I suppose the Servicemen Readjustment Act of 1944 -- commonly known as the GI bill -- played no role in the advancement of the middle class and the economy?
1. Veterans made up 49% of U.S. college enrollment in 1947.
2. 7.8 million veterans trained at colleges, trade schools, and various other programs.
3. They were entitled to one-year of full-time training (colleges were previously reserved for the rich), were given home loan guarantees, and a small some of money while in school.
To your point: yes, they got jobs, but only after they attained the necessary training and education. Most polls show that majority of Americans (usually greater than 70%) support social security, but the current Republican/Conservative platform calls for privatization
The War Powers Act of 1973. The War Powers Act limits the power of the President of the United States to wage war without the approval of the Congress. The War Powers Act is also known as the War Powers Resolution. The purpose of the War Powers Resolution is to ensure that Congress and the President share in making decisions that may get the United States involved in hostilities.
The Department of Veteran Affairs (DVA) is a public organization that is government provided. The organization funding is produce through taxes. The executive branch of the agency is located in Washington DC and is headed by Secretary of Veteran Affairs. There are Veteran Affairs Offices located in all 50 states, including American Samoa, District of Columbia, Guam, North Marianas Islands, Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands. It ranks number two in the United States federal department with over 200,000 employees.
The U.S. remembered the post World War I recession, when millions of veterans returned to unemployment and homelessness. Twice as many veterans would return from World War II, and a repeat of World War I was on everyone's mind. As early as 1942, plans were being made to handle the anticipated postwar problems. The National Resources Planning Board, a White House agency, had studied postwar manpower needs and in June 1943, recommended a series of programs for education and training. The American Legion is credited with designing the main features of the GI Bill and pushing it through Congress. The Legion overcame objections that the proposed bill was too sweeping and could jeopardize veterans getting any help at all. At the time Congress had already failed to act on about 640 bills concerning veterans. Members of the American Legion met first in Washington on December 15, 1943, and by January 6 had completed the first draft of the GI Bill. The board outlines were in the final law signed six months later. John Stelle, a former Governor of Illinois, and a leader of the Legion, is credited with drawing up the first draft of the bill that eventually became law.
“When war is thrust upon the nation, the President had not only the authority but the responsibility to ‘resist force by force.’” –U.S. Supreme Court ruling of the Prize Cases, 1862 (67 U.S. 6335).
Basically the article suggests life was rough. But that all changed when we decided to participate in the war. In Steven Horwitz and Michael J. McPhillips’ article, “ The reality of Wartime Economy”, they note that many people want to believe that war was the reason we got out of the Great Depression because it has many favorable outcomes. They also point out that the economy was also revived by the aid of the government, but only because World War II was a catalyst (3). Industries got back into shape to spew out war materials. As if in unison, the whole country acted to aid in this war. Due to the demand of war supplies, millions of jobs opened up in factories. Horwitz and McPhillips’ article agrees when statistics were compared from before the war, and during the war. The statistics showed that 17% of Americans were unemployed before and during the war almost zero percentage of the american work force unemployed (4). The war was enough stimulation to the economy to get its gears started. Since almost everyone was employed during the World War, they were able to accumulate a large amount of sum. The earned money from the citizens accumulated so much that many families were able to move away from the cities and live in the suburbs. Everyone had money to spend and new consumer
The primary reason as to why the United States Government decided to issue Executive Order 9066 was because of the racial demeanor towards those of Japanese descent. Several factors contribute to the decision to intern Japanese-Americans living on the west coast, however the racism behind the decision definitely stands out among all the other justifications.
On December 7,1941 Japan raided the airbases across the islands of Pearl Harbour. The “sneak attack” targeted the United States Navy. It left 2400 army personnel dead and over a thousand Americans wounded. U.S. Navy termed it as “one of the great defining moments in history”1 President Roosevelt called it as “A Day of Infamy”. 2 As this attack shook the nation and the Japanese Americans became the immediate ‘focal point’. At that moment approximately 112,000 Persons of Japanese descent resided in coastal areas of Oregon, Washington and also in California and Arizona.3
America is one word that brings the hope of freedom to many people around the world. Since the United States’ humble beginnings freedom has remained at the core of its ideologies and philosophies. People of all races, nations, and tongues have found refuge in America. The National Anthem proclaims, “…land of the free, and home of the brave” (Key, 1814). But has America been consistently a land of the free? Unfortunately freedom has not always reigned. There is a constant struggle to overcome fear and prejudice in order to provide a true land of freedom. In times of heightened tension, the masses of common people seek to find a scapegoat. Often, this scapegoat is a minority with ties to current negative events. As fear uncontrollably grows, it can cause people to allow and commit unspeakable atrocities.
