at times. This was due to the proportion of infantry to tanks: “In 1940, the British Expeditionary Force had just two Battalions of infantry tank to support nine Divisions in France.” In these cases, the affectivity rate of the tanks decreased. To adapt to this dilemma, “the preferred option was to deploy a full tank company or squadron….” Even after these difficulties, there was no specific proportion or ratio set between infantry and tanks. They were used as they became available to deploy.

Amphibious landing craft also played an important role in coordinating attacks against enemies. These landing crafts, better known as boats, were mechanized utilities used for lifting military equipment. They were even capable of transporting entire tanks with little trouble. For protection, amphibious landing crafts also had their own form of defensive weaponry. Several machine guns or other similar weapons were mounted on the outside of the vehicle for defense of troops and crew inside.

Finally, the last thing that Roosevelt brought up in his speech was the merchant shipping. “In … 1942, we shall build 6,000,000 deadweight tons … and … we shall continue that increase so that next year, 1943, we shall build 10,000,000 tons of shipping.” All these drastic increases for production and industrial enhancement led to the United States’ victory in World War II.

Not only did the production of war materials increase; the funding for war shot up drastically. In Roosevelt’s speech “A Call for Sacrifice,” he mentioned to the United States that, “we are now spending, solely for war purposes, the sum of about $100 million every day in the week … but before this year is over, that almost unbelievable rate of expenditure will be doubled.” This massive rate of spending allowed the industry to rise at a rapid rate. Later in the speech, he mentions, “we must put more billions into war bonds.” In effect, the overwhelming amount of money will provide an overwhelming superiority of the United Nations: “so overwhelming that the Axis Nations can never hope to catch up with it.” This consistent reminder to the nation that we must put more available resources into the war shows a continuing effort to out-nutrition the opposers. With the massive amount of resources the United States has compared to the lower amount of resources their enemy has, the opposing side will eventually run short of resources and be forced to surrender due to lack of attack and defense.

There are many other things the war’s fighting style depended on; one of the key components for selecting weaponry is the geography and terrain of fighting. Air transportation was a vital necessity for conveying troops to islands. In addition, the infantry needed weapons to fight: “Victory requires the actual weapons of war and the means of transporting them to a dozen points of combat.”

As a variation to air, sea forces were equally imperative in numerous battles. A prime example that caused the destruction of many United States forces was during the Battle of the Atlantic. Although the Allies had a virtually infinite number of troops and supplies, Germany was equipped with the efficient and versatile U-boats, which brought havoc to United Nations’ defense. These submarines “nearly choked the shipping lanes of Great Britain, cutting off vital supplies of food, fuel and raw materials needed to continue fighting.” Germany had targeted the massive line of streaming resources.

To combat the massive losses experienced during the U-boat attacks, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of Great Britain brought together a Cabinet Anti-U-boat Warfare Committee. This committee found and took necessary steps to defend from further German U-boat attacks. They also developed new technologies and anti-submarine defenses. Once the production of proper mechanisms was complete, there were enrolled army volunteers titled as anti-U-boat escorts. A soldier with experience states, “… we sailed escorting tugs towing barges and equipment arrived at Omaha beach the day after D day.”

These anti-U-boats were also known as destroyers, and they were heavily armed with weapons. Most of them included “double turrets and heavy gun and torpedo armament….” These boats were originally called the torpedo boat destroyers, as they had powerful torpedoes with a high destruction potential and a very long range. Although the best way to attack using a torpedo is close range, these long-range torpedoes had a high accuracy rate. Even the bulkiest, most crudely built destroyers successfully completed their tasks: “Already, these ships, whose design had evolved from smaller and less capable ships, mounted all the armament that would go into the flushdeckers, but had a different layout.” When the development of anti-U-boats continued, different numbers of different types of weapons had priority over others. For example, “stressing torpedo firepower over gun firepower, the Gridley class mounted sixteen torpedo tubes but only four 5” guns.” Another example is the Fletcher with “modifications with three twin mounts of 5” guns instead of five singles.” The diversity of destroyers allowed the United States to gain an advantage over a variety of different opposing forces.

