#newdeal

[drlevit]

WIP!!

[whencyclopedia]

False Dawn: The New Deal and the Promise of Recovery, 1933–1947

George Selgin’s "False Dawn: The New Deal and the Promise of Recovery 1933-1947" provides a measured and calculated investigation of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s efforts to lift the United States out of the Great Depression. Selgin, a professor emeritus in economics at the University of Georgia and former senior fellow at the Cato Institute, does not deliver a polemic against FDR in the manner the title would suggest. The book’s cover also does not give a clue to Selgin’s focus.

The reader is greeted with an iconic photo, likely recognizable from any lower division textbook or online article, of men waiting in line for a meal. The photo is misleading for two reasons. First, it is dated to 1931. Although relevant in showing a line of unemployed men presumably out of work from the Depression, it was taken during President Herbert Hoover’s term, not his successor, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the focus of the book. Secondly, George Selgin sets a specific expectation by using this photo. It shows men full of dread, uncertain about the future. Surely, this work will provide an intimate look at the lives of struggling Americans who found, as the title indicates, a false dawn in the New Deal.

In actuality, Selgin gives readers just over 300 pages of distant, erudite economic analysis. From his preface, Selgin does not seem to grasp who his work is directed towards. In the book's Preface, he writes,

False Dawn isn’t meant just for academics and other experts. Its intended audience includes anyone interested in the Great Depression or the New Deal or anyone who just wants to learn more about how governments can and cannot fight recessions and depressions. For those reader’s sakes, I’ve left out the more technical details of statistical and theoretical works to which I refer. I’ve also tried my best to avoid both economics jargon and the stilted mannerisms and bombast characteristic of so much academic prose. (xiii)

However, this book is not for someone who just has a personal curiosity about the Depression. Despite what he said in the Preface, Selgin does not leave his statistics, theories, jargon, and so forth at the door. Chapters like those on the Federal Reserve and the Roosevelt Recession greet readers with charts mapping the “Adjusted Demand Deposits, All Commercial Banks, Plus Currency Held by Public for United States” and “Actual and projected average hourly earnings, 1929-1939," respectively. It would also do the reader well to know British Economist John Maynard Keynes, given the prominence of his ideas and correspondence in Selgin's book.

Readers may try other titles like The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression (2007) by Amity Shlaes, which is widely regarded as a scathing critique of Roosevelt more overtly than Selgin. For a more generous take on the president's efforts, H.W. Brands's Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (2008) is an alternative.

Beyond these hurdles, False Dawn does accomplish Selgin’s intent as a critique of the New Deal's recovery. Banking, farming, the Hoover-era Reconstruction Finance Corporation (which Roosevelt used), the National Recovery Administration, and more are given their due. Selgin also commendably delves into the impacts of World War Two and how the nation avoided a postwar downturn.

With extensive references to both the secondary sources from his fellow economists and primary sources on the correspondence between government officials and studies released during the Depression, Selgin has done his homework. Curious parties need to have less of a grasp of history and more of an understanding of economics to follow along. For individuals with the curiosity of a historian and the expertise of an economist, False Dawn should scratch the itch, endowing them with a more quantitative and measured insight into the Roosevelt Administration.

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⇒ False Dawn: The New Deal and the Promise of Recovery, 1933–1947

[azspot]

DRAFTING A NEWER DEMOCRATIC DEAL WITH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

A blog about science, technology, science fiction, books, and the future.

[govpubsfinds]

The Federal Art Project was a part of the New Deal which employed nearly 400 artists who collectively created over 100,000 works of art-- including paintings, prints, murals, photographs mosaics, sculptures, and more. The Federal Art Project also made art more accessible throughout the US by funding live theater and music and art classes throughout the country.  

Federal Art Project of Works Progress Admin. The Art Story. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2022, from https://www.theartstory.org/definition/federal-art-project-of-the-works-progress-administration/

Free art classes for children & adults under ... - library of Congress. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2022, from https://www.loc.gov/resource/cph.3b49028/

National Archives and Records Administration. (n.d.). A New Deal for the Arts. National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved November 15, 2022, from https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/new_deal_for_the_arts/#

[rufusdayglo]

I drew this in 2015 and put in a DC comics series I was drawing. Even then it obvious how Trump would play out. There is never any defence or apology big enough for supporting fascism. Anyone who voted for the GOP, the Tories, or Voted Leave the EU can go fuck themselves with a sharp stick. Fuck you, you racist greedy self serving twerps. Impeach Trump, round up the proud boys and racist terrorists and jail them all. There must be a reckoning. We need to NOT go back to the old status quo. We need a need to rebuild our system from the ground up, and create equity and fairness. Otherwise there will be far worse days to come. #rebuild #demandbetter #nostatusquo #newdeal #fucktheGOP #fucktheTories #fuckfascism https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ_oFNqBSbUvJeACi5aI8Hzg33X5g0x6rc66IM0/?igshid=1lzhy1hl36qt

[gpfans]

BREAKING: Hamilton finally signs new deal with Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton has finally committed his future to Mercedes by signing a deal to remain with the team for the 2021 season.

Hamilton has FINALLY signed to remain with Mercedes for another year. Did you ever really doubt that he would? 

[ignorantsanonymous]

Tackling climate change seemed expensive. Then COVID happened.

A new study finds that just one-tenth of COVID stimulus spending would be enough to limit global warming.

Tackling climate change seemed expensive, then COVID happened. The money countries have put on the table to address COVID-19 far outstrips the low-carbon investments that scientists say are needed in the next five years to avoid climate catastrophe — by about an order of magnitude.

[cbaillustration]

Super exciting news! @creativeactionnetwork is releasing a new book about the #greennewdeal and I have a page in it! This book is formatted poster-size and has perforated edges on each page, so you can tear them out and hang them on your wall. Check out their account to purchase a copy! A portion of royalties will be donated to the @sunrisemvmt ☀️ . The project was inspired by the WPA posters of the New Deal (I’m personally a huge fan of that era of illustration! Such beautiful work) as we reach another critical point in America’s innovation. It’s time for a big change. . Also fun fact: my super talented love @jordamn42 was chosen for the cover! (Swipe to see) and has two pages on the inside. So excited and proud of him! 🧡 . . . . . . . . . . . . . #wpa #newdeal #wpaposters #greennewdeal🌍✌🏼️💚 #greennewdealart #creativeactionnetwork #activismart #environmentaljustice #environmentalracism #environmentalart #femaleillustration #greennewdealposter #artguide_illustration #weareillustration #illustration_society #illustragram #contemporaryillustration #advocateforchange #aoc #globalwarmingisreal #environmentalactivism #democraticsocialism #savetheplanet #climatestrike #sustainability #sustainabilityart #climateart #politicalrevolution #greennewdealbook (at Austin, Texas) https://www.instagram.com/p/CEmvyArlBMr/?igshid=1850e7s7fwowe