Hist 1320 EXAM 2
12. Explain why the battles at Midway, El Alamein, and Stalingrad were turning points in the war
The battle of midway was a turning point because US destroyed 250 Japanese planes. After El Alamein, the japanese weren't able to launch anymore offensive operations British forces under Generald Bernard Montgomery stopped Rommel's advance. In stalingrad, Battle between Germany and Russia when Hitler tried to take over Stalingrad, Germany was defeated. These battles were all turning points in the war. In theBattle of Midway the Japanese could not longer launch offensive attacks. El Alamein forced Rommel to surrender. Stalingrad cuased Hitlers army to suffer great losses
9. The election of 1932, said Herbert Hoover, was "a contest between two philosophies of government." Describe the competing philosophies of government offered by Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt in the election of 1932. What was Roosevelt's campaign strategy, and why did he win?
? Hoovers philosophy of government stemmed from his idea of rugged individualism. He believed that success comes through individual effort and private enterprise. He also believed that private charities and local communities, not the federal government, could best provide for those in need, while Roosevelts views recognized that the role of the federal government had to increase in order to help the country begin to emerge from the depths to which it had sank after the stock market crash. Roosevelt's New Deal represented a massive intervention in the economy and in financial matters through its regulatory policies and public works projects. Roosevelt won due to the fact that he made an effort to appeal to the broadest possible bloc of voters, Industrial workers in the North, poor farmers in the South and West, immigrants and big-city dwellers. These people had experienced firsthand the savage effects of the boom-and-bust business cycle and wanted change, who recognized that in a modern industrial state it was not enough and turned to Roosevelt and the democrats.
5. In what ways did the automobile serve simultaneously as an economic catalyst, transportation revolution, and cultural symbol in the 1920s? What role did Henry Ford play in these developments
? The automobile served simultaneously as an economic catalyst, transportation revolution and cultural symbol by fueling urban sprawl, real estate booms in California and Florida, and a new roadside economy of restaurants, service stations, and motels. Thousands of "auto camps" opened to provide tourists with tents and crude toilets. Automobile travel broke down rural isolation and advanced common dialects and manners. Henry Ford played a big role in these developments by thinking to hold down costs and increase efficiency, he could copy a practice of Chicago meatpacking houses, where beef carcasses were carried on moving chains past meat dressers. In 1914 Ford introduced the moving assembly line. The process cut assembly time in half made all this possible by pushing standardization and mass production to such ruthless extremes that the automobile became affordable to everyone.
3. Was American neutrality a realistic policy? What did Wilson hope to achieve with it? Why did it fail
American Neutrality was not a realistic policy because regardless of wilsons attempt to keep the US out of the war, he always had one foot in the door. Wilson hoped America could lead warring nations to "a peace without victory"—without territorial concessions or monetary reparations—and a new world order Only if America remained "impartial in thought as well as action" could it lead the way to a higher peace. This idea of American neutrality failed due in part to making loans to the Allied powers, a german u-boat sinking a British liner, which resulted in the death of 128 Americans, which prompted Wilson to threaten Germany with U.S. action if Germany continued to conduct U-boat attacks, and the German foreign minister sending the Zimmerman telegram to Mexico, inviting the Mexican government to join the war as Germany's ally and recover the territories of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. After releasing the telegram to the public, Americans quickly demanded war with Germany. Wilson proclaimed that the Great War would be the "war to end all wars," and would eliminated militarism from the globe; therefore, it was imperative that the United States play a deciding role and join, therefore ending this act of neutrality.
10. Discuss the three events you consider most important in drawing the United States into World War II
First was the German Attacks on US merchant ships, Germany began to attack U.S. supply ships. The United Kingdom, being a small island nation, was very dependent on imported goods. The U.S. sent guns, bombs, jeeps, tanks, fuel and more supplies that the United Kingdom would need for the war. The fact that the U.S. sent military aid to the United Kingdom was viewed by Germany as a hostile act. Second was Japans invasion of China The United States did not like Japan's continuous attempts to overtake Chinese cities. They also did not like the cruel treatment against the Chinese people. The most immediate reason for the US's actual entry into WWII was the Japanese attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in what was then the Territory of Hawaii. The Japanese attack led to the US declaring war on Japan. From there, Germany declared war on the US and the US was fully involved.
7. List three factors that contributed to the creation of the Dust Bowl. Explain the human and environmental consequences of the Dust Bowl
One major factor of the creation of the Dust Bowl was due to the climate, which was lack of rainfall and unnaturally hot weather. Another reason for the Dust Bowl was the fact that farmers were reusing the same land, causing to it lose nutrients and become dry. Also, due to World War I, farmers were forced to over produce crop, also causing a loss of nutrients in the soil. The Human and environmental consequences of the dust bowl included Some 3.5 million plains people abandoneing their farms. Landowners and corporations forced off about half of them as large-scale commercial farming slowly spread into the heartland of America. In most Dust Bowl counties people owned less than half the land they farmed. American agriculture was turning from a way of life into an industry. And as the economy contracted, owners cut costs by cutting workers. Enviornmental consequeces were mostly made by human beings. The semiarid lands west of the 98th meridian were not suitable for agriculture or livestock. Sixty years of intensive farming and grazing had stripped the prairie of its natural vegetation and rendered it defenseless against the elements.
4. What were the "boom industries" of the 1920s, and how did they contribute to economic growth? Discuss two other factors that account for prosperity in the 1920s
The boom industries of the 1920's included construction, and auto manufacturing. The construction industry contributed to economic growth by rebounding after the war years, and causing residential construction to double as suburb populations soared. New roads made suburban life possible and pumped millions of dollars into the economy. This lead to the rise of many other businesses like, steel, concrete, lumber, home mortgages, and insurance. No other industry flourished the way the automotive industry did. It contributed to the growth of the economy by reducing manufacturing costs by making all the cars alike,and giving his assembly line workers higher wages
1. What were the "Fourteen Points"? Why did Wilson promote them? How successful was he in achieving them?
The fourteen points were listed in a speech delivered by President Woodrow Wilson on January 8th 1918, explaining to Congress and the nation that WWI was being fought for a just cause. The first four points included an end to secret treaties, freedom of the seas, free trade, and reduced national armies and navies. The fifth goal was the adjustment of colonial claims with fairness toward colonial peoples. The sixth through thirteenth points were specific suggestions for changing borders and creating new nations. The fourteenth point proposed general association of nations" that would protect "great and small states alike. The guiding idea behind these points was self determination or choice of government structure. Some of Woodrow Wilson's 14 Points were successful in that they were largely implemented after WWI. They did not really succeed, though, because they did not prevent WWII from occurring
6. What were the causes of the Great Depression? What role did the stock market crash play in the economic downturn
he causes of the great depression included the fact that prior to the crash, with the nations eyes set on the booming stock market, hardly anyone paid attention to existing defects in the American economy. Booming industries began to lose vitality and demand began to decrease. Warehouses began to fill as sales fell and inventories climbed. In one sense businesses had done too well. Corporations had boosted their profits by producing more and using fewer workers and these businesses used their profits to expand factories rather than to pay workers higher wages that should've been kept up to par with productivity. People made up the difference between earnings and purchases by borrowing, causing consumer debt to rise 250%. Another cause was corruption with the banking system, and of all causes, A shaky corporate structure only made matters worse. No government agency at all monitored the stock exchanges. Strong profits and weak government regulation allowed huge corporations to rule the economy with a relatively free hand. The Great stock market Crash did not cause the Great Depression, but it did damage the economy and broke the unbounded optimism upon which the New Era rested.
