Chapter 21

   Talk about an eye opener! Chapter 21 was full of so much information that it was scary to read and remember that the United States has experienced not just one World War, but two. We have also have experienced the Great Depression (perhaps we have gone through another one?), numerous “smaller” wars, and still currently in one. Of all the information Strayer provides about the history of the United States, what stood out to me the most was how Strayer expressed himself about the Great Depression. I remember taking a US History course during my time at the community college level and learning that Roosevelt’s program: New Deal, was what got us out of the Great Depression and how these new programs offered more jobs and opportunities for restoring prosperity back into our country, but while reading this section in our class textbook, strayer points out that, “ultimately, none of the New Deal’s programs worked very well to end the Great Depression” (Pg. 636).  Instead, Strayer continues to say that the onset of WW II and the spending needed for the war is what got us out of the Great Depression. Is this a matter of fact or opinion?

      As I continued reading, another section that caught my attention was the discussion about the details of WW II. Again, I remember growing up and learning about how WW II was started by Japan attacking Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and due to that attack, the United States declared war on Japan. I was surprised to learn that WW II was begun first as a battle between China and Japan and eventually made it to the United States. Also, Strayer briefly talks out the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but doesn’t go into details about the aftermath of the atomic bombing it had on people. What bothered me the most was that strayer made it sound like the war didn’t affect the United States as much as in other parts of the world and didn’t even mention the discrimination that was going on in the U.S. due to this war; camps were set up for Japanese people and international traveling was not allowed in or out of Japan. I guess history can be retold in so many ways and interpreted differently by different people, but I still believe that history should be taught the same way no matter whether it is at the elementary, community college, or university level.