The Great Depression vs The Great Recession

   Though many will argue that we are coming strong out of the recession, I would like to look into the causes of the Great Depression and compare them to situations today with our Great Recession.

   The Great Depression, often referred to as the Crash of 1929 was the period lasting from October 29th to November 13th. In this time, the stock market dropped violently. It lost much of its value and contributed to the start of the Great Depression.

  But what really caused The Great Depression? The Great Depression was caused by many factors. The banking systems in the United States and Europe were very weak. There was also a very high rise of protectionism (tariffs on EUR goods). Another factor was the drop in farm prices, and the final factor was the decline in purchasing power.

 The factors of our Great Recession are in ways very similar, but also different to those of The Great Depression. Many recessions are caused by the actions taken to control the money supply in the economy. Many people believe that the Federal Reserve is a reason that we go into a recession. There are really no set factors for a recession.

  The question everyone is curious about is will this turn into another Great Depression. Many economists feel like it will not. They feel another depression could be avoided because it will take more than just a dramatic decline in consumer spending and household wealth to cause a depression. Though this is a very broad definition of why this recession will not turn into a depression, the ideas are the same.

  Currently there are major statistics that put The Great Depression against The Great Recession in comparison. The Unemployment rate was in 1923 was 25%. The unemployment rate right now is about 8.5%.  There were about 50% bank failures in 1923. Today there is about 0.6% of bank failures. These are important comparisons. 

  There are many differences between our Great Recession and the 1923 Great Depression. The downfall of the stock market is always on thought. The government has made new policies to try and prevent another depression. Though this is the worst recession we have ever had, many believe we will not face another depression such as the one in 1923.

"Muckrakers" and "Yellow journalism"

I decided to take this week's entry to something else. Instead of looking directly into Progressivism I decided to answer one of the questions that someone raised in class. What is the difference between the "Muckrakers" and "Yellow Journalism"?

Yellow journalism is when authors write about their own ideas and propaganda instead of the actual facts. It is more of an actual type of journalism. Yellow journalism is more appealing to the reader instead of being honest and truthful. This is accepted because people love gossip. Yellow Journalism consisted of special characteristics. The most common you would see was made-up interviews, also misleading headlines. You would also see information from so called experts. On the cover you would usually see headlines printed large. The pictures would be imaginary drawings. You would see comic strips in color everyday. Examples of Yellow Journalism would be by William Randolph Hearst. He was a leading newspaper publisher. He is most famous for the New York Journal.   A "muckraker" is a journalist who tries to expose corruption of businesses or government to the public. It was a journalist associated with the progressive movement. The plan was to expose corruption in all forms. Their works are wide-spread.. They could range from anything with government scandal to the terrible conditions in the factories.

A famous "muckraker" is Upton Sinclair, the author of "The Jungle". A famous example is Cosmopolitan magazine.

  Though I chose not to discuss the topic of Progressivism, Muckrakers played a big role in the society. Even today, we read a lot of press that discusses conditions of current areas American people are. We also read a lot of propaganda about celebrities.

FOUR: Populism Yesterday and Today

Populism- often described as a political philosophy supporting the rights and power of the people in their struggle against the privileged elite. It can also refer to the movement organized around this philosophy.


Populist- a supporter of the rights and power of the people.


Originally Populism was based on farmers who were shut out of rapid expansion of the United States. (Anti-Monopoly). There was a "Farmer's trust". They shared credit, and seeked support of unions. This was all to go against corporations. The idea was to protect land from Monopoly. People believed that a gradual income tax was a good idea.


A well known "Populist" was William Jennings Bryan. He inspired the Populist "Revolt". William Jennings Bryan was a backer of the monometallic gold standard. This meant including silver for monetary purposes. He felt that protection against inflation was very important. He also believed that this standard was the best way to solve this problem.


Though the definition of William Jennings Bryan, Populism, and Populist is short, I wrote the blog to find the modern day William Jennings Bryan. In class, after discussing the above topics, I asked myself "who is the modern day William Jennings Bryan?" "what is the modern parallel to this?"


Though it could be far-fetched, I am not the first to claim Glenn Beck is some sort of Populist. Beck, a strong libertarian held a "rally" to "restore honor" in America. Beck has pointed out issues about the government. He has suggested that the current government is taking us down the road to “socialism, totalitarianism, beyond your wildest dreams."