The vehicles anti-U-boat escorts controlled had sonar, depth charges, and other forms of direction-finding radar. However, this was not as easy as it sounds: “In order to be lethal, the depth charges had to land very close to the pressure hull within ten seconds of the disappearance of the U-boat.” These specific requirements required very skilled pilots that were very familiar with flying aircraft. Beginner pilots caused a resounding issue: “At first the aircraft and crews suffered from their inexperience.”

Finally, World War II was the marking of the beginning of use of nuclear weaponry. The most famous atomic bombings during World War II are the attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After the United States made the offensive on Japan, the Japanese government surrendered to the Allies. This powerful and destructive force caused devastation beyond anyone’s belief. As realized by many people across the world, “the nuclear age had truly begun with the first military use of atomic weapons.” The United States held a weapon that not only killed, but also malformed and mutated the ones victimized. Although a relatively small weapon in size, the area its effects cover are massive: “It is 28 inches in diameter and 120 inches long. ‘Little Boy’ weighed about 9,000 pounds and had a yield approximating 15,000 tons of high explosives.” After the bombing occurred, many people were arguing about the ethicality of using nuclear weapons. Although war is against a country, it is immoral to kill immense numbers of potentially innocent citizens of the country.

World War II’s fighting strategies can be greatly contrasted with the ones used in the Vietnam War. Being America’s longest war, it took a great toll on the country as a whole, along with the countries the United States was fighting alongside. America had a desire to stop communism from spreading in southeast Asia. In the end, “the Vietnam War ended with the capture of Saigon by Communist forces and the surrender of General Duong Vanh Minh and his cabinet in the Presidential palace.” Although America did not meet total success, they used innovative technology to fight for what they believed was right. The nature of the soldiers fighting in the war also helped the country fight through until the end. Survey statistics show that 91% of Vietnam veterans say they are glad they served in the Vietnam War. If the Vietnam War were to be recreated, 74% say they would serve again, even after knowing the outcome. A common myth of the Vietnam War is that a majority of the ones that served were drafted. This is highly inaccurate; over two-thirds of the veterans that served in the Vietnam War volunteered, as opposed to World War II’s one-third. Because of this dedication and patriotism to the United States during the Vietnam War, 87% of the American population hold Vietnam veterans in high esteem. Finally, a fortunate result of the Vietnam war is that 85% of all surviving veterans were able to make a successful transition to civilian life.

The Vietnam War introduced a new form of transportation to the battlefield. During battles in deserts where storms are potential, troops needed to find a way to get in and get out quickly and efficiently without any extra work or losses. The Vietnam War is characterized by the United States’ large employment of air power. Helicopters were used to transport goods and troops in and out of battle areas. This type of war was relatively new to the United States, and when they first got introduced to the concept, they called it “air mobility.” This technique was highly effective against the communist troops: “American H-21 helicopters were used to ferry … troops into battle against communist Viet Cong guerillas in 1962. At first, communist troops fled when the troop-carrying helicopters landed.” The United States was able to rise victorious without even fighting.

However, the United States was not the only country that was adjusting and developing their weapons for a more efficient fighting style. “… at the important battle of Ap Bac, [the communist troops] soon learned that if they stood their ground, they could bring down the helicopters with relative ease.” This caused a problem for the United States, as the Viet Cong were being trained how to be the most destructive against these helicopters. They learned “…how to shoot ahead of the target to increase the chance of hitting it and where to shoot to cause the most damage.”

From this great loss of helicopters and troops, the United States made drastic changes in the ways they used their vehicles. As the United States got more involved in the Vietnam war, they increased the number of helicopters they used at once. The efficiency of helicopter drops drastically increased, and more troops received transportation with the helicopters. “Some combat operations involved over 100 helicopters at a time, plus fixed-wing air support to drop bombs and fire rockets at enemy troops.” This massive number of helicopters kept rising. By the end of the Vietnam war, over 12,000 different helicopters were used during the war. Army UH-1’s helicopters totaled over 7.5 million hours in flight time; Army AH-1G’s helicopters totaled over one million.

