Progressive Post

     While I do not believe we have complete control over the future, I do believe we can influence it heavily. The future is largely controlled by the people and what they want. In theory, the government is supposed to regulate a state, and acts as an extension of the peoples will. While that is not always the case in an ideal democracy the government should largely be under the control of the people. There are times in history when the government has had to step in, or do things that might alienate or go against the will of a large group of people, and when these things happen there is typically a response of backlash. Examples of this being the progression of the civil rights movement. Which started with the clashing ideals of northerners and southerners over slave labor. The civil war happened as a result and the Union victory resulted in the emancipation of slaves all over the US. African Americans had to fight for basic human rights for hundreds of years, but finally achieved their goal after many protests, sit-ins, and demonstrations. I believe the future can be affected if the will of the people demands it.

Progressivism: Sci-Fi Predictions about the 21st Century

1. It seems as though a lot of science fiction authors in the 20th century were able to predict the future as many of the ideas they thought of became reality. H.G. Wells predicted a lot of the creations of the nuclear age in his book The World Set Free, George Orwell predicted the age of heightened surveillance, and Fahrenheit 451 predicted things like virtual reality and a society absorbed by the media.

2. I don't believe any of the authors intended for the events of their novels to transpire. Most of them since 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 were written out of their authors perceived grievances in the world around them. They were more cautionary tales than hopes for the future.

3. I believe that 1984 did predict the level of surveillance and censorship that occurs in the modern world. Especially with the controversy around net neutrality and government surveillance. Fahrenheit 451 also predicted a society caught up with the media. While these things aren't taken to the extreme as they are in the books, they still occur now to some extent.

4. It seemed like most of the authors were predicting that society would be reduced to dystopias, but none of their imagined realities were positive.

5. I believe in the future we will probably have a better handle on interplanetary travel, and will have colonized Mars, or started to. I also think that virtual reality, augmented reality, and things of that nature will play a big part in the future of technology.




http://www.businessinsider.com/books-that-predicted-the-future-2013-9

http://mashable.com/2014/07/23/sci-fi-books-the-future/#CFUhH5I_WGqV

Henry Ford and the Ford Model T

Ford Model T Sedan

        While the Ford Model T was not the first automobile it is definitely the most iconic, and had a profound effect on industrialism and urbanization in America. The Model T was the first commercially successful car sold by the Ford Motor Company from 1908-1927, and was the most common automobile in the United States while it was produced. It provided a new form of transportation, and was the first automobile to be adopted by the masses. With the use of new manufacturing techniques, and the rising consumerism in America the Ford Model T was able to be successful, and made automobiles something that working and middle class Americans could afford. The Ford Model T was successful not only because of its time and place, but because of the measures taken to make this car the most accessible one to date.

Ford and his Quadricycle

        The Ford Model T was not the first vehicle built by Henry Ford, and there were many advancements that lead to its eventual success. The first motor vehicle built by Ford was the Quadricycle, which Henry Ford himself built in his workshop in Detroit while working at Edison Illuminating Company. After his invention he would leave the Edison Company to pursue the automobile industry, but experienced a series of failures with the Detroit Automobile Company, and the Henry Ford Company, until he formed the Ford Motor Company in 1903.  The Ford Motor company was valued at 2 million when they unveiled the Model T. At release the Ford Model T was $850 and came in six different colors. The release of the Ford Model T put Ford Motor Company on the map, and made Ford a household name.

Model T converted into Fire Truck

Ford Model T Speedster

        The Ford Model T was the perfect car for early 20th century America for many reasons, mainly because of how it was built. It was one of the first automobiles with interchangeable parts, making it easy to service and maintain. Many companies also sold kits for  users to customize the Model T to their heart's content. Many Model Ts were converted into things like tractors, fire engines, and race cars. It handled the unpaved, rough, pre-urbanization dirt roads of America well, making it perfect for the farms, country roads, and small towns of rural America. Ford was also able to decrease its price significantly with many slight changes, the most notable one being a new method of manufacturing called the assembly line in 1913. The assembly line allowed Ford to bring the $800 price tag down to $325 making it more affordable than ever. By bringing the price down considerably, and making the car suited for almost any terrain the Model T was the perfect car for the century.
        The  introduction of the automobile by Ford lead to significant strides in the urbanization of America, and the reshaping of the United States landscape. New forms of transportation were being experimented with, but none would have the impact of the automobile. With the automobile becoming apart of mainstream America, efforts were made to make the roads more suitable for drivers. Concrete and gravel highways became the standard in the United States with many businesses and attractions popping up along these new roads. The boom in the auto industry lead to booms in the petroleum industry, and in the rubber industry due to tire production. It also changed the industrial scene with its use of the assembly line making production easier and more efficient. Though the Model T was just a car it had a great impact on urbanization and industrialism in the 20th century.
       I believe the Model Ts success can be attributed to the time of its release. It came at a time when innovation was needed in transportation. People living in cities required new forms of transportation to get around the new urban areas. The economy was reaching a point where people were finally willing to spend money, and consumerism was on the rise. The Ford Model T was the first vehicle that made automobiles a non-luxury item that the average consumer could afford. This perfect timing allowed it prosper.

2017 Ford GT

        The Model T may not have been the first automobile, but it was definitely the most influential. It popularized the left-sided steering wheel, and made installment plans a standard in automobile sales. The assembly line created in 1913 is also still widely used today in the automobile industry, and cars are now something that almost anyone can afford. The automobile industry would not be where it was today without the Ford Model T, and its legacy is still present today.

Works Cited:

"Henry Ford: Motorizing America." American History, ABC-CLIO, 2017, americanhistory.abc-clio.com.  Accessed 01 Feb. 2017.