The idea of his rally was to honor the troops, unite the American people under the principles of integrity and truth, and make a pledge to restore honor within ourselves and our country. As William Jennings Bryan did, bringing together people against Monopolies, Beck looks to bring people together in a similar aspect.


Glenn Beck will not call himself a Populist. But his actions, and the way he is gathering a large group of people together in this "rally" setting is very similar to the actions of William Jennings Bryan.


 In my opinion, Glenn Beck is the modern day William Jennings Bryan.

Numero 3 : Rockefeller's Horizontal Integration vs Vertical Integration

   John D. Rockefeller was born in New York in 1839. He was the man who perfected the oil industry. Though he did not strike the oil, he found the ways to use it. He had a rail line that went from Cleveland, OH to the Pennsylvania Oil Fields in 1863. His company was called "Standard Oil of Ohio". Rockefeller found ways to be more successful than others. The idea of horizontal integration over vertical integration was favored by Rockefeller.

   Horizontal integration is a type of ownership and strategy used by a business or corporation that tries to sell a type of product in numerous markets. Rockefeller used and bought out several competitors eventually leading to a monopoly.

   Vertical integration is more of a streamline progress. This is where someone owns the distributor and the manufacturer. You own everything so you don't need to go through others. It is contrasted with Horizontal integration but is different in a very important way. Vertical integration still has competitors. Horizontal integration takes the competitors away by buying them out.

   I feel like Rockefeller was scared of the competition, so he found ways to get rid of them. This was a successful way to earn more money. It was also a way to dominate many industries at one time. Rockefeller created a successful monopoly.

Post 2: Reflection on The End of Reconstruction

 

 Many events occur ed during the end of reconstruction. Economic times were tough and there was a financial panic. A depression was started around the mid-1870s.


  I feel like around this time, many people were looking for change. We see this happening right now. When President Bush was in office, everyone wanted a democrat. Now that President Obama is in office, people are leaning towards Republicans again. Economic issues are playing big roles in the polls. Just like in 1874 when everyone was concerned with the economy. Democrats took over the House of Representatives and looked to control the White House in 1876.
   I feel like history is repeating itself in a way. You have one political party taking shots at another political party just to win votes. The issues leading up to the 1876 elections were similar to the upcoming mid-term elections. Unemployment, taxes, even public works. Through several disputes, Hayes was now the President-Elect. The Republican views were not prioritized. Hayes declared things his way, eventually leading to a goodwill trip to the South. This ended the crisis, which led to the end of Reconstruction.
 
Though my thoughts are scattered in the above text, the meaning of the end of Reconstruction is understood...
 
 
                                       EXPECTATIONS!
 
 My expectations might seem very basic. I am looking to gain an understanding of the Modern History to an extent where I can participate in general conversation with other people about certain topics. I have never liked History to be honest. I love learning about more recent history to a certain level. My expectation is to pass the class by doing my work, and hopefully keep up with everyone else.. I would like to have fun while learning.
 
   As mentioned above, I plan to gain a certain general knowledge about important History. I would like to be able to understand each topic and be able to participate with confidence.
 
   I am going to accomplish these goals by staying o of everything. I will work hard, ask for help when I need it, and enjoy what I learn. I will use many difference resources to help me; Whether a friend, a teacher, or just a book. I will accomplish by believing I can do well.
 
 
 

Day One : Who? ... Greg Jones

  So there is my attempt at being funny with my title. You probably won't see that happening again. I am actually a really self-conscious person, so I am not sure why I did that!

Anyways, the first assignment for Professor Jones was to create a blog. In our first post he would like us to share our thoughts on the class and him; so here I go...

1. When I first saw Professor Jones, I thought he would be one of those young teachers who thinks they are better than everyone else and strives for power. Was I wrong or what?

  As soon as Professor. Jones said "I won't keep you guys for the full hour and fifteen minutes, so don't worry" I knew he was a pretty cool guy.

2. I won't lie, I would have never guessed that he was close to receiving his PhD. Though it is very evident that he knows way beyond the layers that he is teaching, you just would not expect that from such a young-looking person.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE CLASS:

1. The class is pretty small, and I feel like Professor Jones will keep us all together. This type of learning is very helpful to me.

2. I love the idea of writing in a blog weekly for his class. The YouTube project also seems very cool.

3. Basically, my main idea and thoughts about the class is I will actually enjoy what I am learning. I feel like the use of technology will make it much more interesting as well as fun.