Wealth and Power Associated With Transportation Systems
The average walking speed for an adult is three to four miles an hour. As technology evolves people are able to travel farther, and deliver goods faster, and the world continues to become a smaller place. In real everyday life, wealth and power are inherent with the control of transportation mediums. The creators of literature and film repeatedly pay homage to this fact, especially when they can cast their protagonist as the villain. In the novel “The Financier” (Dreiser, 2008) Frank Cowperwood risked the loss of his personal freedom in an attempt to gain control of a streetcar system. In the film “Wall Street” (Stone, 1987) Gordon Gekko took the same risks in an effort to assume control of a small airline company. Even though “The Financier” and “Wall Street” were created more than 75 years apart, both works acknowledge the importance of transportation systems. However, are transportation systems fundamental to the evolution of society, or are they simply a way for financial speculators to make money?
If you wanted to travel any significant distance in the United States at the beginning of the 19th century your options were limited; you could walk, ride a horse, or use some type of horse or oxen powered wagon. If you were fortunate enough to be near a river, you might save some wear and tear on your shoes travelling by canoe or boat, but this required someone to do the rowing, at least when you were traveling upstream. But in 1807 an inventor named Robert Fulton created the first steamboat, and the nature of transportation changed forever. (Hattaway, 1997) Up until this time the transportation of people and cargo was a slow, tedious process. Although the country was grow...
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In America’s time there have been many great men who have spent their lives creating this great country. Men such as George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson fit these roles. They are deemed America’s “founding fathers” and laid the support for the most powerful country in history. However, one more man deserves his name to be etched into this list. His name was John Marshall, who decided case after case during his role as Chief Justice that has left an everlasting mark on today’s judiciary, and even society itself. Through Cases such as Marbury v. Madison (1803) and McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) he established the Judicial Branch as an independent power. One case in particular, named Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), displayed his intuitive ability to maintain a balance of power, suppress rising sectionalism, and unite the states under the Federal Government.
The purpose of this paper is to discuss how Chief Justice John Marshall affected the American Judicial System. The reader will therefore first find a brief biography of John Marshall. Then the paper will explain in detail the origins of the Judicial Power to subsequently...
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He established the Accessory Transit Company, which would facilitate the transport of prospectors from the East coast to the West coast of Nicaragua He then sent steamboats from New York City and New Orleans to Nicaragua, where passengers completed the journey across Central America by using his boats and wagons (Hamilton). His efforts shortened the travel time to California and reduced the cost of getting there. Vanderbilt's development of railroads and steamboats helped Americans prosper by providing the necessary transportation to work. The railroads laid the groundwork for the Industrial Revolution through providing a foundational need in the development of industries.
Railroads were America’s first big business and contributed a great deal towards advancing industrialization. Beginning in the early 1870's, railroad construction in the United States expanded substantially. Before the year 1871, approximately fourty-five thousand miles of track had been laid. Up until the 1900's another one-hundred and seventy thousand miles were added to the nation's growing railroad system. This growth came about due to the erection of transcontinental railroads. Railroads supplied cities and towns with food, fuel, materials, and access to markets. The railroad system made way for an economic prosperity. The railroad system helped to build the physical growth of cities and towns. It even became another means of communication. Most importantly, it helped to produce a second
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The life of every American citizen, whether they realize it or not, is influenced by one entity--the United States Supreme Court. This part of government ensures that the freedoms of the American people are protected by checking the laws that are passed by Congress and the actions taken by the President. While the judicial branch may have developed later than its counterparts, many of the powers the Supreme Court exercises required years of deliberation to perfect. In the early years of the Supreme Court, one man’s judgement influenced the powers of the court systems for years to come. John Marshall was the chief justice of the Supreme Court from 1801 to 1835, and as the only lasting Federalist influence in a newly Democratic-Republican government, he and his fellow justices sought to perpetuate their Federalist principles in the United States’ court system. In one of the most memorable court cases of all time--the case of Marbury v. Madison-- Marshall established the idea of judicial review and strengthened the power of the judicial branch in the government. Abiding by his Federalist ideals, Marshall decided cases that would explicitly limit the power of the state government and broaden the strengths of the national government. Lastly, the Marshall Court was infamous for determining the results of cases that dealt with the interpretation of the Constitution and the importance of contracts in American society. The Marshall Court, over the span of a mere three decades, managed to influence the life of every American citizen even to this day by impacting the development of the judicial branch, establishing a boundary between the state and national government, and making declarations on the sanctity of contracts ("The Marshall Court"...
At the beginning of the industrial revolution in England during the mid-nineteenth century, the railroad was the most innovative mode of transportation known. The British Rail system was a forerunner in railroad technology, uses, and underground engineering. Though the rail system was extremely slow at first and prohibitively expensive to build and run, the British were not to be dissuaded in their pursuit of non-animal driven transportation. The most advanced mode of transportation prior to the introduction of the rail system was the horse drawn omnibus on a track, called a tram. This paper will examine the rail system from a cultural perspective, presenting the impact the railway had on everyday lives in Victorian London and its surrounding communities.
Wilgus, Grand Central Terminal’s chief engineer, was born in Buffalo, New York in 1865. He not only made the reconstruction of Grand Central Terminal possible, but also significantly improved it in all ways. In 1902, there was a serious train accident that happened in the Park Avenue Tunnel, which belonged to The Grand Central Depot. Fifteen passengers died in the accident. It was a severe tragedy; Therefore, William J. Wilgus wrote a letter to the Railroad’s President W. H. Newman. In his message, he came up with a bold idea: to tear down the old terminal and replace it with a whole new station for electric trains. Despite the radical conditions of this proposal, the president approved his idea, and the reconstruction began in 1903. Rebuilding the terminal was not just about replacing the trains and the facilities, but also intended to create a landmark in New York City. As we all know, New York City was already a well-known city in the world back then. The architect’s selection was through competition, which was a popular method at the time. While many architects and firms participated in the contest, only two won----Reed & Stern and Warren & Wetmore. While Reed & Stern were taking care of the overall design, Warren & Wetmore cared for the details. It took ten years to build the new terminal; however, the new one was much better than the old one, and other train stations in the city. The design was delicate; the building material was the best at that
The significant impact Robert Dahl’s article, “Decision-Making in a Democracy: the Supreme Court as a National Policy-Maker” created for our thought on the Supreme Court it that it thoroughly paved the way towards exemplifying the relationship between public opinion and the United States Supreme Court. Dahl significantly was able to provide linkages between the Supreme Court and the environment that surrounds it in order for others to better understand the fundamental aspects that link the two together and explore possible reasoning and potential outcomes of the Court.
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“The wolf of wall street.” Dir. Martin Scorsese. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Margot Robbie. Paramount , 2013.Film.