This advancement in helicopter and air technology proved useful during the Battle of Ap Bac in the Republic of Vietnam. On January 2, 1963, the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam witnessed their first major victory. Americans used helicopters to move quickly and transport troops from place to place, which gave Commander Hai Hoang and his troops little time to retreat. Although the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam downed many United States helicopters, the United States had proven themselves as a difficult opponent.

Using helicopters and starting an air war was a survival tactic as well as being a battle tactic. In ground combat, more Americans’ lives were lost due to the greater susceptibility to getting killed. However, when Americans used helicopters to strike Vietnam from the air, the chances of getting killed were greatly reduced. The United States used this strategy more often because it worked: “Once Johnson unleashed Operation Rolling Thunder, the air war over Vietnam escalated dramatically – from 25,000 bombing raids in 1965 to more than 108,000 in 1967.” At first, the bombings were only targeted against military locations and supply routes. However, as the war progressed, civilian areas such as roads, factories, and homes were attacked as well. “By 1967 the United States had dropped more bombs on Vietnam than the Allies dropped during all of World War II.”

Although fighting from the air was more efficient and effective, there were still ground battles. In areas safe from the mass destruction from bombs falling from the sky, ground forces attempted to wipe out the Viet Cong. However, the United States was inexperienced and had difficulty finding their enemies in unfamiliar jungles: “‘I could see neither villages, nor fields, roads, or anything but endless rain forests the color of old moss.’” The fighting environment was very uncomfortable for the troops, especially because of the harsh natural surroundings. There were traps hidden in the vegetation, and every step taken by an American soldier could be their last.

A development of a chemical called Agent Orange and the improved technology of aircraft were combined to form a defoliant. The trees, rain forest, and jungle were excellent places for the Viet Cong to plant mines and traps to kill American soldiers. In addition, soldiers of the Viet Cong could hide in the trees and snipe American troops without being seen. To prevent this, aircraft was used to spray Agent Orange across forests. After exposure to this defoliant, a mixture of herbicides, most of the vegetation was destroyed from the toxic compounds in the substance.

The previously mentioned spraying of defoliants was one of the air operations performed by the United States. With the various integration of air technology into other available forms of warfare, the United States had a great variety of techniques of attack. A specific operation with a correlation of spraying herbicides on South Vietnam to prevent vegetation protection for the Viet Cong was Operation Ranch Hand. The entire operation included a large number of different agents, titled by the color of the label on their barrel. “Between 1962 and 1971, Ranch Hand sprayed about 19 million gallons of herbicide, 11 million of which consisted of Agent Orange.”

Another air operation using newly developed air technology was Operation Pierce Arrow. During this military operation, new aircraft such as Ticonderoga and Constellation were used to attack Vinh oil storage depots. During this operation, two aircraft were lost, one pilot was killed, and one was captured and kept as a prisoner of war. However, the overall mission was successful; the United States was able to eliminate over 90% of the oil supply Vinh had in its depots.

Finally, one of the most significant but secretive air operations of the Vietnam War was Operation Barrel Roll. Simply put, “Barrel Roll was the U.S. air campaign conducted over northern Laos in support of the Royal Lao Government.” This was meant to be a signal to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in the North from the Republic of Vietnam in the South. There were a few key missions and objectives of Operation Barrel Roll. The first “was to conduct air operations in support … by the interdiction of enemy supplies moving across northern Laos.” Second, “aid was to be given by providing air support for Laotian grounding forces fighting the North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao.” However, things did not go as planned immediately; the operation started with the Laos struggling for their own survival. As the operation progressed, there were several air wars that broke out. Due to the United States’ developed technology regarding aircraft, the United States did not wish to contribute ground forces to the battle. “Lacking the will to commit US ground forces in Laos, the direct US combat involvement was with airpower.” At the end, although the United States was tactically successful, the Lao’s People’s Democratic Republic was still established.

