Document 24-2
What assumptions did the letter writers make about government? What did they want from the government/want them to do?
The writers of the letter assumed that the government did not know about the unfair labor conditions that the workers in America were facing. The writers wanted the government to investigate the companies that were providing unsafe working conditions and unfair wages. “Now how can we be considered in the Presidents spending program when we don't make enough to live in and pay our just honest debts” (169) The writers wanted more light to be shed on the low wages they were facing, they talked about how the price of mortgages and food has increased.
Several letters mention the American standard of living. What defined that standard, according to the authors? In what ways did they feel they did not achieve this standard? Did they believe they could and how?
The American standard of living was to have a good well paying job, good benefits, and to be able to purchase food and clothes with no stress about where the money is coming from, and if you'll have enough for tomorrow. One of the writers felt that the colored man got excluded from this standard, because many of the poor factory workers were colored. Some of the writers believed they did not meet this standard. “...we lost our furniture twice lost our car our insurance even my engagement ring and finally my wedding ring to buy groceries and pay rent…” (173) They had to worry about where money was coming from and if they had enough, they did not have a well-paying job, and they were not living comfortably. The writers thought that if the rich people in power knew how these workers were living and where they were working they would want to pass bills to help they achieve that American standard. “... it seems that my race of people are not considered in the American Standard of living.” The colored workers felt like they could almost never meet this standard because they were all too afraid to speak up about the conditions and pay they were facing.
To what extent did the New Deal measures make a difference in their lives?
Document 24-3
Why did Long believe that people with wealth should share it with people who needed it? What was the “obligation” of the nation?
Long believed the rich should share with the people in need. He thought that as “long as America has, or can produce, an abundance of the things in which make life comfortable and happy, that none should own so much of the things which he does not need and cannot use…”(174) He believed that no one should have an abundance of things, that no one needs than they can use, and that just because you do own a lot does not mean you are deserving of it. “We are calling upon people whose souls cannot be cankered by the lure of wealth and corruption.” (175) Long believed the only way to get this redistribution of wealth was by organizing men and women across the country to fight for it.
According to Long, what was wrong with the New Deal? In what ways were people “shackled far worse” than slaves in 1860?
People were “shackled far worse” than slaves because they were now held by debt. Long did not believe that wealth was evenly shared across the U.S, the debt structure that was created almost forced most Americans to be in debt for their entire lives. “The debt structure alone has condemned the American people to bondange worse than the Egyptians ever forged upon the Israelites.” (176) The people of the U.S can never pay back these debts and so it is starting a new form of American slavery. He believed that people were told to get rid of ths debt and corruption by god, the pilgrims, and the constitution.
How would wealth distribution work, according to Long? How would it differ from existing New Deal programs?
Long thought that the wealth distribution would work by having the government give American families basic necessities, and they would furnish every house free of debt. They would set a minimum wage so that all Americans could afford basic comforts. Because there would be a set minimum wage there would also be a limit of how much you could have. “The yearly income of every family shall not be less than one-third of the average family income…”(176) By setting a minimum wage they would also set a minimum yearly income and regulate working conditions and hours. There would be a pension plan in place for those over 60, pay for veterans, and equal access for all children to be in school. This new wealth distribution would differ from the existing programs because it would have more regulations in place to prevent workers from getting hurt, overworked, or underpaid. It would include pension plans and money for veterans, and it would give everyone a chance for a formal education.
Document 24-5
According to Hoover and Hardin, how did the New Deal “weaken the vitality of American freedom” and “shackle free men”?
Hoover believed that this form of government was harmful because it was not letting the people of America be free and make their own decisions. “But their philosophy is founded on the coercion and compulsory organization of men. True liberal government is founded on the emancipation of men.” (182) He had spent his term trying to fight against this kind of government set up.
According to Hoover, how did Republican ideals differ from the New Deal? What did he believe was the most important relationship between individuals and the government?
Republicans believed in having government agencies that stayed out of the American peoples lives. “... erected agencies of government which did start our country to prosperity without the loss of a single atom of our American freedom…” (182)
What contrasts did Hardin note between her life and the lives of people who benefitted from the New Deal? What solutions did she propose to the problem of poverty?
Hardin mentions how the citizens on the relief programs are becoming lazy because things are being handed to them, they have nicer things than her family but they are not working for them. “... have been kicked off relief but they refuse to work unless they can get relief hours and wages, but they are so worthless no one can afford to hire them.”(184) She believed only the poor benefited from the New Deal and that they benefited more than the working class. It was hard for taxpayers to see their hard earned money be given to someone else for free, and Hardin was afraid that these people on the welfare system would become a menace to society because they would never have to work again and could just live on handouts and other people's money.
Comparative Questions
(You can/should cite from all three documents. Please support your ideas in these answers with specific evidence!)
What might Republican opponents of the New Deal have said about Huey Long’s plans? How might a New Dealer criticize his proposals? Republicans would disagree with Huey Long's plans because he took a very communist approach to the problems facing America. New Dealers and Republicans would both criticize his standpoint on having the government intervene more into people's lives.
How might working people who talked with New Dealers or wrote the Roosevelt administration have responded to Hardin’s claims that people on relief were “human parasites” and “pampered poverty rats”?
The documents in this chapter express conflicting views about the relationship between individual freedom and government action. To what extent did the New Deal attempt to, or actually succeed at, altering that relationship?
The New Deal made Americans feel like they had a say in what their government was doing. They had the ability to write letters and feel like their voices were being heard. It changes the relationship between the public and the government drastically. “...but I would like you to see the results, as the other half see them.”(183) Americans now had a way to shed light on to any problems they thought were worth discussing. Even the letter writers that felt the New Deal was not helpful to them still had a way to contact the government and make their voice and thoughts heard.