Ever since the pilgrims first set foot on North American soil there has always been some form of a pension to soldiers of battle. The purpose of this compensation to the soldiers was to allow them to be able to successfully live a post-military life. Over the growth of America the compensation for a soldier’s tenure began to grow as well. From the start of the Old Soldiers Home to the birth of the Veterans Administration (VA) to the inception of the GI Bill the government has adopted more and more methods to aid veterans in their post-military life. However even with all these programs veterans still find themselves struggling to be a part of society as an everyday citizen. Why is it that with all these government programs, veterans are still struggling to adjust to civilian life?
On the heels of war, new technology caused a decrease in prices of goods in the 1920’s and in the 1950’s the GI Bill increased income. The bureaucratization of business in the 1920’s meant that more people could be employed in higher paying white-collar jobs than before, including, for the first time, housewives. This new income combined with the reduced prices for goods that resulted from mechanized production, assembly lines and a general decrease of the cost of technology created a thriving consumerist middle class that went on to fuel the economy in all sectors, especially the upper classes. Likewise, during World War II Americans saved up around 150 billion dollars, and this sum combined with the income of the GI Bill allowed normal people to buy expensive things, from houses to cars to electronics to educations at a rapid rate, fueling the trademark prosperity of the 1950’s. The new automobile culture of the 50’s spawned new businesses that catered to mobile Americans, such as nicer and more standardized hotels like Holiday Inn, and drive-up restaurants like McDonalds. Just as the culture of the 1920’s was transfo...
The internment of Japanese Americans during WWII was a clear example of mass hysteria that permeated the United States during the dark days of WWII. After the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor many Americans believed that the Japanese were disloyal and were associated with the enemy. There were rumors that the Japanese Americans were exchanging military information and had hidden connections. The U.S became increasingly paranoid causing a question to arise, is this really because the Japanese were truly spies or is it mass hysteria?
Students who attended these institutions of higher education were typically born into a wealthy family, where the individuals already had made a name for themselves. They survived college, as disruptive students, because college was not a necessity for them to succeed in life. Referring to Harvard College, in his family’s newspaper, the New England Curant, in 1677, Benjamin Franklin wrote that it had become a “rich man’s school, a place that wealthy parents sent their sons to, where, for want of a suitable genius, they learn little more than to carry themselves handsomely, and enter a room genteely” (Lucas, p. 109). Prior to the American Revolution, higher education did not impact the majority of the people first hand. It is estimated that no more than one in every thousand colonists attended any college present before 1776 (Lucas, p. 109). This supports the idea that college was only available to those individuals who had enough money to attend college simply for the ability to move up the social ladder.
During the aftermath of World War I great change was happening to America’s society. Of the nations that were involved in the worldwide conflict from 1914 to 1918 no other nation experienced prosperity socially, politically, and economically as quickly as did the United States of America. The middle-class American suddenly became the most important component to the growth of the American economy. As the purchase of luxuries, the automobile in particular, became more available to middle-class, opportunity in the housing and labor industries expanded.
not given an education. The rich also didn't want to spend the money on the
When one joins the United States military, one becomes subject to a completely new justice system. While the primary purpose of the United States justice system is to dispense "justice," that is not the primary reason for the creation of a separate justice system for America's Armed Forces. The primary purpose of the military's system is to provide the military commander with necessary tools to enforce good order and discipline. That's why, for example, it's not considered a "crime" to be late for work at your civilian job, but it is a "crime" to be late for work in the Military. The purpose then is to keep soldiers acting as soldiers so the correctional philosophy in the military has evolved in such a way to do just that. In discussing the UCMJ and corrections, the following topics are significant.