One of the instances where the United States could not use their air warfare and had to adapt to the Viet Cong was during the First Battle of Saigon. It took place during the Tet Offensive in early 1968. The Viet Cong attacked South Vietnam from all sides of the country. They targeted key buildings and structures. A key monument, the Presidential Palace, was taken down in the capital of South Vietnam, Saigon. To cut off communications to the rest of the country, local Viet Cong forces attacked the National Radio Station. Most importantly, they attacked the United States embassy to disable and retreat the Americans. To defend from this attack, the United States could not use their air force as they would normally use to bomb the North Vietnamese. Instead, they used ground troops to fight back.

Finally, the last fighting style that will be analyzed will be the one used during the Iraq War. The Iraq War, also known as Operation Iraqi Liberation or Operation Iraqi Freedom, is a conflict that started when the United States invaded Iraq. At the beginning of the war, the United States believed that Iraq posed a threat to the United States from intelligence received. With the news spread to the United Kingdom, they occupied the country. Saddam Hussein was captured later in the same year, and was executed three years later. In the fighting that took place for this to happen, there were tedious waiting times that extracted every bit of patience from the soldiers participating.

In the ongoing war, people may hear a lot about roadside bombs. These weapons are explosives placed on the side of the road that are detonated when vehicles drive by. These explosives have killed many American soldiers supporting Iraq in their war against terror. The number of people being killed by these bombs are only rising: “The number of US troops to die in Iraq since the invasion began five years ago has reached 4,000, after an attack in southern Baghdad killed four soldiers. The milestone is likely to strengthen calls for US forces to be withdrawn from the country.”

Even though the number of American soldiers killed is very high, the number of Iraqi civilians killed or injured is almost exponentially higher. The killing style used in the Iraq war consists of a few people a day, and over time, the numbers rise very high. In a specific case, American soldiers are not the only ones that are being killed. “According to Iraqi Government estimates, 12,000 of its own security forces have been killed.”

After the United States invaded Iraq, there has been violent and destructive fighting as well, with hundreds of thousands of civilians targeted. “January concluded that between 104,000 and 223,000 Iraqis had died violently since the invasion.” Even then, this number is slightly inaccurate; the United States did not keep track of the death toll at the beginning of the invasion.

This mass killing style of the Iraq War has more statistics with large numbers. In overall deaths of American soldiers it was “reported close to 90,000 deaths by this month.” And because of the United States president: “a quarter of whom died last year when Mr. Bush sent in an extra 30,000 troops to Iraq, bringing the total to 160,000.”

Another known name of this war is the War on Terror, which describes one of the objectives of the war. One of the key reasons for the United States fighting in this war is to stop terrorism, which is “the act of unnecessary violence to instill fear into others.” This reflects the fighting style that the United States must survive through when participating in the war. To overcome the torturous nature of terrorism, the United States is making an attempt to spread the ideas of democracy into Iraq.

Finally, the turning point that started the United States’ involvement in this war was the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. Terrorists used airplanes as their key source of weaponry and caused great destruction to the United States. Part of the war’s efforts include an attempt to prevent something like that from happening again.

In summary, the United States have developed greatly from its participation in many wars. The technology of their weaponry have changed throughout the years from the experience acquired from fighting. The losses the United States faced were turned into valuable lessons as scientists better developed the weaponry.

By definition, a poet laureate is “a person who has been honored for achieving distinction in poetry.” To deserve this award, one must put unimaginable effort into the work they do and how they do it. Maya Angelou, an African-American woman with lasting perseverance, has successfully crossed the line between an excellent poet and a true poet laureate. Defeating the hardships of her childhood, she wrote a poem titled “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” describing her unjust, personal adversaries she experienced from being an African American.

