The Injustice of the Spanish-American War

The Spanish-American War was an unjust war, because the United States compromised its principal values for the values of an imperialist country. The U.S. had fought against Spain in order to give Cuba, the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico their chances at liberty and freedom. The invasion of Spanish land occurred after the explosion and destruction of the U.S.S Maine, but before the United States could even discover if the explosion were a malicious attack, the U.S. declared war on Spain. The idea of adding colonies to the country would transform America into an American empire. The Spanish-American War was also unjust, because the United States remained and controlled the territories to which they promised liberty and freedom. Overall, the Spanish-American War was an unjust war, because it compromised the core values of the United States, and because the U.S. controlled the territories to which they had promised liberty and freedom.

The Importance of the Shirtwaist Factory Fire in Current Day

After reading articles about the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, I realize the importance that the fire still has on modern day society. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire illustrated the lack of power that the workers had in the workplace. The fire was caused by a cigarette that ignited a pile of clothes lying on the floor, and the death toll was higher, because the exit doors were locked and blocked to prevent labor unions from entering. Today, we have clean working conditions, minimum wage, and social security, which are all social reforms that stemmed from the tragic fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. These social benefits are too often forgotten today, but it took many deaths and horrific scenes, such as the fire, to prove why workers needed cleaner working conditions and other benefits. Overall, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire is still important to us today, because it illustrated how poor the working conditions were, and because it led the movement to improve working conditions, establish minimum wage, and create social security, which we have today.

Modern Day Philanthropy

I read about Warren Buffett and how he plans to give 99% of his wealth to philanthropic foundations. This idea of the wealthiest people in America giving their money away to charity reminds me of "The Gospel of Wealth", which was written by Andrew Carnegie. In "The Gospel of Wealth", Carnegie has a list of seven things that the wealthiest Americans should do with their money in order to help the common good. Carnegie believed that the wealthy should fund universities, and give money to create or to fund public schools, libraries, hospitals, medical schools, parks, recreational places, meeting halls, auditoriums, swimming pools, and places of worship. The modern day Carnegies are people like Warren Buffett, who have tons of money, and plan to give that money to better the community and the overall world. Buffett also reminds me of Carnegie, because of his approach to wealth. Buffett says, "My wealth has come from a combination of living in America, some lucky genes, and compound interest." The belief of social Darwinism comes to mind when Buffett says that genes are a part of his success. The idea of social Darwinism was believed by Carnegie, and is still believed today by people as wealthy as Carnegie, such as Warren Buffett. Warren Buffett also said, "I will continue to annually distribute about 4% of the shares I retain. At the latest, the proceeds from all of my Berkshire shares will be expended for philanthropic purposes by 10 years after my estate is settled. Nothing will go to endowments; I want the money spent on current needs." Buffett shows his desire to spend money on the community, and illustrates how he will do so. I believe that Buffett’s contribution is economically enough money for anyone to give, but I think Buffett could do more by donating his time. He said in his letter, "Moreover, this pledge does not leave me contributing the most precious asset, which is time." I believe that people like Buffett do give a lot to those who have less, and to organizations, but I feel that Buffett could also volunteer his time, which I believe is more important than any sum of money, even if it is 99% of Buffett’s income.

Populism in America Today

After watching Barack Obama's State of the Union Address, and after reading David Brooks' article, "The Populist Addiction", I have decided that populist ideology still exists today.  Today is very different from the late 19th century when populism first started, but some of the populist ideology from 1896 is still seen today. When reading, "The Populist Addiction", by David Brooks, I realized populism plays a role in American politics.  Mr. Brooks described in his article how populism divides the country.  He wrote,  “They’ve taken to dividing the country into two supposedly separate groups –real Americans who live on Main Street and the insidious interests of Wall Street.” (David Brooks, The Populist Addiction)  This is very true today.  The country is very much divided into two groups, which are Republicans and Democrats.  This division of the country into the working class agianst the industrialists began when populism first started back in 1896, and still exists today.  The populist movement was fueled, and is still fueled, by the idea of government helping out the people who are economically disadvantaged.  I also saw this populist idea in Barack Obama's State of the Union Address.  In his address, Barack Obama spoke about how America must tax the upper one percent of Americans, and how America should have tax cuts for the lower ninety-nine percent.  President Obama also talked about how he wanted to reform education in America by making college education affordable for students, and by creating more schools dedicated to skill building, with government help.  These ideas of making colleges more affordable for students, giving the lower ninety-nine percent of Americans tax cuts, and giving financial assistance to the unemployed, are all populist ideals.  Since the birth of populism in the late 19^th century, populism has continuously found its way into American politics.  These ideas of helping the less fortunate through government aid and through government reform are examples of how populism is still existent today.