Just Say No

When parents became increasingly concerned about their children using drugs, the hysteria over the war on drugs escalated when abuse prevention programs were advocated across the nation, especially in areas of wide drug abuse. First Lady Nancy Reagan hoped to raise awareness of drug abuse, hoping to show youth the dangers of drugs. The Just Say No campaign was the result of this hope, and organizations under the campaign spread to schools throughout the country. Nancy Reagan moved to widespread media, sitting in front of the national cameras and telling kids at home to "just say no." In 1985, Just Say No clubs reached internationally, especially in the United Kingdom.

                                                      

Even though Nancy Reagan did succeed in increasing the awareness of drugs and drug abuse, it is argued that the war on drugs caused mass incarceration, increasing the jailed from 50,000 to 400,000 in 2 decades. As a result of the Just Say No campaign, more radical approaches were created, such as the DARE drug education program, founded by Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates whose ideology was that drug users should be executed. Also, a year after the public awareness of drugs peaked at 64%, people became disinterest and this number dropped to 10%.

                                          

The Just Say No campaign did temporarily achieve its goal of drug awareness, but the hysteria that came with this campaign prevented true policies for the war on drugs to be formed. These policies would be started in the 21st century, far past the Reagans' take on the war. Even today, the process of drug policies is slow, as the country's perspective of the war on drugs is split, but it is much more logical than the no-tolerance programs during the Reagans' period.

How did the Just Say No campaign change current society's take of the war on drugs?

Source:
http://www.drugpolicy.org/facts/new-solutions-drug-policy/brief-history-drug-war-0
http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ronald_Reagan_Drugs.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_Say_No
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/mar/08/nancy-reagan-drugs-just-say-no-dare-program-opioid-epidemic
http://politrixie.blogspot.com/2015_01_01_archive.html

Ronald Reagan's Assassination Attempt

20 years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the nation was horrified when on March 30th, 1981, current President Ronald Reagan was shot while walking on the street in Washington. Reagan was shot in the chest, suffering internal bleeding and a punctured lung. 3 others were hit in the attack: White House Press Secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Tim McCarthy and police officer Thomas Delahanty. Americans flocked to their TVs, anxiously waiting to hear the news of Reagan's condition, still reminiscing of the political assassinations prior of Kennedy and King. 13 days after the attack, Reagan was well recovered enough to leave the hospital.

                                                 

The perpetrator, John Hinckley, was insanely obsessed with Jodie Foster after seeing her in the movie "Taxi Driver," where the main character tries to assassinate a presidential candidate in order to protect Foster's character. After repeatedly sending notes and calling the actor, who turned down his proposals, Hinckley saw the assassination of a president as a way to get close to Foster. Hinckley planned to kill President Jimmy Carter, but was arrested with an illegal firearm long before he could confront Carter. With Reagan as a rising presidential candidate, Hinckley saw another opportunity to "protect" Foster. Now the newly appointed President of the US, Hinckley waited for Reagan to leave a speaking address at the Washington Hilton Hotel. Hinckley planned to take the shot when Reagan was transitioning from the interior of the Hotel to his bulletproof limousine. The Secret Service made the mistake to allow any pedestrians to stand 15 feet from the president as Reagan exited the hotel.

Hinckley saw Reagan walk near him and shot his revolver six times. The first 2 bullets struck the individuals around Reagan as they shielded him. The 3rd overshot the group while the 4th hit McCarthy as he shielded Reagan. The 5th bullet hit the limousine but the 6th ricocheted off the car and hit Reagan in the chest, puncturing his lung and stopped less than an inch from his heart.

                           

Reagan was saved by his team's decision to go to the hospital instead of the White House, and a hasty surgery allowed for a routine recovery of 2 weeks. When Reagan returned to the White House, his popularity soared with an approval rating of 73%. The shooting opened up the debate about gun control, and Reagan flipped his opinion on the issue, supporting the Brady Act, which fought for increased gun control and prevention of gun violence.

Did Reagan's assassination shape the laws of gun control we have today?