Seeing Maya Angelou’s abused childhood life, the poem takes into consideration the fact that she survived through mistreatment from her father. Her childhood was marked with her being an insignificant part of the family. However, while growing up, she defeated her failures in life and left them aside. She did not think highly of the things she could not accomplish, and looked forward to a bright future. She was sent around from family to family with nowhere to stay; however, she maintained a steady pace to her expectations for herself.

Even when she grew older, things did not go well family wise. She was raped by her stepfather when she was only seven years old, and lost trust in all human beings except her brother. At age sixteen, she became pregnant and soon became a single mother. Her true test of determination was shown here when she had her own child’s life to take care of and she did so successfully. With this in mind, she experienced the true power a woman like herself could hold. With motivation, she went on to conquer the rights and freedom she deserved.

The selected poem, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” is a prime example of Maya Angelou’s American views of life. The context of the poem uses two different birds as two different examples to represent two different types of people in her life: the free white men and the enslaved black men. Although the races of the described are never mentioned, the ideas presented have clear metaphorical connections with each respective race. With these characters, Maya Angelou was able to give the reader a better understanding of what it was like during her lifetime.

In the first stanza of the poem, the freedom and unconfined nature of the white man is depicted by the bird roaming aimlessly and boundlessly across the breadth of nature, enjoying the natural phenomenon of Earth itself.

However, the poem takes a sharp turn in tone when the introduction of the restrained bird begins. With the limited rights the African Americans have, they cannot take drastic actions to fight back. The verse continues by describing the dreams of African Americans. They are restricted, but they will continue to voice their opinions repetitively and protest for freedom and justice. Although they have never felt the thrill of freedom, they will continue to fight for what is right.

Once again, the poem returns to the peaceful, positive life of the white man who once again returns to the joy and tranquility of nature. The worms, representing food, are plentiful for the white men. They have enough power to claim the entire sky as their own. This is the prime representation of America; hoarding wealth, food, and belongings is a key characteristic of a majority of the American population.

Finally, the poem closes with another view on minority life. Beyond the pains and suffering, African Americans continue to fight for their rights and liberties. At last, the poem closes by repeating the third stanza. This creates a lasting effect about the persistence and determination of the struggle for independence and sovereignty. This repetition states, almost as a warning, that the African Americans will never give up.

Maya Angelou’s poems as a whole represent the American way of life well. Even now, long after she wrote her poems, the American people can relate to the types of poems she wrote and what she wrote about. The context of the poems are still relevant to the American ways of life, may it be good memories or bad things that could happen.

In looking at her poems’ topics as a whole, she has written about very American-related topics, including innovation of the American ways; ideas of freedom and liberty to the citizens; the rights of women, and minorities as well; what abuse is and how to deal with it; and feeling pride and honor in being an American.

Finally, Maya Angelou’s poems show a form of confidence that displays her true American nature when writing her poems. Thus, I believe that Maya Angelou best reflects the true American vision of a poet laureate, through her writing and thoughts put into writing.

Looking at the title of this poem, a reader may believe that this poem represents the definition of the title: a favorable opinion or suggestion. However, after reading the body of the poem, it is difficult to find a connection between the bulk and the title.

Through line-by-line analysis, the first few stanzas appear to imply that the author of his poem is willing to help whomever they are writing about by offering to take their hand: “Give me your hand.” Furthermore, the author requests that the subject accept the assistance provided; at the same time, the author will see what the subject is doing wrong and guide them to the right direction: “Make room for me / to lead and follow / you…”

However, in the latter half of the poem, it states that people should be able to maintain their personal feelings, even when they are left behind: “Let others have / the privacy of / touching words / and love of loss / of love.” Even when someone is abandoned, the poem is stating that they should move on without looking back.

Finally, the last line of the poem is “For me / Give me your hand.” The final line of the poem is now asking the person in need to accept the help they are offered for both their benefits. This is said in a way that both of them will receive a positive impact when the desire to help the needy is fulfilled.

