Studs #8

Dalores Dante:

       Dante had a really challenging life, being the single mother of 3, working only as a waitress. She was a waitress at the same restaurant for 23 years, and she loved it. Because she loved it so much she was able to support her three kids that her husband left her with. She felt that waitressing was good for someone in a broken home because you could earn fast money. She witnessed a lot of sexism while working, and me often approached her asking for sex and other things. Another area of her job that she didn't love was the fact that her boss was never satisfied with her. She would do well and jealousy would rise, and if she did bad her boss would get angry.  She described her boss as "in life there is always someone who wants somebody's job" (333). She drew attention to the restaurant and people would wait for her specifically.  She really worked hard to make the customers happy, and said "whatever you do be professional" (334). This is really easy to relate to because my family owns a restaurant, and my dad is the same way. He gives everything he has and really tries to please his customers.

Phil Stallings:

       Stallings is a spot welder at the Ford assembly plant, and his job is to basically stand in one spot and push a button all night. He was only able to stop when the line stops. He tried to dream and think about other things in order to reduce tension with the other workers. He wishes that his job was better than it was as he said "I bet there's men who have lived and died out there, never seen the end of the line" (355). He had a major problem with the foremen of the plant because they always use there power to get what they want, and they thought that they were the best. They treated machines better than the people, they ignored emotions. There only hope was to keep the line moving. Stallings had had many different injuries while on the job, yet the doctors would always send him back to work. He said "I love using my hands-- more than I do my mind. I love to be able to put things together and see something in the long run" (358). Another key piece of text was when he said "How can I feel pride in a job where I calla foreman's attention to a mistake, a bad piece of equipment, and he'll ignore it" (359).  This shows his anger toward the doctors and his job in general. He wishes he could have worked in a place where he was able to move, and he wishes that he had went to college. This connects to the working conditions that we talked about earlier in the year. Obviously these are not to the same extent, yet we can still see how the same problems continue to arise.

Studs Terkle #7

Kid Pharaoh:

     Before reading, I was very interested in this story. I have always been interested in mob activity, and Chicago was a very interesting place to learn about it. Pharaoh was a con man who grew up in Chicago, and continued living into Chicago all of his life. He boxed when he was young, and his father was a stock trader. Pharaoh and his family lived during the depression, and he would steel food for for his family. He did not graduate high school because "you learn nothing in school" (253), and he decided that lawyers and doctors are "the two biggest thieves in our society" (253). He found it hard to believe that mobsters were put in jail when lawyers weren't. This is ironic because he was a con man and a thieve. He comments on the fact that he was sexist and racist, and hated capitalism and social hierarchy in society. He disagreed with society and said "If I was a dictator, I would exercise genocide for all degenerates" (257). This comment would really raise controversy in today's society, and it interesting that he would say this. The most interesting thing was that he did have ideas that were normal to American society. He hated phony Americans, and believed that everyone had fear, and this connects to FDR's speech about how fear is the only thing that we need to fear. Finally, he also was parallel to society when he talked about his ideas about dreams. He said "you can be anything in this world you want to be, if you dream hard enough" (262). As a whole, Kid Pharaoh had a very compelling story, and it was interesting the ways that his ideas differed and aligned with the typical Americans beliefs. This connects to my family because we live in Chicago, and we talk about the mob influence that helped create Chicago.

Dennis Hart:

        I was confused going into the reading of this story. I was not really sure what a "cabbie" was and how it connected to this mans life.  Hart was completely different than Pharoah. Hart simply wanted to be somebody, and eventually was able to become the chairman of the Barry Goldwater campaign. He said it as "I had these doubts about myself as to weather I had any courage in me at all of was I gonna be a plant instead of a man" (237). This really showed that he put a ton of pressure on himself, and really feared becoming unsuccessful. This connects to me because I too put a ton of pressure on myself, and I also fear  that I won't be as successful and I hope to be. Hart also said that he believes that that a man has to find himself in life, and this was largely because he had almost died 3 times in his life.  He was an emotional man, who was really changed by his experiences working at a jail, and felt that crying  was an essential part of life. He said "In order to be a man, I have to have a heart also" (240). He agreed with MLK and thought that MacArthur was a great leader. Overall the most important quote was on 242 when he said "Not only was I going to try to prove to myself that I was going to be a man, but I was doing it fora great person and a great cause" (244). This was a really compelling story that was really connectable for me. I felt that I could connect because I too hold very high standards for myself.