Sources:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/ronald-reagan-is-shot-by-john-hinckley-jr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Ronald_Reagan
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/10/01/how-assassination-attempt-changed-ronald-reagans-presidency-and-history.html
http://rarehistoricalphotos.com/attempted-assassination-reagan-1981/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hinckley_Jr.

My Lai Massacre

Thy My Lai Massacre was the killing of 504 civilians in South Vietnam by the US army on March 16, 1968 during the Vietnam War. When the incident was revealed to the public, the outrage accelerated the opposition to the US involvement in the Vietnam War. The massacre would go down as one of the largest massacres of civilians by US forces in the 20th century.

Charlie Company arrived in Vietnam, and, even though they had no direct enemy contact, had lost more than 40 men from mines within 3 months leading up to the massacre. Task Force Barker, which included Charlie Company in the 11th Brigade, was a search and destroy operation against the Viet Cong battalion in the area. This area included Son My village. Captain Ernest Medina of Charlie Company reported that any residents who did not leave for the market and still in the Son My village by 7 AM were Viet Cong sympathizers. Accounts recall Medina's orders to kill all combatants and suspects including women, children, and animals. He was quoted to say, "destroy everything walking, crawling, or growling."

                                            


When the operation began on the March 16th morning at 7:30 AM, villagers who had not left for the market were herded without alarm. Suddenly, the killings started. Women and children were executed while they were praying and crying. Large groups of villagers were lined up in an irrigation ditch and then were fired upon by M16s. Women shielded their children from the bullets but none were spared due to the suspicion of grenades hidden in their clothing. The village huts were set ablaze, catching the attention of helicopter pilot Hugh Thompson. He witnessed the massacres of unarmed civilians and managed to evacuate the few who were still alive in the ditches, mostly children. He reported to his company commander the horrors he saw, which would eventually lead to those involved to be charged with war crimes.

                                           

The My Lai massacre demonstrated the extent of the US army war crimes in the Vietnam War.

Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSKA_Ce4lBg
http://mylaimassacree.weebly.com/the-charlie-company.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Lai_Massacre

Energy Crisis

The 1970s energy crisis came about when oil supply decreased substantially as conflict broke out in the Middle East. Events such as the Yom Kippur War and the Iranian Revolution ceased exportation of oil to these countries. The crisis created stagflation, the combination of stagnation coupled with inflation, in the US.

1973 Oil Crisis

When leading worldwide producers reached their production peaks in the 1960s, the pressure on world oil prices increased significantly, which in turn increased the demand for oil with these countries. The Middle East was a central figure in this supplying of oil, and when the US re-supplied the Israeli military in the Yom Kippur War, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) declared limitations on oil shipments to the US and other countries. In response, the Nixon administration negotiated with both sides of the issue, and when Israeli forces were convinced to pull back from Syrian territory, OAPEC lifted the embargo. This newfound leverage allowed the OAPEC members to increase the oil prices to the world. This impacted the world economies dependent on the supply of oil. The price of oil in the US quadrupled, retail gas prices rose from an average of 38.5 cents to 55.1 cents, and Nixon asked for gas stations to not sell any gas on the weekends. This resulted in long lines for the gas stations all across the country.

                                              

1979 Oil Crisis

When the Iranian Revolution exploded in 1979 as the Shah of Iran fled, allowing for a new government to control Iran, the oil exports were crippled. As a result, other members of OPEC covered the loss in production, greatly inflating the oil prices for the consumer nations. The price of crude oil doubled over the next year in the US. Long lines for gas stations started up again after panic spread across the country. In response to the crisis, President Carter delivered the "Crisis of Confidence" speech to encourage the citizens to conserve as much energy as possible.

                                               

These two major oil crises created the recession that marked the end of World War II era production, creating high unemployment while also high inflation. Even though the economy revitalized in the 1980s, the inflation lasted through another decade.

Were these oil crises the start to US involvement and direct conflict with Middle Eastern countries?

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970s_energy_crisis#1973_oil_crisis
http://www.history.com/topics/energy-crisis
https://bluejayblog.wordpress.com/2013/07/15/the-crisis-of-confidence/

Agent Orange in the Vietnam War

The Weapon

Agent Orange was created with a mixture of 2 herbicides: 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T. The latter contains TCDD (tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin), the most toxic dioxin. TCDD is so toxic that it is labeled a human carcinogen, any substance that is an agent directly involved in causing cancer.

Methods

The US dropped 20 million gallons of herbicides and defoliants during the Vietnam War, called Operation Ranch Hand. This defoliation program aimed to wipe out forests and crops, sources of food and cover for the guerrilla fighters. The strategy was to destroy the self-sustainability on the rural land to herd the peasants into US-dominated urban cities, effectively leaving no support for the guerrillas whatsoever. Helicopters, low-flying aircraft, trucks, boats, and backpack sprayers were used to deploy the herbicides. 5 million acres of land and crops were destroyed during the Vietnam War as a result of this program, creating widespread famine for civilians.

                                      

Effects

Agent Orange caused birth defects, including cleft palate, mental disabilities, hernias, and extra digits. Dioxin was found in breast milk of Vietnamese women and the blood of veterans of Vietnam. Not only did Agent Orange affect the Vietnamese people, it also affected the personnel involved in storing, mixing, and carrying the chemicals. Even today, evidence of dioxins are still found in the soil, a risk to the local communities.

                                                    

The result of Agent Orange and other chemical agents in Operation Ranch Hand caused the UN to pass Resolution 31/72 (prohibition of environmental modification with long-lasting and severe effects).

Was this chemical agent, which was meant for environmental damage, worse than napalm?

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_Orange
http://tyglobalist.org/in-the-magazine/features/the-enduring-legacy-of-agent-orange-in-vietnam/
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/12/us/agent-oranges-long-legacy-for-vietnam-and-veterans.html

History of Napalm

The Weapon

Napalm was used by US forces to effectively burn down sections of forests and weed out the guerrilla fighters hiding in the dense forests. A mixture of plastic polystyrene, hydrocarbon benzene, and gasoline, Napalm was a gelatinous substance that could stick to anything and burn up in 10 minutes if ignited.

Methods

Napalm was first militarily used by the US Air Force on Berlin in World War 2, launching AN-M76 incendiary bombs. It was again used in the Pacific War, burning out bunkers, tunnels, and other Japanese installations in the islands of Iwo Jima, Saipan, and Okinawa. B-29's also dropped Napalm bombs in fire raids on Japanese cities when thermite bombs were out of supply. During the Korean War, since ground forces were outnumbered, air support of the border between North Korea and South Korea used Napalm bombs to defend against ground attacks.

Perhaps the most widely known use of Napalm by the US military was during the Vietnam War. 388,000 tons of napalm bombs were dropped during the war.

                                                    

Effects

The effects of Napalm are horrific, causing 5th degree burns on most of its victims (burns down to the bone). Since Napalm burns at 1500 degrees F, those who did not get hit directly by the substance could still die from heat stroke, smoke exposure, and carbon monoxide poisoning. Those who were hit directly suffered unbelievable pain, asphyxiation, and usually died.

                                                     

The use of this chemical agent against civilians was banned by international law in 1980 and was signed by the US in 2009 under the Obama Administration.

Napalm was an unethical method of war that the US military deployed, but, like the atomic bomb, is it a necessary method in order to save lives?

Sources:
https://www.thoughtco.com/napalm-and-agent-orange-in-vietnam-war-195797
http://vietnamawbb.weebly.com/napalm-agent-orange.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napalm
http://www.drabruzzi.com/moral_righteousness_amnesia_and_chemical_weapons.htm

Watergate Scandal

The Watergate Scandal is arguably the most infamous political scandal in US history. Even the term "Watergate" has been synonymous with political scandals. The Committee for Re-Election of the President crafted a plan to obtain intelligence for the Nixon campaign. This plan included the burglary of the Democratic National Committee's (DNC) headquarters at Watergate. The objective was to photograph campaign documents and bug the telephones with listening devices.

The burglary was carried out on May 28th, where 2 phones were wiretapped, one being the DNC secretary's phone. A second burglary was executed when the Committee wanted to make sure the wiretapping was truly working. This time, however, a security guard, Frank Wills, saw tape covering the latches of doors, which prevents them from locking. He called the police after it was clear there was a burglary in effect in the building, and 5 men were arrested inside the DNC office.

                             
                                                              The five burglars of Watergate

The Committee, upon hearing this, scrambled to cover up the burglary's connection to the president. However, one of the committee members was in two of the address books of the burglars. More evidence popped up: money from the Nixon re-election campaign and the Committee was found in the burglars' bank accounts. Judge Sirica had a suspicion that there was a conspiracy much larger than the burglary, but Nixon was re-elected without a hitch.

Nixon created a conspiracy on top of this conspiracy in order to save his presidency, but this was also uncovered in court. The "Watergate Seven" were indicted for hindering the Watergate investigation soon after. Tapes of his cover up were found and the Nixon administration was forced to release them to the public by order of the Supreme Court. With this, even avid supporters of Nixon, including The Chicago Tribune, believed that Nixon must resign or be impeached. As a final blow to Nixon's presidency, a tape that detailed how the administration should stop the FBI from investigating Watergate further, the "Smoking Gun" tape, was released to the public. Faced with the probability of impeachment, Nixon resigned on August 8, 1974.

                                       
                                                        Nixon's resignation address

Evidence shows that Nixon was not behind the Watergate break-ins, but subsequent actions to cover up his committee members' affiliations with it were the cause of his presidency's downfall.

Sources:
https://www.emaze.com/@ACQZZRTO/The-Watergate
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal#Initial_cover-up
http://www.historycommons.org/timeline.jsp?timeline=nixon_and_watergate_tmln&nixon_and_watergate_tmln_nixon_resignation_and_pardon=nixon_and_watergate_tmln_nixon_resignation

The Life of Fidel Castro

Fidel Castro was born in Biran, Cuba, in 1926 as the third child of six. His father was a wealthy sugar plantation owner and his mother was the maid to his father's first wife. In his college years, Castro delved into the world of nationalism, anti-imperialism, and socialism. With a passion for social justice, Castro sought to expose General Batista, who was planning a coup on the government.

When Batista successfully overthrew the government and became dictator through military power, the United States recognized his new government. Castro created "The Movement" to overthrow Batista's reign. He and 150 other members stormed the Moncada military barracks, but this attack failed and Castro was imprisoned for 15 years. After being released under amnesty, Castro attacked once more with other Cuban exiles, but this was also extinguished by Batista's forces. Recovering, Castro started a guerrilla war with Batista, and, with the dwindling popular and military support of Batista's government, Castro took control of Cuba in January 1959.

                              

Castro would be sworn in as the prime minister of Cuba, where he created reforms that followed the ideals of communism. With the Agrarian Reform Act, Castro created state land control, with farmers turning into government employees. Castro's government established relations with the Soviet Union, buying their oil.

When the United States broke off relations with the Cuban government due to increasing tensions between the two countries, Castro declared the Cuban government as Socialists. The United States trained and sent 1400 Cuban exiles to overthrow Castro and his government at the Bay of Pigs, but this failed, resulting in hundreds killed and more captured. In response to this involvement, Castro accepted economic and military aid from the Soviet Union, allowing the Soviet Union to bring nuclear missiles into Cuba in hopes that the United States would be deterred from overthrowing Castro once more.

As the US and USSR agreed to remove nuclear missiles from both Cuba and secretly Turkey, Castro was left out of negotiations, losing his protection while solidifying the gap between Cuba and US relations. At this time, Castro proclaimed himself the head of the Communist Party, merging it with his own revolutionary organizations. When the USSR collapsed int 1991, the dependency of Cuba on the Soviet Union crumbled. Unemployment and inflation skyrocketed, yet Castro kept control of the government. With this, Castro was similar to Mao Zedong, since he was able to overthrow the previous government, but not able to maintain his new government, at least not by himself.

                              

Castro's health deteriorated in the next decade, officially stepping down from the Communist Party in 2011. He died on November 25, 2016 at the age of 90, and, as thousands of Cubans mourned, Cuban exiles around the world rejoiced.

Sources:
http://www.biography.com/people/fidel-castro-9241487#synopsis
https://thecubaneconomy.com/articles/2012/10/october-16-28-2012-cuban-missile-crisis-fidel-castro-the-most-dangerous-man-in-the-world/

Teapot Dome Scandal

         The Teapot Dome is a Wyoming rock formation in the shape of a teapot near a oil reserve. The Teapot Dome Scandal was when Albert B. Fall, the Secretary of Interior of President Warren. G. Harding's cabinet, was bribed and gave out lands to private companies illegally. The companies were headed by Edward Doheny and Harry Sinclair. Both paid Fall to allow them to drill into naval petroleum reserves. Harding allowed Fall to oversee and protect the Teapot Dome oil field. The bribe was 100,000 dollars, and though the reserves were only for emergency use, the bribe was too good to pass up.

          Another oilman, Leslie Miller, saw Sinclair trucks coming out of the reserve and asked for an investigation into Sinclair. The investigation was turned over the the Senate investigation committee, which found Fall guilty of accepting bribes. Fall became the first Cabinet officer to be sent to federal prison on crimes serving in office. President Harding died in between the start of the investigation and conviction, so some speculate that he could have died at the perfect moment, as he may be impeached for his potential role in the scandal.

         Sinclair and Doheny were found not guilty of bribing Fall, but Sinclair was found in contempt of Congress and for sending a team to stalk the jury members, which he received 9 months in prison. Fall was sentenced to one year and was released in 9 months as well. Harding's Cabinet shows his poor selection of Cabinet officers, and it paid dearly, though he would not live to see it.

          The Teapot Dome Scandal was the worst scandal in US history until the even more infamous Watergate Scandal by Richard Nixon.

Sources:
http://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/teapot-dome-scandal
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/cabinet-member-guilty-in-teapot-dome-scandal

Bolshevik Revolution

       The Bolshevik Party, led by V. I. Lenin, overthrew the Provisional Government on the night of November 6th, 1917. The Provisional Government itself overtook the czar in February of the same year. A group of women protesters convinced the Russian army to turn on the czar, dethroning Czar Nicholas II. However, the Provisional Government was poorly managed and fragile. On top of that, it did not take Russia out of the Great War, angering the public. It did not listen to the people, especially when both the soldiers and peasants asked for shares of land, so the people rose up and tried to overthrow the government. The Bolsheviks tried to organize the masses, but the attack failed. The ringleaders were jailed and the Bolsheviks waited for a more optimal opportunity.

      They got their opportunity when the Provisional Government killed off most of its soldiers sent to fight in an offensive, and the remnants of the army slowly defected to the Bolsheviks. In September, by showing that they were the only true opposition party to the Provisional Government, the Bolsheviks won several elections, due to having a majority in St. Petersburg Soviet, a worker's council. In November, Lenin launched an overnight dethronement of the Provisional Government, commandeering post offices, electric works, railroad stations, and banks. With a cannon shot signal, the Bolsheviks overwhelmed the Winter Palace, swiftly taking over the Provisional Government. Lenin, now the leader of the Bolsheviks, advocated for socialism as the core of the new Russia. This revolution sparked a revolutionary mindset throughout the world, even resting in the socialists and radicals in America. The new soviet republic was a new superpower, spreading the ideals of Marxism-Leninism.

Sources:

http://www.history.com/topics/russian-revolution

http://www.thenagain.info/WebChron/EastEurope/OctRev.html

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bolsheviks-revolt-in-russia

The New Deal Reform

       In Roosevelt's "New Deal," he focused on the 3 Rs, reform, relief, and recovery. Though they were all important to get the country out of the Great Depression, reform was the most essential in order to make sure that such a crisis will never happen again. Roosevelt focused on how the Great Depression came about, and saw that the cause was the failings of banks and then markets.

      Thus, he implemented a bank reform, the Glass-Steagall Act, creating the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation). He immediately closed all banks and worked the Federal Reserve to stability and trustworthiness. By strengthening the Federal Reserve, Roosevelt ensured that, if the banks failed again, the money would not be lost. This prevents panics and huge withdrawals of money, which was the catalyst to the Great Depression.

      Roosevelt then turned to the stock markets, creating the US Securities and Exchange Commission to control the stock market and oversee any unfair and fraudulent business that may lead to another stock market crash. The Securities Act of 1933 allowed for the federal government to oversee the securities of firms. This prevented falsified data, which in turn prevented misleading reports.

     Though all 3 R's, relief, recovery, and reform were essential to the normalization of the US's economy, reform was the most important part, as it handled future depressions, while recovery and relief were temporary and transitional parts. Reform was the permanent solution to the Great Depression.

Charles Ponzi and the Ponzi Scheme

      Charles Ponzi was a financial criminal and used the Ponzi Scheme, now named after him, where he paid back investors who gave him millions with the money of other investors. Ponzi started his business as a bank teller in Montreal at the Bank Zarossi, which was mainly for Italian immigrants and had absurdly high interest rates. Soon enough, the bank failed and Zarossi fled with the money to Mexico leaving Ponzi impoverished.

       Finding a checkbook, Ponzi forged a check and cashed it in, but due to the massive amount of wealth he deposited, the police became suspicious. Ponzi was caught and sent to three years in prison. After getting out, moving to the US, and failing at making money, Ponzi happened upon an IRC and found an exploit to make profit. An IRC is an international reply coupon, which could be exchanged for stamps across countries. However, the prices of each side are usually different, so Ponzi used the IRCs by buying in European countries, trading them in for higher priced US stamps, then immediately selling them for a huge profit. Ponzi blew up this exploit, creating a stock company to let the public supply the money needed to buy the IRCs, giving, at one point, 50% interest in 90 days. He created the Security Exchange Company to expand even bigger, and more investors were won over. He made more than a million dollars a week and was rapidly rising. With so many US stamps in Europe, Ponzi realized that it would be impossible to actually sell all of them, but investors kept on investing. Thus, Ponzi kept on paying them with the money from other investors and kept that cycle going. This was the essence of the Ponzi scheme, as the profits he had hoped from selling the US stamps would be impossible, but he was profiting from this scheme through the zealous investors.

                                                           

       This scheme eventually caught up to Ponzi, as investigations from all sides showed evidence that Ponzi was actually 7 million in debt, but he was making profit from liquid funds. On August 12th, 1920, Ponzi surrendered to federal authorities and was charged with 86 counts of mail fraud and 22 accounts of larceny. He served several years in prison on account of these charges and was deported to Italy after it was revealed that Ponzi never became a citizen. He died in Brazil as an Italian translator in 1949.

       Even though Ponzi did not invent the scheme, he was one of the most infamous users. Ponzi schemes still happen to this day, notably the 2008 incident by Bernard Madoff which is said to be the greatest financial fraud in history.

Sources:
http://www.biography.com/people/charles-ponzi-20650909
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Ponzi
http://mentalfloss.com/article/20377/who-was-ponzi-what-was-his-scheme
http://www.celebrateboston.com/crime/ponzi-scheme.htm

Wall Street Bombing

On September 16th, 1920, a timed bomb hidden in a wagon exploded on Wall Street in front of the Assay Office. 100 pounds of dynamite under a pile of iron sash weights, used as shrapnel, detonated into a crowd of people, killing 30 on the scene with 8 succumbing to their wounds later. The scene was described as "Other bodies, most of them silent in death, lay nearby. As I gazed horror stricken at the site, one of these forms, half-naked and seared with burns, started to rise. It struggled, then toppled and fell lifeless into the gutter.” To many, this terrorist attack paralleled the battlefield of the recent world war. It would last as the deadliest terrorist attack in US history until the Oklahoma City bombing 75 years later. 

The cause behind the attack was never truly unmasked, even though the bomb was obviously meant for the Morgan bank, across the street from the explosion. Critics believe that the cause was for the crimes Morgan committed during WWI for profit. However, this does not explain why the bomb was targeting middle class folks like clerks, instead of the wealthy businessmen that conducted such crimes. The attack was towards the general public at Wall Street and seemed like nothing more.

The perpetrators behind the attack is believed to be Italian anarchists, led by Luigi Galleani. His previous bombings in other cities showed similar traits to the bombing on Wall Street, so there is reasonable evidence that he was behind the attack. Before the attack, flyers were dropped off in Financial District mailboxes that read "we will not tolerate any longer. Free the political prisoners, or it will be sure death for all of you. American Anarchist Fighters." However, the FBI repeatedly ran into dead ends for three years, and could not find anything substantial. 

The Wall Street bombing was a senseless terrorist attack, claiming more lives than any other terrorist attack on US soil up to that point. The purpose was for revenge against the arrests of Galleanists and the deportation of Galleani. The American people responded with a Constitution rally the next day, showing that they will not be swayed by the persuasion of terrorism.

Sources: http://www.history.com/news/the-mysterious-wall-street-bombing-95-years-ago

Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act

The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 was a hastened attempt to fight the Great Depression. Advocated by Willis Hawley, an Oregon congressman, and Reed Smoot, a Utah senator, the act increased 900 American import duties. The act actually furthered the Great Depression. Even though it at first focused on only agricultural tariff level increase, more and more products were piled on and the bill turned into the second highest tariff increase bill. On June 16, 1930, the bill was signed.

The stock market crashed eight months after the tariff was put into effect from overproduction. This paralleled in the industries, as consumers cut down incredibly on spending by 10 percent, as their money fell away due to the stock market crash. Both of these were catalyzed by the tariff act.

In the middle of 1930, economists listed grievances and pleaded Hoover to veto the bill, because the tariff not only was raising the survival cost, but also limited exports and stretched foreign relations. The American exports decreased by 1 billion dollars in just Europe, and decreased by 66% globally. Soon enough, the reduction of American exports increased unemployment by 5.2%.

Though the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 was not the cause of the Great Depression, it was a catalyst to it and poisoned the health of the country.


(Smoot and Hawley)

Sources:
http://capitalism.org/free-trade/what-was-the-end-result-of-the-smoot-hawley-tariff-act/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot%E2%80%93Hawley_Tariff_Act
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Smoot-Hawley-Tariff-Act
http://americastradepolicy.com/did-the-smoot-hawley-tariff-cause-the-great-depression/
https://fee.org/articles/the-smoot-hawley-tariff-and-the-great-depression/

Post-WWI Germany

With the finalization of the Treaty of Versailles to officially lay rest the "war to end all wars," the Allied countries created harsh reparations for Germany, which was hit the hardest by the treaty. These reparations are listed in Part 8 of the treaty include gold: "Germany shall pay... the equivalent of 20,000,000,000 gold marks." To the people of Germany and to the rest of the world, these reparations were intolerable. Since the debt was so massive, Germany's economy became unstable and this cycle caused even less of the debt to be paid back. Germany was not able to fulfill its obligations after the war, and the Allies were disgruntled by this. In response to Germany's failures, France and Belgium conducted the Occupation of the Ruhr. 



The Occupation of Ruhr was for the Allied countries to extract the money themselves. Even though the occupation was successful in terms of money, the Germans were pitied by the world and thus the Dawes Plan was put into place. Germany would pay back the debts in increasing amounts. The Young plan was a more permanent plan set in place with a set date to finish reparations, 1988. The Young plan allowed Germany to pay half the sum of the Dawes Plan and a set total of 112 billion gold marks. However, since this plan was made by the Allies to aid Germany, Germans hated the plan and hated the democracy behind the plan. In 1931, the Germany economy plummeted due to the Great Depression's shockwave as the United States aided Germany in its reparations. The world reached an agreement for Germany to pay 3 billion marks ultimately to end all reparations.

German unrest developed after the treaty of Versailles, and this unrest formed political parties as a result of the occupation. The Vereinigten Vaterländischen Verbände Deutschlands emerged and pressed for monarchism, corporatism, and resistance to the treaty of Versailles. However, since this party was disorderly, the Nazis were able to rise up and take the power of Germany, leading to the next world war.

Because of the initial treaty of Versailles and all the changes from the treaty, the German people manifested a deep hatred to the Allies and democracy. Wilson predicted that the hostility of the plans to Germany would bring about an even worse world war, and he was right. The German people only needed a party and a leader, which they found in the Nazis and Adolf Hitler.

Sources:
https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007428
https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/from-isolation-to-world-war-ii-1930-1945-26/non-interventionism-200/war-debts-and-reparations-1099-9740/