As a whole, the poem could be Maya Angelou’s desire to write a poem that offers a clear, visual description of the life she lives in along with other people around her that help each other as they live. This poem would bring in the truths and facts of real life and her surroundings, and be an accurate representation of life.

On the quiet morning of Tuesday, October 29, 1929, a nationwide crisis was about to be born. The prototyped tapping of the telegraph machines and the customary hum and murmur of stock traders made the day seem nothing out of the ordinary. Then it struck like a thunderbolt out of the sky. The stock market crash that is infamous for signifying the birth of the Great Depression was underway. With prices plummeting down to what appeared to be no end, hordes of traders lined up to sell their trades as quick as possible. Putting in their best efforts, they attempted to minimize their losses in the stock market crash better known as Black Tuesday.

Any stock market crash has to have beginning rooted somewhere. The most logical explanation for all stock market crashes begins with money hoards. With the rich amassing money, the amount of cash going around the economy steadily (but definitely) decreases. If a bank had saved this these riches, others could receive this currency as borrowed funds and the economy would still be able to rotate this money around society. However, the problem arises when people keep their cash without the use of a local depository. If money hoards had an instant and immediate impact on the economy in a relative way, all the prices would drop proportionally to the money hoarded. However, things do not happen that way.

With less currency available to use, larger companies cannot afford the amount of raw materials they could formerly pay for. Consequently, production decreases and prices increase to substitute the losses made from lack of sales. Moreover, due to the reduction of production, fewer employees are required to work at this corporation, which introduces layoffs. As a result, the unemployment rate rises.

These newly unemployed people now have no source of income, which greatly reduces their motivation to spend money. With no profit, these former employees have no choice but to preserve their money and expect the worst for their future. These families do not waste their money on anything except their bare necessities: food and water. This causes a cycling effect on the companies; other businesses cannot sell their products, which leads to laying-off more workers. At a magnified aspect, workers continue to lose their jobs; businesses continue to lower their prices to attempt more sales; and eventually, the economy crashes.

Why specifically did the economy crash drastically on October 29, 1929? The previously mentioned reasoning, although a cause of Black Tuesday, takes a lot longer than one afternoon to take effect. The stock market experts of the late 20s analyzed the statistics of this stock market crash, and could not find an immediately visible cause. The best breakdown of why the crash happened was because of the natural way things go. Specialists believed that liquidation must take place before new growth can occur. This was the theory mostly believed in the age.

The president of the United States, Herbert Hoover, had developed similar ideas of natural flow while he was the United States Secretary of Commerce in the early 1920s. He applied these ideas when he became president later in the 1920s, and did not take action while his country was falling apart economically. His hypothesis was that raising wages would give enough spending power to the citizens of the United States to overcome the depression. He campaigned for high wages, and his efforts ended there.

Further expanding from these spending and selling views of the crash, there are other aspects of the crash less well known during the 1920s. They became better known after further research and analysis on the stock market crash. In the year 1936, John Maynard Keynes went against the general believed reason for the crash established during the aftermath of Black Tuesday. He worked against the concept that if consumption rates fell, interest rates will fall as well, which would eventually lead to increased investment. Although this was theoretically accurate, in realistic views, the expectations of businesses in future profits are what truly determine how the economy rises and falls.

In the views of monetarists, the reason of the crash was that Americans were losing recognition for the value of current currency. During the depression, reemphasis was put on the importance of money, and the Federal Reserve’s poor quality policies were stressed. Had the Federal Reserve improved their guidelines, the monetarists highlight the possibility of potential prevention of the Great Depression and Black Tuesday. In essence, the doctrines believe the lack of money supply caused the Great Depression. This closely correlates to the 1920s explanation.

The Wall Street Crash of 1929 did not only affect the United States. Due to the gold standard, Black Tuesday affected the entire world. This international crisis brings the desire to other countries to alleviate their economic policies. However, this would endanger a country’s ability to keep up with gold exchange contracts. For the countries that withdraw from the gold standard contract, the good component is quicker recovery times from these disasters.