Shumsky, Neil Larry. "Automobiles." American History, ABC-CLIO, 2017, americanhistory.abc-clio.com. Accessed 01 Feb. 2017.

McGuire, William, and Leslie Wheeler. "Henry Ford." American History, ABC-CLIO, 2017, americanhistory.abc-clio.com. Accessed 6 Feb. 2017.

Dearborn. "Model T Facts." Model T Facts. The Ford Motor Company, 05 Aug. 2012. Web. 01 Feb. 2017. <https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2013/08/05/model-t-facts.html>.

"Ford Motor Company Unveils the Model T." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2017. <http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/ford-motor-company-unveils-the-model-t>.

"Model T Variations." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 July 2008. Web. 01 Feb. 2017. <http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/07/20/automobiles/collectibles/0720-MODELT_index.html>.

"SIX CYLINDER CAR FEATURE OF SHOWS." New York Times 13 Oct. 1907: n. pag. NYtimes.com. The New York Times, 13 Oct. 1907. Web. 01 Feb. 2017. <http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9F05E2DF173EE233A25750C1A9669D946697D6CF>.

The Ghost Ship Fire Incident

       

       The Oakland Ghost Ship fire was a devastating fire incident that occurred at a warehouse called the Ghost Ship in Oakland, California. On December 2, a warehouse in Oakland, CA known as the Ghost Ship burst into flames during an electronic music concert taking the lives of 36 people. 

Many factors reduced the number of survivors, one being that there was no direct route from the stairs to the exit. The front stairway, which was built by the residence, lead into an open space with no direct root. After making it downstairs people then had make their way on the circuitous path to the doorway around pianos and furniture in a very enclosed space. According to resident Carmen Brito the Ghost Ship would have been very hard to navigate for people who did not live there. The Ghost Ship was not safe, and did not mean structural standards. There were propane tanks used to heat water near piles of flammable debris as well as an old electrical system that did not work, and constantly sparked. Rats also posed a problem, but were most likely not the cause of the fire. It has been determined that the fire was mostly caused by the buildings faulty power grid.
       This Ghost Ship fire has many similarities to the Triangle Factory Fire that happened in New York in 1911. On March 25, 1911 a fire consumed the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory taking the lives of 146 people. This incident was largely the result of poor working conditions and inadequate fire safety precautions that were taken during the time. The owners of the factory locked the exit doors believing that their business would suffer if their workers tried to steal from the factory. The only other exit was the fire escape which could not bear the weight of all the workers, and was not a viable escape route. Which is similar to the lack of escape routes in the Ghost Ship incident, and raises the question: are the proper fire safety precautions being taken with buildings today?

Sources:

1. http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/12/12/us/oakland-warehouse-ghost-ship-fire.html
2. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/08/us/the-oakland-fire-delving-into-what-happened-and-why.html
3. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/11/us/the-oakland-fire-what-we-know-about-the-warehouse-owner.html
4. https://trianglefire.ilr.cornell.edu/story/sweatshopsStrikes.html

The Assimilation of Other Cultures in America

America has a long history of assimilating foreign cultures into society, and the 1800s the US government began the the process of assimilating Native Americans into America. They did this through the use of the education system, and by giving the Native Americans land to begin anew and become a part of society. In 1879, Congress created boarding schools for Native Americans, and started forcing the children of Native Americans into these schools where they were unable to practice their Native American traditions. While it was optional, most Native Americans did it because those living on reservations were denied rations otherwise, which essentially forced them to send away their children. The government hoped to rid the Native Americans children of their  culture by forcing them into an environment where their beliefs and culture were shunned. The govenrments given explanation was that it was a better alternative to "shooting indians".

https://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1700117?terms=assimilation+of+native+americans&sType=quick

https://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1699303?terms=assimilation+of+native+americans&sType=quick

https://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1690402?terms=assimilation+of+native+americans&sType=quick

USH In Class Assignment

https://archive.org/stream/conciseschoolhis02camp#page/n21/mode/2up

1.

2. Today we looked at a history textbook from 1887, and read a selection of pages talking about Native Americans during the 1600s. We did this to see what conclusions someone in school might have drawn from these textbooks in the late 1800s, and how it might have shaped their views of Native Americans.

3. If I were a student reading this textbook in the late 1800s I think this textbook would definitely have changed my view of Native Americans. The textbook calls them vengeful and states that they considered war to be "the most honorable employment,"  and that, "the one who could show the greatest number of scalps, torn from his foes, was considered the bravest warrior." These quotes make it seem like the Native Americans were warmongers, when in reality they were no more aggressive than the Europeans who colonized their land. The textbook even goes as far as to use the word "savage" interchangeably with Indian as if the terms are synonymous with each other dehumanizing them. So it would probably give me a bad impression about Native Americans.

Letters from the West

http://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibits/current/binding-the-nation/moving-west/your-letters-are-read-with-eagerness/waterman-ormsbys-letter.html 1) What was this letter(s) about? The letter was about a man who had recently purchased land in the West, and was writing for his wife and child. He sent this to his wife to inform her about his ventures in the West, and what he expected them to do in the following year. He told her that he had selected 160 acres of land as well to other plots in case that one didn’t pan out. The man told his wife that while the land is beautiful it does have its fair share of issues, but that they will be able to start a life, and live in a house made of sod that is as just as good as any other house. He later finds out that the land he had procured had been taken up by some others, but that he intended to get it back. 2) What stood out to you in the letter? The letter didn’t really pay much attention to grammar, and was mostly just a man telling his wife about his initial feelings of the West. 3) How important was the act of letter writing at this point in time to people migrating West? What did it mean to them or their loved ones? The act of writing a letter while migrating to the West was very important because it allowed settlers to communicate with those they left at home. It was the only means of communication with those in the West, so maintaining a correspondence with loved ones was important because it offered settlers a connection to those in the East.