The changing quality of life 1917-80 Flashcards Preview

History A-Level Pearson Edexcel - USA 1917-1980, South Africa 1948-1994, British Empire 1763-1914 > The changing quality of life 1917-80 > Flashcards

Flashcards in The changing quality of life 1917-80 Deck (98)
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1
Q

Issues with farming post WWI?

A

Prices fell, and continued falling due to overproduction due to subsidised farmers and mechanisation - farmhands sacked. boll weevil hurt cotton growers

2
Q

Issues with industry post WWI?

A

Strikes to gain better working standards ended in failure, with some businesses closing, coal demand decreased

3
Q

What percentage of energy was created by coal in 1900 and 1930?

A

90% and then down to 60%

4
Q

Issue with government reaction to events post WWI?

A

Isolationist tariffs meant that exports fell

5
Q

What caused a boom to do with production?

A

Mass production caused goods such as cars and radios to be made quicker and cheaper, this in turn caused transportation industry to boom as materials and products were moved around

6
Q

How did new management techniques cause a boom?

A

Individual workers were made very efficient at their job, and also paid good wages to stay around

7
Q

How did federal polices aid the boom?

A

Minimal government intervention in industry and low taxes caused American goods to be cheap so people bought them

8
Q

How did hire purchase and loans aid the boom?

A

As it was seen as acceptable to have a loan with hire purchase schemes like Sears, people bought more things even if they didn’t have the money

9
Q

Consumer debt in 1920 and 1929

A

$3.3 billion and then up to $7.6 billion

10
Q

How did changing industry help the boom?

A

Need for electricity for goods caused new need for electricity to be bought to homes - 1917 8m homes, 1930 25m homes

11
Q

Which 2 terms sum up why the stock market grew in the 1920s?

A

Bull Market and buying on the margin

12
Q

What foreshadowed the Wall Street Crash?

A

Increasing unemployment in 1927 and goods piling up in warehouses

13
Q

Why was laissez-faire still followed during the Wall Street Crash?

A

Things were fine in the end in 1919

14
Q

What fraction of banks in 1929 were bust in 1933?

A

1/3rd

15
Q

What should one call the market in October of 1929?

A

A Bear Market

16
Q

What did Roosevelt do about the banks when entering office?

A

He closed all of them and only reopened FED-approved healthy ones

17
Q

How did demand aid affluence post WWII?

A

Increased demand for consumer goods due to lack of money spent on these during the war lead to production increasing $71 billion between 1945-50

18
Q

How did government intervention aid post WWII affluence?

A

Truman’s strength in threatening to draft miners and rail workers into the army caused no strikes in 1952

19
Q

How did the baby-boom aid post WWII affluence?

A

Industries such as nappy and toy ones grew - new consumers

20
Q

Nappy sales in 1947 and 1957?

A

£32 million and then up to $50 million

21
Q

How did Congress aid post WWII affluence?

A

1949 National Housing Act cleared slums and built new houses (810,000 of them), and GI Bill helped train workers

22
Q

What happened after the Office of Price Administration was shut down in 1946?

A

Inflation rose by 25%

23
Q

How did Truman’s love of setting up new groups aid affluence post WWII?

A

Employment Act of 1946 created Council of Economic Advisors for the President

24
Q

How did changing attitude aid affluence post-WWII?

A

Consumerism was positively patriotic

25
Q

How many children under 15 was there in 1950 and 1960?

A

43m up to 57m

26
Q

How did suburbia aid affluence post WWII?

A

Houses were cheap to build, so were built, and cheap to buy (sometimes as low as $7,000) so people could spend more money elsewhere

27
Q

How can America been seen to falter economically during the 50s?

A

Other nations (like Japan) were better at building things (like small transistor radios)

28
Q

Number of homeowners in 1920 and 1940?

A

6,700,000 and 20,000,000

29
Q

Number of renters in 1920 and 1940?

A

13,000,000 and 15,000,000

30
Q

How did production change of luxury goods after WWII?

A

Lots of different colours and variations, as well as less sturdy goods so they needed to be replaced more often

31
Q

Percentage of homes with TV in 1950/55/60

A

9% and 65% and 85%

32
Q

How did an enjoyable evening change in the 1950s?