Other countries took effect in various different ways. In specific, Australia could not trade with the United States due to the massive decline of imports and exports taking origin in America. Canadian production declined to 58% within three years of Black Tuesday. Although the country of France was a self-thriving country, they also felt the wrath of hardships and unemployment. Similarly, Germany experienced unemployment and riots along with the initiation of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party. Elsewhere around the world, citizens experienced adversities.

When Franklin Roosevelt became president during the time of the Great Depression, he was determined to make a change to the country that elected him as leader. He knew they relied on him to make a difference. Roosevelt was very unsatisfied at the president that acted prior to him, Herbert Hoover. Hoover did not take noticeable actions to recover the nation from the crash; instead, he did the exact opposite, ignoring what the people had requested. To show dissatisfaction, the poor and homeless named their homes Hoover Shackles and claimed that hard times are still “Hoovering” over them. Due to the lack of action from Hoover, the country became a literal disaster.

When Roosevelt’s presidency started, he introduced the New Deal program in 1933. It took in effect until 1938, and proposed and promised ways to relieve and restore the American ways. With this new series of renovations, America would be reformed and have the capability to continue with their Progressive ways from before the Great Depression.

The Great Depression shortly followed the Roaring Twenties, when the economy soared high to success and people were making fortunes within days instead of years. The Twenties were a time of renovation and an era of invention. Machines were first introduced into the world as substitutes for humans. A mechanism could do the same amount of work a human being could do within a fraction of the time. Humans got tired after a set amount of work, but engines did not even hesitate; they were unstoppable. With all the transformation, the twenties was a decade of Progressivism. New discoveries were being made every day, and the nation was being developed continuously.

Through this great expansion of the country, people started to forget about the American Dream. Although its definition of freedom and justice was maintained, the citizens’ defined meaning was being lost behind in the quest to make things better. The hard work and dedication in living life was lost when people could make fortunes just by trading stocks on the market. Although Progressivism innovated America, it also left behind the moral values of life.

During Roosevelt’s New Deal, the Progressivism lost in the Great Depression was revived; at the same time, the quest to achieve the American Dream was revived as well. The first large change Roosevelt launched was the Emergency Banking Act. This brought a complete renovation of the nation’s bank systems after a short bank holiday of non-operation. The entire nation’s bank system took a new approach to their businesses in saving and lending money out to the public.

The Glass-Steagall Act helped businesses owners by separating business and personal investments. If one were to go wrong, the other asset would still be available to support them. This assisted in defense if the Great Depression were to repeat in the future. Similarly, the Home Owners Loan Corporation was established to refinance mortgages for businesses and personal use.

In addition to corporations and organizations that helped the public with a service, there were many acts and associations that gave goods and tangible products to the poor and suffering. For example, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, run by the government, gave over $500 million to the poor to help them resume their lives. The National Industrial Recovery Act managed to get $3.3 billion for public works to aid them in reconstructing the country and building new objects across the nation.

In correlation with the Industrial Recovery Act, there was the Civil Works Administration that used the provided money to reconstruct the land. With the assistance of the Civilian Conservation Corps, together they employed over two million men. This provided jobs for a large percentage of the unemployed citizens of America. This was an efficient way to reconstruct the United States; at the same time, it helped to reemploy the millions that lost their jobs during the depression. There were others, like the Tennessee Valley Authority, who also organized construction programs in their area.

For industry owners, the National Recovery Administration helped restrain industry competition. There were merges made of smaller companies into other smaller companies to make an overall larger company. With reduced competition, the industries could raise their prices to reverse the drops that were made during the depression to increase their sales. In the agricultural sense, the same was done as industry. The Agricultural Adjustment Administration boosted farm prices. For agriculture, farmers were encouraged to reduce the amount they produced so supply would gradually go down as demand stayed the same or increased. Prices would naturally rise, and that would reverse price drops made previously to increase sales. These plans were well organized as it uses the natural buying and selling processes to reverse a national disaster.

