In Judith Stein’s “Pivotal Decade” preface starts with comparing the 1970s to the 1930s. It was the only decade where “Americans ended up poorer than they began.” (Stein, preface xi). This was known as the “deepest recession” since WW2, because of several factors, including, high oil prices, unemployment and inflation.
In addition, Stein gives an explanation on how Japan and Germany’s competition took place in the 1970s. New changes were needed. Not only this but also, Stein writes about how “the Age of Compression became the Age of Inequality” (Stein, preface, xii). Income and wealth played a big role and were also “redistributed”. She mentions how the Democratic Party and the GOP worked. Finally, the Age of Compression ended in 1973. After reading Stein’s preface, it felt interesting to learn more in depth about the economy and the events back then, since I only took an introductory history course.
Subsequently, in chapter one, Stein highlights how life was better in 1945. For example, Americans were in a much better economic position than other nations. For example, people owned houses and cars. “After WW2, the economy grew 4% a year” and poor people also had the opportunity to gain more. Some economists call this era the “Great Compression” (Stein, 1). Overall, Stein discusses the economic problems, the role of the government, and how problems were solved.
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