Books I would like to read, fitting into our curriculum.

http://www.amazon.com/The-War-That-Ended-Peace-ebook/dp/B00CNQ9PFK/ref=zg_bs_5030_4

This book looks very interesting, from first glance it looks like a book relating to the events leading up to the war. Books are always going over the war and what happened. However it would be nice to have a book specifically focused on the what caused the war as they are usually summarized in textbook readings.

http://www.amazon.com/Holocaust-Books/lm/RC42EX9NIQM3N

Any of these books about the holocaust intrigue me. In my opinion this is one of the biggest tragedies, if no the biggest in human history. In past classes we've spent little more than a couple of weeks on the subject so it would be cool to read a whole book on it in order to truly grasp the tragedy in full.

Progressive Era- The Jungle

1) What qualities did Sinclair believe a person must have to succeed in Packingtown?
The person had to be a knave. The man who told tales and spied upon his fellows would rise.
2)According to the passage, what is the plant owner's main goal.
The plant owners main goal was to make as much money out of it as he could and he didn't care how he did it.
3) What does Sinclair mean when he says, "...there was no place in it where a man counted for anything against a dollar....?" 
He's saying that men didn't mean anything to the owners. They were measured by how much work they could do and how much money they could make the company. Afterwards they were thrown out, there were no emotional ties or hard feelings just strictly business.

4)Research an area that our government enforces now (meat packing, environment, pharmaceuticals) and report how this is enforced today. 

I focused on meatpacking. Today the government has a number of laws regarding meat packing. I chose to highlight a few of the standouts. First off they inspect the conditions of the factory. Specifically how sanitary it is kept, to make sure safety is a top priority and how the meat is inspected and shipped. They also enforce hours; there are certain regulations governing how long a worker can be in the factory during one day. These laws specifically are enforced by supervisors and health inspectors. Their job is to go to factories and make sure everything is in order. They often pose as workers to make sure there is no deceiving by management. Workers are also interviewed to make sure factory life is safe, respectful and strictly professional. Meat is inspected often to make sure they are taking proper precautions to make sure the meat is produced properly. There a number of laws focusing on meat packing that are standard for each state. The meatpacking industry employees over 500,000 workers so enforcement of laws and sanitation are very important. 

Industrialism

   Industrialism is an economic and social system based on the development of large-scale industries and marked by the production of large quantities of inexpensive manufactured goods and the concentration of employment in urban factories. During the gilded age we experienced a period of rapid growth and industrialization. Factories, workers and inventions sparked this new age in America and we never looked back.
     Henry George, a journalist from San Francisco, discussed the idea of machinery and technology making everyone's lives easier. He states how this new age of technology and the enormous increase in the power of producing wealth could make real poverty a thing of the past. However in response to his earlier statement George argues that we almost haven't done enough. The gap between the rich and poor is far too great and industrialization is only widening this gap instead of improving it. His argument is that we should focus primarily on eliminating poverty instead of deepening the pockets of the rich.
     In the next source David Wells, a scientist and economists, points out machinery and how it's taking the jobs of workers. He was one of the first to notice this. He makes a great analogy about workers treated almost like privates in the army; obeying orders, keeping step and having nothing to say as to the plan of their work. There is no longer any skill. Workers do the same repetitive, often boring task over and over. He states that the independence and individualism once associated with trade have more or less been destroyed. The way men were proud of their work has since vanished, there is no skill involved anymore. David Wells is almost saying that we would be better off without rapid industry, he believes good times are now in the past.
    Andrew Carnegie the famous Scottish-born "King of Steel" arose from nothing to become arguably the most prominent and successful man of his time. He was a very outspoken man, not afraid to share his opinion with the world. In this passage he talks about the benefits of Industry instead of the alternative. That this time is an infinitely better place to live than one hundred years ago. The rapid growth of factories not only produce more goods then ever before but inventions like railroads allow for fast transportation of said goods. In addition to every day goods for the average man tools were a huge part of the period. Tasks were cut in half and a man's job was exponentially easier than before. Carnegie's argument is that although factories may have their disadvantages at times they are necessary for growth and improve lives.
     I personally have a stance closer to Carnegie. I think that industrialization is completely necessary for society. Without it we would still be stuck in the ages before the gilded age. No electricity, adequate transportation or communication. The tasks so straining and difficult back in the 18th century are now performed by the flick of the finger. Technology and industrialization has doubled the human lifespan and allowed for rapid growth of the entire world. Sure it has it's disadvantages but all in all I completely support it.

