Author: ALEXANDER NG

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This semester has been a wild ride, some parts were tougher than others, and some were more enjoyable too, but I can not not deny the fact that I now have more confidence in American business history than before. This semester has left me constantly thinking and searching for bits of history that are normally overshadowed by events that are generally distinctive. Aside from said generic and obvious events, I came into class knowing very vaguely about business history. The furthest I know was only the beginning, about the Columbian exchange with the Old and New world, and some pieces of records from the 19th and 20th century. All the other facts were new to me, and I have to say that American business and capitalism have come a long way since when it was established. I used to think that capitalism was just simply an economic system that focuses on individual profit, but now I see that it includes investments and profits, a cycle, a lifestyle for the country. 

My surprise comes from the amount of economic revolutions that occurred throughout the course of American business history, from the sheer amount, to how early the first ones have been since. A consumer revolution in the Anglo Atlantic World, and the infamous Shay’s Rebellion of 1787, struck me surprised by their dates. Also, not too long since America was established, mercantilism was the face of the economic system rather than capitalism, which I also found worthwhile and interesting. Finally, this was more confirmation than surprise or news, but capitalism goes hand in hand with war, as shown in WWI and WWII.

Studying about business history from a modern business or economic perspective gives insight, and shared experience. It creates context, lets others know that America has been in the business of creating deals for a long time, and they know of successes and failures from them. It becomes a guide for future generations, and may provide some useful advice to them if it were needed.

Thank you for reading my final blog, this semester has been a blast.

The reading “Reflation and Relief”, by Eric Rauchway, provided very insightful information about Franklin D. Roosevelt’s ideals and his core beliefs in business and his New Deal program. In 1933, FDR began to work as the figurehead of the country, when the country’s economy was in shambles, FDR pursued redemption and to even better the economy so that such a decline would never again repeat. The impressive part was that FDR adopted this isolationist reconstruction plan, without the help of other nations, FDR was able to steer the economy back into place and restore all businesses that were failing and in decline. However, by far one of, if not the most, crucial change FDR implemented was towards the banks. As someone who is not too familiar with the feats of most presidents, FDR was indeed was one who stood out uniquely. Due to his efforts, FDR changed the standard gold exchange for money, thanks to the Emergency Bank Act of 1933, to halt the exchange of gold, and the 1934 Gold Reserve Act, that boosted the price of gold, and lessening its circulation in the economy. However, luck was strangely bestowed as other nations were willing to exchange gold for dollars, a surprising turnout for everyone.

FDR was hailed a good leader for his New Deal was noted to have done much more good to the nation than previous presidents. The nation was too loosely lax with individualism when it came to business, they let monopolies and depressions occur because of the laissez-faire system. FDR’s heavy enforcement on government intervention. Thanks to his efforts, the government played a bigger role stepping into the fray, and helped more individuals than hurt. The New Deal congress was able to grant more jobs to healthy men, give them a job for any and every field in the US, business, land, agriculture, and military occupations were in supply to a lot of people.

It was quite a read for someone not adept in presidential history, I had heard of FDR before, I just never knew how big a deal he was, I can understand that every president has their pros, flaws, and shortcomings, but I can understand that the role is more daunting than it appears. I for one have a new found respect for FDR, his time in the head seat was longer than most, and his efforts actually turned the economy around and helped quite a lot of people, even up till today.

The passage written by David Montgomery summarizes several points as to how entrepreneurs develop strong businesses, how were the wages when during passing decades, the strategies used by monopolies and elites, government interfering benefits and consequences, and what factors lead to economic crashes. He starts off the chapter with the advancements made in technological fields of trading, transportation, and most importantly manufacturing. The North and South is still in the midst of recovering from their civil war and geographical conditions are affecting production and manufacturing, although, tensions still seem to be still high if the former Confederate states are being omitted from benefits. On the topic of separation, economic classes became a larger issue, race and religion become subjects of prejudice, and political parties clash during the mid 19th century.

During the mid 19th century, the country has gone through a drastic growth spurt in the field of production. With the focus on production being made more efficient with machinery and factories, America has become the top contender for most efficient country in mechanical manufacturing. This leads to the economy growing, and the elites to further the gap between them and the lower class. They call themselves capitalists, yet they see their employees as human resources and issues, they even go as  far as to refer to their status as “middle class”, which begs the question, where does that leave their employees at? (Montgomery, 14) In the passage, the working class were only acknowledged by their superiors when they are working, when they are not, they become strayed from capitalism. If one wishes to earn their keep, they must become earners, but this is taking it too far when the working class works for measly wages and not being treated human. Even less then human is the hysteria of workers coming from abroad, those who have different faith, and those of differing political parties. In modern times, wages and employment are not determined by who one was, but here showed otherwise. An example, Hamilton Manufacturing Company of Massachusetts had different wages for those of Irish and Swedish descent, and also gender. (Montgomery, 41) Montgomery points out that the wages of the masses are very conflicting controversial, nearly the entirety of the 19th century was filled with strife, the civil war, great crash, and even more conflict with the elite and middle classes because of who one was and the lack of much interference to the elites’ growth.

The reading from Mandell presented that the New World and the Americans of the 18th century had already transformed into such a capitalistic state. Its good when a society is able to handle itself economically, socially, and politically, but the travesty is when the people fight amongst themselves.  Amongst the people, fear and passion were widely spotted from ,”the specter of public debt speculation,” and “the popular passions over the French Revolution, and the emergence of warring political party.”(Mandell, 80) The New World has already fallen to a land tainted by capitalism, while it brought it profits, innovations, and progress, it is also cursed with the over impeding internal struggles and growing economy. After having gotten their independence from the mother country, America was now its own nation, after years of wars and prejudice, but how to distribute wealth and power, was a beast of its own kind.

Americans then have to compete with each other for social statuses, from following the prejudice of their former parent country, America has shown signs of aristocracy, they became their enemy, a nark. America has already showed signs of diffusion, the North and the South. While the North still abuse the power of enslaved laborers, the South has already showed signs of succession. Those who used slaves, typically make the most capital from the rest of the population, that somehow created a title for themselves. The South was not like that, but the North seems to be insistent about continuing slavery as a business. Furthermore, slavery and capital became a cornerstone and decisive precursor to who had actual power, voice, and votes. For the so called land of the Free, slavery was continuing, and not everyone was fairly represented due to the property ownership prerequisite for voting. Its almost as if separation of the colonies was inevitable and that they did not learn their lesson with their independence mission movement.