While the Great Depression hit Europe pretty hard, no one had it worse than the United States (well...except Germany...). After the stock market crash of 1929, things fell apart at a pretty rapid pace. By 1932, some estimates say that industrial production in the United States dropped off by HALF of what it was before the crash. Great Britain was struggling with more than two million unemployed people...but America had more than four million unemployed by 1930...and as many as sixteen million unemployed people by 1933!
Then, in 1933, the Dust Bowl hit, ripping away the topsoil that farmers relied upon to grow crops and earn a living. It is estimated that more than 30 million tons of topsoil blew away, which would be enough to fill up half of the Grand Canyon. More than half a million people were homeless due directly to the Dust Bowl. More than 2.5 million people left the Dust Bowl regions of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Texas. More than 200,000 of these people ended up moving to California, searching for mythical jobs that were rumored along the rail lines that ran out of the Dust Bowl and into the hopeful Californian oasis.
President Herbert Hoover, in the eyes of most, did virtually nothing to help the people or the situation, and he was soundly defeated in the 1932 elections by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the governeor of New York. Roosevelt, seeing that the "wait and see" approach wasn't working, pushed through a massive package of social programs and economic intervention programs known as the New Deal. As part of the New Deal, Roosevelt established the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) which created jobs for single, unemployed men between the ages of 17 and 23. Later, the WPA (Works Progress Administration) in 1935, which put unemployed people to work building bridges, roads, post offices, airports, parks, canals, dams, etc. Roughly three million people were employed by the WPA at one time, sparking hope. The Social Security Act of 1935 gave even more hope to desperate people who whispered of revolution. Things were far from great, and millions were still without full-time (or even part-time) work, but many people were able to at least see a glimmer of hope, not realizing that World War II was on the horizon.
Russia
By this time (1921), the Russian Revolution is over, and Russia, like practically every other major nation in the world, is struggling economically, and the Russian president, Vladamir Lenin, institutes what he refers to as the New Economic Policy (catchy title, huh?). This system blends the communism Lenin preached with bits and pieces of capitalism, allowing small business ownership and individuals were allowed to sell produce and hand-crafted items on their own. The government still controlled all major industries, the banks, the mines, etc.
In 1922, Russia is no longer known as Russia, but as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.), and Lenin's NEP keeps the country from going under. But in 1924, Lenin dies and Josef Stalin takes over as president after a massive struggle in the Politburo, which is kind of like the Communist version of Parliament or Congress. Stalin manages to sieze control away from others such as Leon Trotsky (the leader of the Communist army) and others. Stalin and Trotsky hated each other, with Trotsky now holding the position of commissioner of war, and Stalin being the communist party general secretary. Stalin was able to win support among key members of the Communist party, and he eventually takes control of the Communist party. Once Stalin gains control of the party, he then starts taking steps to eliminate anyone who might pose a threat to his reign. He gets rid of the original Bolsheviks, including Trotsky, who leaves for Mexico in 1927 (where he is later murdered in 1940...most likely under Stalin's orders).
Once Stalin has got rid of most of his rivals, he then shuts down the NEP that Lenin had put in place, and Stalin starts instituting what he calls Five Year Plans. These Five Year Plans are sets of economic goals for the U.S.S.R. which he believes will transform the U.S.S.R. from being an agricultural country to an industrial power. He ramps up steel production, oil production, and manufacturing in huge chunks and large numbers of workers switch from agricultural jobs to industrial jobs, which, of course, causes large numbers of people to move into the cities which, as we saw during the American Industrial Revolution, were not capable of handling such large numbers of people. Private farms were eliminated in favor of government-owned farms (a process called collectivization), which angered peasant farmers who hoarded their crops and killed their livestock so the government couldn't take them. This led to massive problems with famine and disease and between 1932 and 1933, it is estimated (by Stalin, himself) that as many as 10 million Soviets died of starvation or hunger-related diseases.