What assumptions did the letter writers make about government? What did they want from the government/want them to do?
The writers of the letter assumed that the government did not know about the unfair labor conditions that the workers in America were facing. The writers wanted the government to investigate the companies that were providing unsafe working conditions and unfair wages. “Now how can we be considered in the Presidents spending program when we don't make enough to live in and pay our just honest debts” (169) The writers wanted more light to be shed on the low wages they were facing, they talked about how the price of mortgages and food has increased.
Several letters mention the American standard of living. What defined that standard, according to the authors? In what ways did they feel they did not achieve this standard? Did they believe they could and how?
The American standard of living was to have a good well paying job, good benefits, and to be able to purchase food and clothes with no stress about where the money is coming from, and if you'll have enough for tomorrow. One of the writers felt that the colored man got excluded from this standard, because many of the poor factory workers were colored. Some of the writers believed they did not meet this standard. “...we lost our furniture twice lost our car our insurance even my engagement ring and finally my wedding ring to buy groceries and pay rent…” (173) They had to worry about where money was coming from and if they had enough, they did not have a well-paying job, and they were not living comfortably. The writers thought that if the rich people in power knew how these workers were living and where they were working they would want to pass bills to help they achieve that American standard. “... it seems that my race of people are not considered in the American Standard of living.” The colored workers felt like they could almost never meet this standard because they were all too afraid to speak up about the conditions and pay they were facing.
To what extent did the New Deal measures make a difference in their lives?
Document 24-3
Why did Long believe that people with wealth should share it with people who needed it? What was the “obligation” of the nation?
Long believed the rich should share with the people in need. He thought that as “long as America has, or can produce, an abundance of the things in which make life comfortable and happy, that none should own so much of the things which he does not need and cannot use…”(174) He believed that no one should have an abundance of things, that no one needs than they can use, and that just because you do own a lot does not mean you are deserving of it. “We are calling upon people whose souls cannot be cankered by the lure of wealth and corruption.” (175) Long believed the only way to get this redistribution of wealth was by organizing men and women across the country to fight for it.
According to Long, what was wrong with the New Deal? In what ways were people “shackled far worse” than slaves in 1860?
People were “shackled far worse” than slaves because they were now held by debt. Long did not believe that wealth was evenly shared across the U.S, the debt structure that was created almost forced most Americans to be in debt for their entire lives. “The debt structure alone has condemned the American people to bondange worse than the Egyptians ever forged upon the Israelites.” (176) The people of the U.S can never pay back these debts and so it is starting a new form of American slavery. He believed that people were told to get rid of ths debt and corruption by god, the pilgrims, and the constitution.
How would wealth distribution work, according to Long? How would it differ from existing New Deal programs?
Long thought that the wealth distribution would work by having the government give American families basic necessities, and they would furnish every house free of debt. They would set a minimum wage so that all Americans could afford basic comforts. Because there would be a set minimum wage there would also be a limit of how much you could have. “The yearly income of every family shall not be less than one-third of the average family income…”(176) By setting a minimum wage they would also set a minimum yearly income and regulate working conditions and hours. There would be a pension plan in place for those over 60, pay for veterans, and equal access for all children to be in school. This new wealth distribution would differ from the existing programs because it would have more regulations in place to prevent workers from getting hurt, overworked, or underpaid. It would include pension plans and money for veterans, and it would give everyone a chance for a formal education.
Document 24-5
According to Hoover and Hardin, how did the New Deal “weaken the vitality of American freedom” and “shackle free men”?
Hoover believed that this form of government was harmful because it was not letting the people of America be free and make their own decisions. “But their philosophy is founded on the coercion and compulsory organization of men. True liberal government is founded on the emancipation of men.” (182) He had spent his term trying to fight against this kind of government set up.
According to Hoover, how did Republican ideals differ from the New Deal? What did he believe was the most important relationship between individuals and the government?
Republicans believed in having government agencies that stayed out of the American peoples lives. “... erected agencies of government which did start our country to prosperity without the loss of a single atom of our American freedom…” (182)
What contrasts did Hardin note between her life and the lives of people who benefitted from the New Deal? What solutions did she propose to the problem of poverty?
Hardin mentions how the citizens on the relief programs are becoming lazy because things are being handed to them, they have nicer things than her family but they are not working for them. “... have been kicked off relief but they refuse to work unless they can get relief hours and wages, but they are so worthless no one can afford to hire them.”(184) She believed only the poor benefited from the New Deal and that they benefited more than the working class. It was hard for taxpayers to see their hard earned money be given to someone else for free, and Hardin was afraid that these people on the welfare system would become a menace to society because they would never have to work again and could just live on handouts and other people's money.
Comparative Questions
(You can/should cite from all three documents. Please support your ideas in these answers with specific evidence!)
What might Republican opponents of the New Deal have said about Huey Long’s plans? How might a New Dealer criticize his proposals? Republicans would disagree with Huey Long's plans because he took a very communist approach to the problems facing America. New Dealers and Republicans would both criticize his standpoint on having the government intervene more into people's lives.
How might working people who talked with New Dealers or wrote the Roosevelt administration have responded to Hardin’s claims that people on relief were “human parasites” and “pampered poverty rats”?
The documents in this chapter express conflicting views about the relationship between individual freedom and government action. To what extent did the New Deal attempt to, or actually succeed at, altering that relationship?
The New Deal made Americans feel like they had a say in what their government was doing. They had the ability to write letters and feel like their voices were being heard. It changes the relationship between the public and the government drastically. “...but I would like you to see the results, as the other half see them.”(183) Americans now had a way to shed light on to any problems they thought were worth discussing. Even the letter writers that felt the New Deal was not helpful to them still had a way to contact the government and make their voice and thoughts heard.
Comments
Post a Comment