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CH 23

The world economy started to change after WWII. World trade and consumerism started to become more than just a country thing, but instead something everyone can take part in. Markets and stores started popping up everywhere. Stores now had items from all over the world. The use of outsourcing started to become more popular. The introduction of credit cards became more and more of the norm. It is hard to even imagine a time before credit cards existed, which is sad, because so many people are no in debt. We have become a society of instant gratification and spending more than we actually have. Companies also learned to maximize profits and work around laws, often by outsourcing jobs and placing factories in places to avoid tax fees. With the movement of product so did the movement of people. Migration occurred amongst different groups and for different reasons, which included moving the industrial areas to work and sadly many women forced into sex labor. The widening gap between ...
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CH 22

As time progressed, the realization that territories and "nations" had a right to be independent of their colonizers. Country by country, did they start to claim their right to be recognized as their own. The more and more progress these colonizers made, they more they realized how contradictory their actions were. I mean think about a country fighting for more rights, but subjecting another country to harsh conditions and unequal rights? The irony right. This was opposite of what values Europeans practiced and preached to their people. But not only that-- Europe was weakened after the war, and it was a rude awakening for them to realize that they were not as powerful as they once were. Nations started to get together and actually combat colonial ways. This also led to the decline and elimination of colonies and "empires" over other places. People started to get smart and was no longer going to stand for this unfairness. Not every country go to freedom quietly. ...
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CH 21

I never really knew how big Marx was in influencing a communist movement. I knew about China and Russia, but there were many other countries that truly believed in Marxist theories. We often hear about countries who believe in communism, but to learn how about Russia's Revolution is quite interesting. Lower class people were tired of being stepped over and the country being ran by the elites. Grassroots organizations were against private property or situations where only the rich profited while the rest suffered. We often hear bad things about communism, but Russia was moving towards a revised way of Marxist theory. More fair and equal. To be honest, I know about communism but not enough to actually understand its deep concepts. While Russia seemed to know how to revolutionize their country, China took awhile before change occurred. Communism in China relied heavily on its peasants, but many were hesitant to go up against the upper crust. Women were drawn to this revolution by a ...
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Nuremberg

While I have learned and read about the Holocaust, reading about it now has a greater impact on me. It shows how far the world has come, but also how far we still have to go. Many people today still get confused on whether or not Jewish is a religion or race. The hatred that was birthed from the Holocaust is still very much alive today.  There are race wars still going on today. Hitler turned Jewish into a race and pursued to eliminate them. Even people who were completely separated from the religion or culture were suddenly identified as being jewish by blood or birth. What is interesting is that many of them were Christians and have been for awhile. This was a witch hunt, and even people who did not consider themselves to be Jewish were fearful. Hitler somehow created this new race based on hate. Just as we have read there was never any science to back up his claim. Is it all Hitler's fault? Hitler was able to step into power, and the people gave him power. He was not the only ...
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CH 20

We are in an era that we aren't quite sure if it has ended and started into a new one or what! So many changes occurred following the late 1800s. The collapse at the center is what ignited these changes. Europe was dominating in trade and in the sphere of influence. Europe being so competitive against its neighbors led to the wars that would follow. I do remember learning about wars, but I never realized how it truly started and that it partly was rooted in the industrial revolution. It may be a stretch but it did drive greed even more. With WWI I do remember European conflicts. I do not recall the Great Depression as being one of the results of that. I also didn't realize that it affected more than just the US. The Great Depression was a result of people not having enough money to spend, which then just created a surplus of product, which trickled back to having less jobs etc. That is such an interesting thought, since you would think US consumerism would have gone down by n...
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Ch 19

Strayer seems to have a whole chapter on the demise of the Ottoman Empire and China's crisis. It is interesting that we knew very little of their success and now a little bit of their failures etc. Looking at China now and how over populated their country is, it is good to actually know some of the why's and how their country grew to be just so. China could not provide for the increasing population, but at least now we know why. Other countries were growing in population, but it truly was the industrial revolution that helped accommodate those extra people. Industrial Revolution also move people into a forward era. For example, Europe was progressing, and their economic boom is what helped. China struggled, and most of their population ended up being peasants, unemployed and led to many starving people. Their economy was taking a turn. From being known as a powerful, leading country-- eventually started to falter. They started to rely on Europe for their needs. Of course Europe...
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CH 18 + Documents

Europe's western expansion halted once North America was acquired, now it was about colonizing in Asia, Africa and Oceania. What is surprising is new countries were now involved, including more European countries, United States and Japan. These countries ended up being know as the "Great Powers", which seem similar to today's top countries. Things have not changed. We continually are looking for a better product to see, more resources and more land. Today, most of the products in the US are made in China. What is interesting is how Europe wanted to sell to China due to its huge population, however we now have become heavily invested in products made in China. Oh how the tables have turned. US became its own power and started to see that power and influence meant acquiring land. Afro-Asian countries and territories were not about what they had to offer, it was just about who own who and how much. It is similar to today, we are constantly comparing ourselves to other ...
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