Barbed Wire

  Patents for improved wire fencing were first granted in November of 1868 to a man named Michael Kelly. Slight improvements continued until November of 1874 with Joseph Gidden's model. This fencing tool helped to change the wild west as much as the rifle did previously. Without proper fencing livestock grazed freely and was hard to contain. Land was also open to other foraging animals the farmers didn't own. People couldn't populate areas because they risked interwinding livestock with the neighbors. It helped change the west from the previous vast and undefined land to one capable of supporting farmers and ranchers adequately. Wood was not an option due to the lack of trees; farmers couldn't find enough wood to build their homes let alone fences spanning miles in length. Wire was easy to obtain and set up was nothing in comparison to other fencing means.
   Michael Kelly made the first patented and helpful improvement to the wired fence. He twisted two strands of sturdy wire to create a cable of barbs. This was far superior to the previous method which involved a single wire that was easily broken by the weight of the cattle. Joseph Gidden made an improvement by inventing a method for locking the wires in place. In addition he made a way to mass produce his addition to the invention making it even easier to obtain the wire. Gidden's final step in the barb wire patent still lives on today after he fought off potential inventors in court.
   Unfortunately barbed wire further squeezed off Native American's from land they had previously used, they began to call it "devil's rope." The army used the wire for the war effort to help cut off enemies or intruders from the land in which they were occupying. Today it is still used in the military, it is also used to establish territorial boundaries and military confinement to name a few.
   In my opinion barbed wire is one of the most intuitive and productive inventions of the gilded age. It redefined land rights and usage by enabling territory and confining livestock. It's amazing that almost exact replica's of the equipment patented in 1874 is still used today.

Sources:
Text Source
Picture Source
Video Source

Let's Look at an Owner.

   Let's Look at an Owner.

 This article takes a look at Leland Stanford. To a normal person he seemed slow to think, he was a deliberate thinker and was characterized by a plodding nature. However he relished public life, this was his best service to the Central Pacific. His campaign was aided by supporters, including Abraham Lincoln. In the end he was named President but bad blood arose between his runner up, Huntington. On January 8, 1863 Governor Stanford he officially started the Central Pacific's construction. However a few bad decisions resulted in his discharge from the Government office. With his release from office he focused solely on the railroads. However his lack of motivation resulted in the force of work upon his Associates. He agreed with Young to provide Mormon laborers when the associates feared they had made a mistake by not keeping a delegate in the camp. Stanford's nature was frustrating to his Associates. He seemed lazy and not open to discussion, they stated most of the work was left to his successors. However when Huntington questioned him and he showed him the progress it was nothing short of impressive. He didn't have good chemistry with his Associates and Huntington viewed him as an insult. These disputes only strengthened when he started dipping into company holdings to fund a private institution. However, Leland Stanford University came to be the most famous of the Big Five Legacy, that long outlasted those of his Associates.
 
   Some Cons of business ownership was the lack of regulations to provide rights to owners. Also there was often disputes over land with the Indians, the workers risked attack and possible death. Pros for one could be regulations but relating to workers. The owners probably didn't have to pay them benefits. And they could pay them little money for the amount of work they were doing. If something went wrong there isn't much the workers could do but quit if they weren't bound by a contract. In addition owners could hire immigrants and pay them less then they would pay a citizen.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/biography/tcrr-stanford/

Weapons of Civil War

     The Civil War was a battle of old technology against the modern weaponry that was beginning to take place. Basic weaponry like knives and swords still saw their use while new-age weapons, like the ever evolving rifle was even more prevalent. I see railroads, the development of factories and the use of the telegram as unspoken weaponry in this war.
     Civil war cannons were common among the two sides. Although they weren't used as often, cannons were sure to embed fear into the enemy. Rifles include the springfield, the Colt, the Lorenz and more. One key feature that made this war so deadly was the invention (Eli Whitney) of interchangeable parts. This allowed guns to be prepared and replaced more frequently. A huge component was the Minie ball. An entire industry arose because of this piece of technology. Men could shoot 3,000 an hour. It allowed for much quicker and easier reloading than previously used bullets. They were delivered in millions and inflicted more damage with greater accuracy.
   In the end the North's ability to produce more weapons with a greater number of factories and railroad's was the deciding factor. Many argue the South had better trained men but with the North's heavily weighted(in their favor) population there isn't much the South could do. This war catapulted the world into a new age of weaponry, wether it was good or bad I can't say but change was without question.

Sources:

http://www.historynet.com/civil-war-weapons

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmoFVdxvARo