1. ***Government:*** What is the role and responsibility of the American government?
1.1. Prohibition
1.1.1. Creating unpopular laws makes them harder to enforce
1.1.2. When the government tries to ban popular items, it does not work very well, and it quickly becomes very costly.
1.2. New Deal
1.2.1. The New Deal was created to help the American people receive employment so that they could start consuming again. They put regulations into place to help the common man and prevent bank runs, as well as gave out funds to people who did not have the ability to work anymore.
1.3. WWII
1.3.1. When fearful, the government will make decisions that they believe are in the best interest of the country, even if uncivil to some.
1.3.2. Totalitarianism: When one leader has too much power, they can do whatever they want if they are not challenged.
1.3.3. Since Hitler was in power and kept pushing limits with persecution and no-one stopped him when he was able to continue what he was doing and kill that many people.
1.3.4. When a country attacks us, we must fight back to show our power and assert ourselves
1.3.5. When two major powers are fighting in the same war, the apparent winner (country with the most successes) will look the most powerful
1.4. Great Depression
1.4.1. During difficult times, people's views will turn more radical.
1.4.2. During bad times, people will start to favor more democratic and socialist forms of government
1.5. Great Society
1.5.1. When the government decreases taxes and creates large social programs, debt will increase.
1.6. Vietnam War
1.6.1. The main goal of the government is to do what is best for the people, and when the people have decided that the government is not making decisions in their best interest, then it is up to the people to protest and vote against that decision in hopes of solving the problem. (Explanation: The American people were not happy with the war, as they had deduced that it was started over false pretenses. There were many protests in hopes that it would push our representatives and government to pull out of Vietnam and finish the conflict. These protests did not work right away, and the conflict continued until the people were given another chance to vote in a president. Said president (Nixon) had promised to end the war, and that is why many people voted for him. They shower their unhappiness with the war by expressing their thoughts via protesting and media attention, then helped carry out the solution by voting for a different president that they believed had their best interests in mind.)
2. ***Leaders & Presidents*** What makes an effective or ineffective leader?
2.1. FDR vs Hoover
2.1.1. FDR created a plan to help the American people (called the "New Deal"). He made a plan, and he stuck to it. Hoover just told people to go fix it themselves, and the fact was that they couldnt because the jobs just weren't avaibilbe to them, and FDR made it so that thye could get jobs to pay for things and upstart the economy again.
2.2. WWII
2.2.1. Leaders like Hitler who are willing to fight until the end can be challenging to defeat.
2.2.2. A military leader who is aggressive can only be stopped aggressively (appeasement doesn't work).
2.2.3. Having an "enemy" become an ally promotes competition and harder fighting but can lead to tension after war
2.2.4. When a country refuses to back down, especially in undesirable conditions when the odds are against them, it will generally end in failure
2.3. Vietnam War
2.3.1. Leaders often have difficult choices to make, and will face heavy criticism if the plans they initiate (and have promised as presidential goals) do not carry out as well as projected. (Explanation: Nixon promised in his presidential campaign that he wanted to end the Vietnam War. His plan to do that was vietnamization, in which he would take out U.S. troops and replace them with South Vietnamese troops. This was a complete failure because the Southern Vietnamese troops could not stand up to the Northern Vietnamese troops.)
2.4. JFK Presidancy
2.4.1. Bay of Pigs Invasion
2.4.1.1. Presidents need to be educated on things happening in politics/the white house before they are put into office if they want to be successful.
2.4.2. Assassination
2.4.2.1. Just because you kill a person doesn't mean that the ideas they represent and support will go away. Their death can often be used to gain momentum for their ideals.
2.4.3. Cuban Missile Crisis
2.4.3.1. when a president is faced with a difficult decision, they should try to remain calm and think it through. They need to be willing to compromise.
3. ***Migration*** What causes migration and how has it impacted America?
3.1. Nativists
3.1.1. When immigrants enter the country, the current population often finds them threatening because they aren't familiar with them.
3.2. WWII
3.2.1. America didn't know the extent of the Holocaust and refused many Jews entrance to the country. Thus, Hitler was able to keep and kill them.
4. ***Economics:*** How has economics impacted America & Americans?
4.1. Working Class
4.1.1. When the working class got paid more and worked less, they had more time for leisure.
4.2. Great Depression
4.2.1. When the New Deal was created to fix the economic problems, it cost a lot of money and government debt increased.
4.2.2. The Great Depression was caused by banks loaning out money to poor people so that they could invest in the risky stock market. Over production and under consumption led to the stock market crashing and the banks and impovershed people lost all their money.
4.2.3. If supply is greater than demand, the value of the product will fall.
4.2.4. If the value of something increases too fast, it could bubble and pop.
4.3. 1920's
4.3.1. Americans will go more into debt when they buy more items w/ credit.
5. ***Foreign Relations*** How have foreign entanglements influence America?
5.1. World War I
5.1.1. When the US is involved in world affairs to a large extent, it is hard to stay neutral if major conflict breaks out.
5.1.2. Forming allies can draw the country into a broader conflict.
5.1.3. After a war, an effective treaty should be created to keep the peace.
5.1.4. Creating a group like the League of Nations is not a good idea if the creator does not also join b/c it will make it less popular to others.
5.2. WWII
5.2.1. treaty of Versailles: When there are attempts at blaming one country, conflict will result.
5.2.2. When all of these causes are present (militarism, allies, great depression, nationalism, expansionism, treaty of Versailles, totalitarianism), it is likely to cause conflict
5.3. Early Cold War
5.3.1. When an alliance is formed with another country, information that is kept secret will result in conflict.
5.4. Vietnam War
5.4.1. When conflict in other countries involving the United States go awry and our side loses, the people will often begin to distrust their government and are more likely to criticize and target the people in those positions of power. (Explanation: The American people were already unhappy with the war and they wanted it to end. The conflict, however, took quite a lengthy amount of time to finish, as Nixon's original plan was not working out as well as he hoped. By the time the war ended, there was a compromise that the North of Vietnam would go to the Communists, and the South would go to the non-communists. The North did not honor this agreement, and invaded the South and took over. This made the American people very upset, as they were under the impression that the conflict was completely over and resolved. Now, it had seemed as though America had lost and many people had died and been disfigured for no reason at all.)
6. ***Media*** To what extent does the media influence people? To what extent does the media mirror or reflect society?
6.1. WWII
6.1.1. When necessary, the media can be manipulated to serve the greater good by influencing the people to help with war efforts.
6.2. Emmit Till
6.2.1. Emmit Till's open casket put into perspective the ways that blacks were treated.
6.3. Vietnam War
6.3.1. When the media depicts people who are displeased because of war by showing their protests, it can sway viewers to either rally with or against the protesters. (Explanation: Many Americans were very unhappy with the Vietnam war. There were a lot of protests, starting with the Hippies. Over time, the protests continued to grow larger and gain more momentum until the vast majority of American citizens were displeased with the war and the death of American people overseas for a war that they did not believe in.)
7. ***Technology*** How does technology impact society?
7.1. Leisure
7.1.1. When there are major technological advancements, it makes life easier and more enjoyable for the common person.
7.2. Communication
7.2.1. When it is easier to reach a large audience, the information provided with this technology creates a more united culture.
7.3. WW1 Warfare
7.3.1. Due to technological advancements, it changed the way wars were fought, and the world was not ready for it.
7.4. WWII
7.4.1. New, powerful weapons can quickly end war when one side has them.
7.5. Interstate Highway System
7.5.1. Progression in transportation technology and the implementation of that technology will benefit society by making it easier to get from place to place.
7.6. JFK Election/Television
7.6.1. When a presidential candidate appears cool and confident on television, it makes him seem like the better candidate. (Seeing candidates appear on television changes the outcomes of elections.)
7.7. Vietnam War
7.7.1. When video cameras provide visual evidence about what is happening overseas, the president will be called out if he lies about it, and the country population will be less likely to trust their government. (Explanation: There were cameras and reporters overseas that were capturing what was going on during the war. Nixon enacted his plan of vietnamization, and it did not work at all. The Southern vietnamese troops were getting demolished by the Northern troops, and Nixon lied about it. The American people then found out about it, and were obviously very upset and now felt as though they could no longer trust their government.)
8. ***Civil Rights:*** To what extent have the oppressed in America been able to attain an equality of life?
8.1. African Americans WW1/1920's
8.1.1. During times of war, Civil rights improve because of minority groups filling the job openings left behind by soldiers.
8.2. Women's Progress 1920's
8.2.1. Women started challenging the status quo, and were thus able to become more independent.
8.3. WWII
8.3.1. When there is a connecting issue between disenfranchised groups, the push to prove themselves and show that while they are needed currently, they should continue to be needed.
8.4. Civil Rights Movement
8.4.1. Peaceful protests are the most successful at influencing the laws to change in such a way that brings oppressed groups towards equality.
8.4.2. When a movement challenges the status quo, it will be difficult to change their minds.
8.4.3. If a movement is not seen as making huge gains, people may resort to using more aggressive and violent tactics. (Movements that gain momentum quickly can fall just as quickly. When a movement underestimates their opponents, they will inevitably fall.)