Finally, the most important portion of the First New Deal was the Securities and Exchange Act. This would be the most vital step in preventing another Great Depression in the future. The Securities and Exchange Act specifically prevented insider trading that was one of the hypothesized causes of the Crash of 1929. With inside information, traders have an unfair advantage against other traders. With these facts at hand, they can easily predict any changes or future alterations in the stock market pricing and act quickly before they ever happen. Making this unlawful would greatly reduce the chance of anything similar to this ever happening again in the future.

With all these Progressive programs in action, the nation quickly rose back up to moderate success. Roosevelt had accomplished the first step in allowing the country to thrive into the future. However, not everything went as well has he hoped. The First New Deal, with the National Recovery Administration targeted in specific, was ruled unconstitutional. Congress believed forcing (or aiding) industries to raise prices and succeed in business was not Progressivism. They believed it wasn’t even an entirely new and never-before tried strategy. Congress stated that this was an unjust way of supporting already big and thriving companies to do better and, in essence, dominate the entire line of industry by themselves. Roosevelt’s argument was that the problem with the Great Depression surfaced when under-consumption developed.

Being unable to out rule Congress, and still maintaining the Progressive thoughts in his head, Roosevelt launched the Second New Deal in 1935. Although somewhat similar to the First New Deal, Roosevelt made some crucial changes in planning that would even better support his country and lead them to triumph. Fundamentally, the Second New Deal defined the government’s role in the average American life.

After time went on after the Great Depression, some people recuperated more rapidly than others did. Parallel to the early 1920s, an unbalance of wealth started to emerge once again. Afraid of being ruled unconstitutional again, Roosevelt could not make any radical changes on this matter. However, he did develop the Wealth Tax Act, which taxed more heavily on the rich. Although this did not distribute any wealth among society, it gave more to the government to use to improve the country as a whole.

Similar to the First New Deal, there were organizations that gave work to the unemployed. To help people earn money and get a living, the Works Progress Administration gave public service jobs to the unemployed. While in effect, the Works Progress Administration employed over a third of the jobless in the country. This effort helped itself, with people working towards a common goal and objective.

Also comparable to the First New Deal, the second included more donations and funds provided to the public to help them recover. The Emergency Relief Appropriation gave over five billion dollars to the community for personal survival use. The appropriation tied in with the government, which received this money from extra taxes taken from the wealthy through the Wealth Tax Act.

In addition to just donated goods, the Second New Deal provided convenient services to many people across the country. For example, the Rural Electrification Act provided electricity to the rural areas that did not formerly have electricity. This provided leisure to people who did not live in or close to the city. Furthermore, the Public Utilities Holding Company Act greatly reduced the price of electricity. With electrical costs down, electricity became an available and affordable convenience. This helped in the Progressivism by allowing Americans to experience comfort and make them feel like they are at home when they are home.

However, two acts changed the lives of Americans forever. Firstly, the National Labor Regulations Act allowed workers to organize the National Labor Relations Board. This way, the citizens that are actually working would be able to have a large amount of control over what they do and how they do it. This also tells the government what role they play in the American life. It helps to restrict how much the government can do, but it also forces the government to do enough to help their citizens. Furthermore, the Social Security Act from the government guaranteed income after retirement. This provided a safe guarantee for the older fraction of the public.

The overall impact of the New Deal was that it built a powerful Democratic coalition. After Roosevelt, Democracy became the majority and the preferred party of government. This proved that America was Progressive and was able to improve their ways when they need to change. The country was powerful enough to overcome Communism in the United States during the Great Depression. Communism was wiped out entirely before 1935. The positive Progressivism was almost unstoppable.

However, when Roosevelt started to reduce relief programs in 1937, the stock market crashed again and jobless rates rose. The final addition Roosevelt made in 1938 was the Fair Labor Standards Act, which added a minimum wage. Through all this effort, Roosevelt’s presidency was a great success.

Overall, the New Deal broadened American Democracy and benefited workers, consumers, and minorities. This helped prepared the United States for the upcoming World War II.