Stalin, in what is called The Great Purge, continued to get rid of the old Bosheviks that were associated with the Russian Revolution. From 1936 to 1938, as many as 8 million people, including these Bolsheviks, were arrested and sent to Siberian prison camps, or executed.
Then, in 1933, the Dust Bowl hit, ripping away the topsoil that farmers relied upon to grow crops and earn a living. It is estimated that more than 30 million tons of topsoil blew away, which would be enough to fill up half of the Grand Canyon. More than half a million people were homeless due directly to the Dust Bowl. More than 2.5 million people left the Dust Bowl regions of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Texas. More than 200,000 of these people ended up moving to California, searching for mythical jobs that were rumored along the rail lines that ran out of the Dust Bowl and into the hopeful Californian oasis.
President Herbert Hoover, in the eyes of most, did virtually nothing to help the people or the situation, and he was soundly defeated in the 1932 elections by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the governeor of New York. Roosevelt, seeing that the "wait and see" approach wasn't working, pushed through a massive package of social programs and economic intervention programs known as the New Deal. As part of the New Deal, Roosevelt established the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) which created jobs for single, unemployed men between the ages of 17 and 23. Later, the WPA (Works Progress Administration) in 1935, which put unemployed people to work building bridges, roads, post offices, airports, parks, canals, dams, etc. Roughly three million people were employed by the WPA at one time, sparking hope. The Social Security Act of 1935 gave even more hope to desperate people who whispered of revolution. Things were far from great, and millions were still without full-time (or even part-time) work, but many people were able to at least see a glimmer of hope, not realizing that World War II was on the horizon.
Russia
By this time (1921), the Russian Revolution is over, and Russia, like practically every other major nation in the world, is struggling economically, and the Russian president, Vladamir Lenin, institutes what he refers to as the New Economic Policy (catchy title, huh?). This system blends the communism Lenin preached with bits and pieces of capitalism, allowing small business ownership and individuals were allowed to sell produce and hand-crafted items on their own. The government still controlled all major industries, the banks, the mines, etc.
In 1922, Russia is no longer known as Russia, but as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.), and Lenin's NEP keeps the country from going under. But in 1924, Lenin dies and Josef Stalin takes over as president after a massive struggle in the Politburo, which is kind of like the Communist version of Parliament or Congress. Stalin manages to sieze control away from others such as Leon Trotsky (the leader of the Communist army) and others. Stalin and Trotsky hated each other, with Trotsky now holding the position of commissioner of war, and Stalin being the communist party general secretary. Stalin was able to win support among key members of the Communist party, and he eventually takes control of the Communist party. Once Stalin gains control of the party, he then starts taking steps to eliminate anyone who might pose a threat to his reign. He gets rid of the original Bolsheviks, including Trotsky, who leaves for Mexico in 1927 (where he is later murdered in 1940...most likely under Stalin's orders).
Once Stalin has got rid of most of his rivals, he then shuts down the NEP that Lenin had put in place, and Stalin starts instituting what he calls Five Year Plans. These Five Year Plans are sets of economic goals for the U.S.S.R. which he believes will transform the U.S.S.R. from being an agricultural country to an industrial power. He ramps up steel production, oil production, and manufacturing in huge chunks and large numbers of workers switch from agricultural jobs to industrial jobs, which, of course, causes large numbers of people to move into the cities which, as we saw during the American Industrial Revolution, were not capable of handling such large numbers of people. Private farms were eliminated in favor of government-owned farms (a process called collectivization), which angered peasant farmers who hoarded their crops and killed their livestock so the government couldn't take them. This led to massive problems with famine and disease and between 1932 and 1933, it is estimated (by Stalin, himself) that as many as 10 million Soviets died of starvation or hunger-related diseases.
Stalin, in what is called The Great Purge, continued to get rid of the old Bosheviks that were associated with the Russian Revolution. From 1936 to 1938, as many as 8 million people, including these Bolsheviks, were arrested and sent to Siberian prison camps, or executed.
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