Open Response about In Class Movie

     I thought that this movie was interesting, and it really kept my attention. I had really never learned about the Vietnam War in detail. Going in to this year, I only knew about the protests and the controversy that surrounded the war. This war was typically not supported by Americans, and created a distinct line between the hawks and the doves. American streets filled with angry protesters, and when the soldiers arrived home they were not greeted with open arms. This hard to believe because regardless of the situation I feel that you always have to support those who are fighting for our country.
    Next, I would like to talk a little about the My Lai massacre. At the beginning, before the soldiers figured out who they were killing, they were just following orders. At the point where the soldiers understood that they were killing innocent civilians, was the point where the problems started happening. As hard as it is to do, they should have taken it over and convinced the leader to back down. Thompson, the gunship commander, was the only person who really stepped up to make a difference. He really knew what was right, and he tried to make a difference.  This had to be a really hard decision because either way someone would be angry. If he helps them the commander gets made at him, if he kills them then he goes against his morals. It was truly a lose lose situation. He ended up trying to stop the massacre and saving as many innocent civilians as possible. This was really courageous because he could have been shot for disobeying orders. This must have taken a ton of courage because it was impossible for him to know what could come out of it.

Studs Entry 6

Peter Ota:

        Ota was a man of Japanese decent living in America during a really ugly time in American history. I knew going in that this would be a story that really made me feel bad about the way that the US treated individuals. This is exactly what I found because it all began when Ota's family was wrongfully arrested and eventual sentences to Santa Anita for detainment. The conditions at this detainment facility were bad, to say the least. People were all jammed into tight, uncomfortable quarters. "Everything was communal. We had absolutely no privacy" (206).  This is so wrong because these people were wrongfully detained. It took them a fully year to meet back with his father, who was a really strong man. He rarely showed emotions. He would say "you preserve." Take what's coming" (206). Everyone in the family had changed after Santa Anita. They were then transfered to Amache, Colorado, where they live in "Prison camp" like conditions. Finally Peter was able to leave due to job exemptions, and eventually he had become the age in which you have to register for the draft. Ironically enough he got drafted and had to fight in the war. What is even more "ironic" is the fact that his family is being detained as he fought. He was mistreated and called a "Dirty Jap" (208). He was finally able to return home to his family; home being the camp. He finally decided that he need to change after the war, and this made him decide to abandon Japanese culture. This story is truly agonizing because it hurts to learn of the things that Americans did to the poor, innocent Japanese.  This connects to class when we talked about this executive order.

Betty Hutchinson:

        Hutchinson was a nurse during the war. She felt that this was a really good and beneficial way to join the war effort. She recalled that she saw people she knew dying, and this made her feel the need to help. Nurses were not completely prepared going into the war, and it came as a surprise to her when she really understood and saw the really war. She could finally relate to the tragedy of war. She recalled how she was "struck by the horror of it" (213). After a while, she was finally able to adapt to her position, and eventually she was comfortable enough to joke with the patients. She recalled "the war marked me, but I put it behind me" (217). This was after she returned back to Pasadena, and it is interesting the way that she responded with anger toward our future wars. She said that her son was a "conscientious object."She saw so much while she was at war that it really made here rethink her life. She was completely effected by the way that literally saw people dying before her eyes. It made her hate war, and it is tough to directly connect to this, yet I can see how a traumatic expierieince like this can cause this outstanding opinion.

Studs Number 5

Peggy Terry:

        Peggy Terry was a working class women who struggled through the great depression. It is sad to think of the world like this, but this struggle was very prominent during the depression. People struggled to find work, and often struggled with life its self. As she would say "We were living day to day" (190), and this shows that she was struggling. All of their money went to necessities, rather than luxuries. Luckily for her, she was able to take advantage the booming economy. She got her first job after the great depression at a shell-loading plant. The conditions were not good, as she recalled "it was difficult to breathe" (191). Even with the harsh conditions she was still happy for what she what doing. It was also interesting the way that people were rather oblivious to the details of the war. The media played a huge role, in changing the prospective of the war. This connects to our discussions in clash when we talked about how the media completely changed people's perspective on Vietnam. Also the war in general, changed people. It changed Peggy's husband because he became an "drunkard" when he had never drank before the war. The media made it seem as if we were winning, yet it was clear that the war was a bloody stalemate because it was very challenging for us to catch the VC. The war gave people jobs, and the post war future was very bright, yet most it was short lived. The question that was raised is what happened to create the abrupt shift in Americas morale. We had come out of a win, yet it was quickly destroyed. this shows us what war was like on the home front. The home front was more positive while the battlefront was bloody and gory. This story connects to my grandma and grandpa because my grandma to had to work during the war as she waited for him to return.
      

E.B. Sledge

       E.B. Sledge also lived and worked during WWII. He was a marine, who got a front line perspective of what the war really was. He was not fooled by the misconceptions of the media, or falsehoods of the American public. Sledge got a clear sense of the Japanese tactic of "no surrender" (197), and this clearly made the war tough to fight. Most of the soldiers that were "afraid so much, day after day, that I got tired of being scared" (198).This fear led to hate and make the soldiers desire to kill the enemy greater. They often developed an attitude of "no mercy" because that was the way that the soldiers fought against them. He was able to see that war changed people. The made the Americans see the Japanese soldiers as below themselves. They were able to bring them down below human standards. This story really shows the tragedy of war. It proved that the war changed people and was devastating. Men who would have never dreamed of the stuff that they did, eventually turned to it. The war, as a whole, helped many on the home front, yet devastated others on the war front.

Studs #4

            At first I thought that the intro was going to be just a generic intro into the war. I thought that it would be a little more than a text book, and that it would have a collection of short stories. I was skepticle at first because I thought that it would be very similar. I quickly found out that it was much more personal than the average text book. I found that that racial tensions were really high, yet the majority of the country had a collective mind set rather than a competitive midset. People prioritized putting the war effort first, which was very important during the time period. Another important advancement in America was the GI bill of rights. This bill was important because it guaranteed the rights that veterans deserve, and it is still an important part of our system today. This war really changed everything. The four main thoughts that crossed the average personals mind where "Food, Fear, Comradeship, and Confusion" (165).  These were the major themes that people thought about. Whether it was rationing or fear of communism, people always had deal with these issues. Another important quote was "A new middle class emerged" (172). This proves the differences in American values. This gave rise to my question which was How did the war impact the upper and lower classes specifically? Finally I connected to this introduction because in class we talked a lot about the ways that people had to adapt to war, and this article completely expressed that.  
              Bob Rasmus, like many other Americans, had been sent to defend America during World War II. When he was young he thought war would be fun so he had hoped that he could be involved, yet that quickly changed once he was actually in the moment. War was really tough conditions, and he likely could have been killed during battle. Terkle wrote "[Bob] would forever be liberated from the sense of inferiority that I wasn't rugged. I would prove that I had the guts and the manhood to stand up to these things," (178). This proves that there really was a lot that he would have to over come because war was full of fear. He like, other men, embraced the fear, and hoped to make a difference for America. He felt a sense of pride in what he was doing, and that was really important for the war effort. This became apparent when he was forced to stay behind because of the flu. He felt bad staying behind his battalion, and this shows his sense of pride in his work. I really respect men like this, and I wish I could have the courage to do this. My question is how does war change your mindset of the world? My personal connection is that my grandpa fought in Korea, and he had the same sense of pride in his group. He too felt a similar pride as Bob. 

