Discussion Thread #5

Week 5: Discussion Thread 1: America and the Industrial Revolution Describe the basic industries of America’s Industrial Revolution and explain what made the men who controlled them so successful. Select one industry to argue your point (such as the petroleum industry). Were the men who dominated this industry “robber barons,” as some suggested, or simply good businessmen? Explain your answer In order to start this discussion, I'd like to bring our attention to the section entitled "The Emergence of Big Business," on page 470 of Chapter 16 of our text. It does a really great job outlining the massive changes that businesses went through in the post-Civil War Era. In particular, it talks about how why "big" business emerged during this period and their effects on the consumer, worker, and the American economy as a whole. Your job is to try to answer the following question: Was the expansion of big business a net positive or net negative for American society? Be careful! It is easy to demonize corporations and "Big Business," but as students of history we cannot take sides. We need to construct our opinions based on the evidence provided, which in this case is our course text. Discussion Thread 2: Imperialism and America Discuss the events that drew the United States into World War I. To what extent did ethnicity play a role in America’s neutrality from1914-1917? How significant was America’s contribution to the war effort? Elaborate A new issue raises its head as the US expands its power beyond its territorial borders for the first time. This idea, and the issues of the time, revolve around one term: Imperialism. The goal of this forum will be to map the growth of this idea in an American context. Prior to the 1890s, the US had not much engaged in a practice that the "great" European powers had avidly pursued, that of taking colonies. The Spanish-American War is going to change all of that! The United States, for the first time, is going to find itself with foreign lands beyond its borders and the question will be: What should the United States do? Should a former colony have colonies? Before sounding off on the question below, please read the first two sections of Chapter 19 in our textbook, "Becoming a World Power" and "The Spanish-American War." Question: What were the major arguments supporting U.S. expansion overseas? If you had been an American living during that time, do you think you would have supported U.S. expansion? Why or why not? Weblink: Students are to search the Internet for scholarly articles on the events and causes that led to World War I. These can be primary or secondary sources but should come from academic sources. Recommended topics include: essays and articles on the rise of nationalism and imperialism in Germany and the other major powers involved in World War I; the rise of militarism in the decade before World War I; Irish- and German-American reaction to World War I; etc. These entries will provide a valuable resource for your second historical essay. Unacceptable internet resources include but are not limited to: Wikipedia, online general reference encyclopedias such as Encyclopedia Britannica, online dictionaries, and general informational search sites such as infosearch.com, infoplease.com, about.com, answers.com, etc. See the Web Link Assignment Grading Guidelines (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for more information.