A

As people had TV and ‘TV dinners’ they could stay at home and have an enjoyable time

33
Q

How did advertising change in the 50s?

A

More focus on certain groups, in particular children

34
Q

How much money did Davy Crockett racoon-skin caps make in 1955?

A

$100 million

35
Q

How did Americans health change after WWII?

A

They became less healthy as they craved things missed during the war

36
Q

Pre-tax Coca-Cola sales in 1950 and 1959

A

$56m and $79m

37
Q

How did teenagers spend most of their money?

A

Transportation - cars (38% overall), clothing and sports (24%), Food and drink - more than adults and helped dairy industry with ice cream (22%) and entertainment (16%) - movies like The Blob (1958)

38
Q

Percentage of people who owned their own homes in 1940 and 1960

A

44% and then up to 62%

39
Q

What was the problems with the dollar during the 60s?

A

Price of dollar tied to gold price since 1944, and with inflation increasing money supply was the only way to avoid a crash, like in 1966 when the supply was reduced

40
Q

Why was stagflation more of an issue for some than others?

A

While some jobs such as miner had wages linked to CPI, those who didn’t had major issues

41
Q

What was the US’s output of the world’s manufactured goods in 1953 and 1973?

A

29% down to 13%

42
Q

What was the issue for US businesses trying to expand in the 70s?

A

High business taxes, and inflation made buying goods expensive, as well as decreasing productivity

43
Q

Why was government action ineffective in the 70s?

A

They were fearful of public rage, and had large levels of spending with social service payments linked to CPI (including Vietnam veterans), money supply contained in 1979 by Federal Reserve, not by government

44
Q

What was life like in a fuel crisis?

A

Long queues for fuel, speed limit of 55mph and in first crisis of two fuel rationing with ration books

45
Q

Why did fuel prices increase in 1973?

A

OPEC embargoed USA for supporting Israel in Arab-Israeli War, prices still four times as high as there were after the war had ended in Jan 1974

46
Q

When was the second fuel shortage?

A

May to July 1979

47
Q

Why were the fuel shortages so damaging for the government?

A

Many could drive before drinking and voting so seen as vital, and due to government stockpiling people began to see government as making things worse

48
Q

Inflation in 1978 and 1979?

A

5.8% and 7.1%

49
Q

What did Carter do to try to halt the fuel crisis?

A

1979 fireside chat style talk, crisis in confidence speech, as well as austerity measures on defense and elsewhere to avoid more government debt

50
Q

What occurred in general with wealth in the 60s?

A

Divides increased between rich and poor, manager and worker

51
Q

1960 average income for white and black family

A

$5,800 and $3,200

52
Q

Percentage of suburbs in 60s which were black

A

4%

53
Q

Why was life bad for many in the inner cities?

A

Subdivided or rented houses were left to rot or burnt down by landlords claiming insurance, and planned shrinkage caused lack of facilities

54
Q

Proportion of people on welfare in South Bronx in 70s?

A

Well over half

55
Q

What did LBJ do to tackle poverty?

A

War on poverty, agency with 130 staff and $960m

56
Q

What were CAPs?

A

Community Action Programmes such as free clinics for pre-natal mothers, which collated evidence of an issue in their area and presented solutions to them

57
Q

How did Nixon change welfare?

A

Workfare not welfare, closing down of Office of Economic Opportunity and increasing food stamp scheme alongside linking welfare to inflation

58
Q

What are examples of Nixon’s changes to welfare?

A

Earned Income Tax Credit giving families working $400 a year, as well as Family Assistance Plan of 1970, supporting controlling family number and reducing welfare payments

59
Q

What was set up to help the poor in 1978?

A

National Consumer Cooperative Bank offering cheap loans to cooperative organisations in urban areas, helping those that work grow

60
Q

What was set up in 1981 to help the rural poor?

A

Rural Development Loan Fund giving grants to community projects such as clinics or electrification

61
Q

How did Carter change policy in his last two years?