Free Response 2: Korea

               For my second open response, I will be talking about American ideas gained or lost from the Korean War.  To begin with, this was a war that highly controversial, and was largely caused by the United States' cold war with the USSR. It began as the Soviets supplied the Northern half of Korea with weapons to invade the Southern democratic half. It wasn't until North Korea took almost all of South Korea, that the United States felt that it was necessary to step in. Eventually after multiple years of fighting, the originally boundary was eventually reassigned (the thirty-eighth parallel). The main issue that the United States feared was the fact the given a common goal, the communist countries will bind together to form a unified force. The Chinese and the Soviets both supported the communist North Korea during this war.
             I feel that the most important issue with this war was the effect it had on our government and our home front. First, our government was effected. Truman, the president, had an issue regarding McArthur's opinions. This led to a conflict that ended in Truman firing his most prized general. This reinforced the president's power as the commander and chief. Also, the government learned that we need to contain communism because it was a threat to spread. Second, the Korean war created a real issue on the Home front. The real problem was that we started to distrust each other. People were labeled as possible communists, when they really were not. This created conflict within the country.

Open Blog Response 1

              In this blog post, I am going to talk about America's Involvement in World War II, and the ways the our Foreign Policy has shifted over time. Pre-WWI the United States always had a historically isolationist foreign policy. We, as a country, have shifted completely, and became the world police man that we are today. Gradually,  the Foreign Policy of the United States has changed over time. At the beginning of the United States, George Washington blatantly stated that he wanted the United States to stay out of the issues of other countries. This was the case until around 1914, or rather WWI. The United States had stayed out of wars to this point, yet eventually, against George Washington's wishes, we became entangled in alliance's and our entrance was inevitable. This was really the initial break in our foreign policy. Then post-WWI the US was admits a huge economic bomb, or the Roaring twenties, and the focus was, once again, inward looking. After this point the United States moved into a much worse state, The Great Depression. This was another time where the United States had to decide to focus more within the United States. Finally the United States shifted their forrign affairs when they entered WWII. This was a war that devastated the world, and even destroyed some countries. The United States came out of this as a world power, and this aided in creating the World Police Man of today. From the end of WWII it was a gradual process.

Studs Entry 3

Jane Yoder:


            As I was reading I initially thought about the struggles that people had to overcome during the great depression. It must have been so taxing on the people during this time when people lived strictly for "survival, just survival" (129). Jane often went without the necessary food and clothing. She lacked the the necessary coats and blankets to keep her warm in the winter.  She also seemed to fear loss and debt as she said "I’m terribly afraid of debt. If I have one fear, it’s the rich get richer when you buy on time” (126). She was alway afraid of debt, and the money conditions that she had were very challenging. They had to budget every dollar that they had. Another important piece of text was when she said "We're middle class, not upper not lower either" (128). This shows that she has a distinct view where she stands in society. This was interesting to me because I feel that her living standards are much lower than the middle class today. This brings me to my question of weather social rankings in society have been changed over time? This connects to our conversations in class about the great depression and what it does to people. Overall this story was really interesting because it truly expressed the hardships of most families during the depression. 


Peggy Terry and her mother:


    Initially as I read this I thought, once again, about the hurdles that people had to jump in order to survive during the great depression. It is really hard to relate because the time that we live in now is completely different, yet I can understand the everyday struggles that all of these people must have had to overcome. Discrimination was not a factor at this time because everyone was in the same situation, unemployed and broke. She decided it as “Many, many people, colored or white, I didn’t see any difference, ‘cause there was just as many white people out of work than were colored” (138). This was a really important factor because it shows that regardless of race people were struggling. Another interesting quote from this section was when she said "The majority of the people were hit hard, they were mentally disturbed your bound to know, cause they didn't know when the end of this was coming" (138). This is important because it, once again, describes a vast amount of people rather than only a few. People were scared because they had no way ensure that they would be fine. This is a horrible feeling that no one should experience. They knew that it wasn't their fault, yet they still needed to do everything they could to survive. The last piece of key text that I found was "I think that is the worst thing that our system does to people, is to take away their pride. It prevents them from being a human being"(145). This was really important because it shows that even though they were poor and relying on soup kitchens, they knew that they needed to keep a positive outlook and keep pride in who they are. This connects to my family because we have helped out at soup kitchens, and we have donated to charity for underprivileged people. My question is how does the amount of homeless people today compare to the number during the great depression?

Studs Entry 2

        The first thoughts that I had regarding Arthur Robertson's story began with the fact that he was a very wealthy individual. I guessed that he had made a lot of money in some sort of stock or investing situations. I also questioned his integrity; I wondered weather he had connections to casino sharks or other shaky situations like that. I saw the fact that he was the man that everyone looked to for loans as an important detail. Another important detail was the ideas that he was smart enough to buy old, cheep broken down businesses. He also always seemed to know when to get out, especially when he said "We decided to take every dollar out of the banks" right before the crisis. Another piece of key text from the interview was when he "suicides left and right" because it shows the true impact that people felt during the great depression. The final key piece of text that I found as when he said "What's the use having 10 million if you can't have big money?" This piece seemed to be a central idea regarding the economic status of people during this time period. I had a few questions as I was reading. I was confused as to how he was making all of these good choices and was he educated in economics? This connects to our conversation regarding suicides because his good friend killed himself. Also this connects to my family during the great depression because they were fortunate to have a good amount of money. They were also able to make some good investments when the market was so down.

The first thoughts I had regarding Oscar Heline was that he was a farmer. He was the "old man" so he was obviously very knowledgeable. I also thought about the hardships that he must have faced because he lost a lot of value in his crops and his land. The first important detail that I noticed was that farmers were using crops, such as grain and corn, for heat. This shows that there was hyperinflation because the values were not worth selling. I also found it was interesting the way that people many a ton of money off of the poverty of other people. It was also very important that the government finally stepped in to make a difference. Heline said that he "wants to be an honorable individual"and this show that the situation really hurt this desire. Heline also described the situation as "this was a struggle between halves and have not." I think this basically sums up the entire situation. The farmers were unfortunately part of the have not. The question that was raised was the question as to why the government did not set in earlier? I also wondered why WWII was a big boost for farmers? This connects to our class because we talked about that acts that tried to regulate the farm industry.  

Studs Terkle Entry 1

Vine Deloria:

I though that this piece was very interesting. I initially started to thing about the way that the changes in transportation created less of a thrill for traveling. It really emphasized the importance, or lack there of, of transportation. A few important detail that I noticed were that she had an Indian background, and that she was originally involved with an Indian religion. She then converted to Christian, which I found very interesting because it surprises me that who felt so strongly about new technologies, would switch their native religion. This interview was centered around "social constraints"as Deloria said. It was a story about issues from that past as well as important issues to come. Deloria stated it as "Maybe American Dream is in the past understanding who you are is the future." The also references the "importance of place" early on in the story. The only question that was raised was, Why do people live retrospective lifestyles? I found that a genuine connection to our class was the Indian wars for land. We studied the way that Americans mistreated the Indians, and the way that we kicked them off of their land. I also had one personal connection. My uncle was actually Native American, and his ancestors were actually kicked off of their land by the Americans. I am sure his family had some of these similar thoughts.

Andy Johnson:

I initially thought that this was just going to be another story of an American Immigrant who struggled, but as I continued to read the real implications dawned on me. The first important detail was that Johnson was a finish immigrant with "Kuume" or American Fever. The conditions were very harsh, to the point where they often did not have floors. It took him many years to finish school because he could only attend in the winter because he was forced to help provide for his family during the other seasons. Johnson explained the reason for moving as "The poorest, the most miserable came here because they had no future over there." He also said "I had my independence, except that it had my lively hood more difficult. This raised the question of how hard was the transitions? I also wondered how where the conditions in Finland? Was it really worth all of this trouble to live the "American dream." Immigration and Ellis Island were direct connections to class. We talked about immigrants and the way that they often lived in harsh conditions, making little money at factories. A personal connection is that may dads family traveled through Ellis Island during 1930's and their lives were very hard at first.

Spanish-American War

      This was truly an important time in American history. It was a time where American began to emerge on the world level. Our economy had been fluorescing, as our country became a world power. Our military was stronger than it had ever been, and we were a prominent country that had to make a decision. The promising part of this time period is that we had emerged as a world power. We began to think of ourselves as one of the elite countries in the world. We had finally became one of the world's strongest powers. We felt that we could stand toe to toe with the world's other strong powers. American could also control its own destiny because we were able to choose the foreign policy that we would use. Although there was a lot of promising development in America, this was also a time of problems. The issue was that we needed to decide our involvement in foreign affairs. We needed to create a plan and stick to it. There were a few options that we had. We could become an imperialistic nation, we could stay a passive nation, or we could become a nation that promotes western ideas to other countries. Either way, we needed to find our niche on the world scene. This time period was essential to the development of American. This was a time where we proved that we could be a world power, yet it was a time where we had to step up and answer the question regarding our foreign policy.

The Progressive Movement

             

          The areas that were most influenced by the Progressive Movement were working conditions,  and social issues. Working conditions were a huge issue during this time period. People often worked unreasonable hours in horrible conditions for very little pay. An example of this was the Triangle Shirt Waist factory. The women were given little pay for working in a factory where little safety measures were taking. All around the country factories were like this. Workers began to step up and protest the harsh conditions. This lead to reforms, which helped to create better working conditions. Eventually federal regulations were implemented. Another area that was a center of focus was Social Issue.  Women’s rights were also a major area that was focused on by progressive reformers. Women were mistreated, and people started to take action. Women's rights activist, like Florence Kelly, started to step up. Florence Kelly tried to help create better work conditions, while other reformers, Susan B. Anthony, worked toward getting women the right to vote. These activist led protests. The main issue that they tried to resolve was voting privileges. Suffrage became the center of their reform efforts. Eventually there ideas were granted in the 19th amendment, when the women were granted the right to vote. This accomplished the main social issue that these reformers were asking for. Social issues and working conditions were essential in the minds of the leaders of the progressive movement.

       I feel that big businesses were the reason for the creation of the progressive movement. These businesses tried to do everything as efficient as possible. They wasted little money on taking safety precautions for the workers. This means that the environment for the workers was often unsafe. The working conditions were harsh, and the workers did not receive large compensation for their efforts. This began progressive idea that focused working conditions and workers’ rights. Another thing that progressivist focused on was the idea of equaling out the money in the economy. The leaders of these big businesses made a lot of money and created a huge disparity of wealth within society. This led to an issue of economics because there was a huge problem with wealth. Some people in society had an abundance of money while others were very poor. Progressives tried to change this.  This connects to the populist because they both focus on the wellbeing of the people. Populist wanted to create a system that benefits the people, which was the main idea of the progressive movement at this time. We see the same populist ideas reappear in the progressive movement. The difference is that populism was much less broad than progressivism. The populist movement failed because it was much more focused, yet many of its ideas are seen within the progressive movement.

       

       

         

1st Reflection

Over the past few weeks we have done a lot of work with with the West. A huge part of this was through a transcontinental railroad. This was essential to moving goods, and played a huge role in the economy. Although, there were many new economic opportunities (farm land) for people who moved west, the government did little to protect the farmers. This lead to the Populist movement, which was basically a party for the people. They wanted things that will help the average citizen. This party soon fall, yet their ideas are still see today in our political system.