History Journal Entries

In the late 1800's there was much change with our quickly evolving society. One of the big issues the politicians danced around to drum up votes especially in the presidential running was support of the freed former slaves. The south was predominately Democratic the Republicans wasted to swing the south their way with this preaching to the blacks the right to vote. On the other side they were trying to rouse the whites with issues pertaining to their way of life. Just like a politician to talk the talk but not deliver on anything they promised. They were well educated conmen plain and simple this is one thing that still has not changed even in today's society. This was a volatile time with the growth and forward change of the society.

3. City bosses now there was a racket for political types that did not want to get into the legitimate side of politics. Now that does sound like an oxymoron so let me explain. In my view this was organized crime but the history books glorify it by calling them city bosses or ward boss. They were good at intimidating people and forcing them to do as they withed all for the boss's profit. Just like the mafia they had control of their section of the city. They protected their people as long as they paid the kickback to the boss. The boss fixed problems with his people and also educated them to be able to conform to our society. They were crooked individuals who did find themselves on the wrong side of the law if they were not careful.

4. Progressivism that sounds like the people are ready and trying to move forward. Well that is what it sounds like but it was just another title for the politicians to try and separate themselves from the rest of the pack. Yes the government was stagnating and there was a need for change to keep up with the evolution of the society of the time. The corporations and industry was evolving fast and only a few were able to stay on top of the ball. This caused several buy outs and mergers that created monopolies the people were not comfortable with this due to the fact it directly affected their pocket. The progressive movement wanted to break up the giants or have them more strictly controlled by the government to protect the consumer.

5. State laws in the progressive era slowly began to take up work issues. Most of the laws they passed were of the unenforceable kind. Just like the government to pass laws they have no ability to enforce. The work hour's law was written so loosely that the factories had so much grey area to maneuver in that the law could not be enforced. They did get better at wording their laws but it took time to find the correct way to write them down. As in the railroad industry they used fatigued as a key word in the law. Stating that long work hours and fatigue were causing railroad accidents, this wording made the industry watch and limit their work hours. This shows the learning curve of the law writers of the early days.

6. Our westward expansion to link up with China markets we found Hawaii a perfect stop over for the journey. The country was anxious to open trade routes with both China and Japan. I can say one thing that I am happy that they did pursue the annexation of Hawaii. This was more than just a beautiful island it was a great strategic placement for trade and military placement. Since the trade routes have begun to open in East Asia this would later prove true as we know what the future holds for them. Although the annexation took longer than expected it finally happened due to the Spanish-American war. Funny how they feared Hawaii would fall into Britain or Japan's hands. Once a real conflict broke out with neither of the above the congress would do what needed to be done years ago.

7. Now the Spanish-American was fought to free Cuba from the Spanish,