A

More interest in tax cuts to grow business, but public and Congress had lost faith already

62
Q

Industries which gained in the 1920s

A

US chemicals as well as electricity industry with consumption more than doubling

63
Q

Facts for general productivity gain in 1920s

A

Industry increased by almost 100% and a car every 10 seconds for Model T in 1925

64
Q

Importance of car manufacturing

A

1927 7% of manufacturing earners were in automobile production, with one car for every fifth person in 1929

65
Q

Facts showing US issues in mid-1932

A

Trade was 30% of 1929 levels and industry was half that same level, unemployment at 25%

66
Q

Failures of New Deal

A

11m still jobless in 1934, 10m in 1939

67
Q

What happened when spending was cut in 1937?

A

Crash was worse than 1929, with industrial production down a third and national income down a tenth, Roosevelt has to ask Congress for a $3.8bn spending package

68
Q

Facts showing help of war to economy

A

1.2% unemployment in 1944, profits of farmers doubled during war

69
Q

3 reasons for affluence

A

Cheap oil helped transport, Americans had saved during war, more scientific development aided productivity

70
Q

US GNP in 1950 and 1960

A

$350bn up to $490bn

71
Q

Number of cars manufactured in 1955

A

8m

72
Q

Growth during JFK

A

20% GNP increase, 22% industry increase, 15% personal income rise, but some 1961/2 slowdowns

73
Q

Problems of late 1960s economy

A

Trade deficit tripled between 1966-67, inflation started with no increase in productivity

74
Q

Benefits of 1920s for workers

A

Real wages up by a third

75
Q

1920s who didn’t benefit

A

Textile workers and coal miners, farming with decline in international demand, blacks

76
Q

Weekly earnings loss with Great Depression

A

1/3rd

77
Q

New Deal saving grace agency

A

Federal Emergency Relief Act of 1933 - jobs not welfare

78
Q

People with poor standards of living post-1936

A

Dust-bowl dwellers and ‘one third of a nation ill-housed, ill-clad, ill-nourished’

79
Q

WWII limit to standard of living

A

1942 General Maximum Price Regulation - rationing on some goods

80
Q

Example of success in suburbs

A

Levitt Brothers in 1947 with Hempstead in Long Island, 17,000 homes at $8,000 (expensive) but high standard of living with double space of normal home

81
Q

Examples of critics of consumerism

A

JK Galbraith in The Affluent Society, 1958, Americans cared more for themselves materialistically than poor, and David Riesman who saw consumerism as undermining traditional American values such as hard work

82
Q

Nixon’s attempts to fix the economy

A

New Economic Policy of 1971 put in wage-freeze and devalued dollar, but woes continued, with further devalue in 1973 then wage and price controls abandoned and prices rocketed

83
Q

1976-77 issues for economy

A

Harsh winter led to gas shortage and closure of schools and factories in East to conserve fuel

84
Q

1979 woes for petrol

A

Half of stations had no gas, prices were 50% more than 1978

85
Q

Spending on leisure in 1919 and 1929

A

$2.5bn up to $4.3bn

86
Q

3 fazes of entertainment in 1920s

A

Mahjong in early 1920s, then crossword puzzles, then mini golf by 1930

87
Q

Number of speakeasies in NYC in 1929

A

32,000, double that of before prohibition

88
Q

Number who saw 6-part World Series Final in 1921

A

300,000

89
Q

Changes made to make sport better

A

Redesigning baseball to a standard more lively version in 1925

90
Q

Examples of interest in college football

A

1928 University of Michigan with 87,000 person stadium, knowledge of Knute Rockne with 13 years as coach, winning 80% of games for Notre Dame

91
Q

When was NFL formed and when did it grow?

A

1920, then when ‘Red’ Grange moved from college to NFL Chicago Bears in 1925 things took off

92
Q

First Super Bowl

A

1967

93
Q

Evolution of baseball post-WWII

A

1947 Brooklyn Dodgers signed Jackie Robinson, first black MLB player, Dodgers and NY Giants moved to West for financial reasons in 1950s, and 1970s Latin American players became popular

94
Q

When were planes used more than trains and cross-Atlantic steamships?

A

1955 and 1958

95
Q

Growth of air flight in 1950s

A

Douglas DC-6s took 50 passengers from NY to LA in 10 hours

96
Q

Growth of flight in 1960s

A

Mid 1960s 50% travelled for pleasure, not business, and passengers tripled through 1960s

97
Q

Issues for flight in 1970s

A

Fuel crisis quadrupled plane fuel price

98
Q

Loss for domestic airline industry 1979-83

A

$1.2bn