Peace In Their Time

Episode 177 - Making Work

Possibly the most defining programs of the New Deal were the public works projects that created well-paying jobs for millions of Americans in the depths of the Depression. This shouldn't be a surprise, much of the nation's most iconic infrastructure, still in use in many cases to the modern day, was built through these programs. But they were not without controversy as today I'll be covering today alongside the accomplishments. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014
6. Engerman, Stanley L. and Robert E. Gallman The Cambridge Economic History of the United States, Volume III: The Twentieth Century Cambridge University Press 2000

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 176 - Redefining Money

The great economic straight-jacket of the 1920s and 30s was the Gold Standard, which created a global system that seemingly locked everybody into a stable system. I've talked about that enough already, so today I'm talking about how the Roosevelt administration began distancing itself from the old ways.

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014
6. Engerman, Stanley L. and Robert E. Gallman The Cambridge Economic History of the United States, Volume III: The Twentieth Century Cambridge University Press 2000

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 175 - A Drunk and a Department

The narrative of the New Deal really kicks off here, as I discuss the work of the National Recovery Administration. Okay, that's not totally accurate. I'm mostly talking about the public antics of its boss, former brigadier general Hugh Johnson. Who will easily win the award for most self-destructive character in this mini-series. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 174 - The First 100 Days, Part III

Wherein the special session of Congress of 1933 concludes, and I can stop making blurbs about bills and government agencies. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 173 - The First 100 Days, Part II

The reforms in Washington, DC keep coming and this week we tackle public relief, housing, and farm management. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 172 - The First 100 Days, Part I

Probably the most consequential legislative session in United States history was the special session of Congress that was summoned for the first 100 days of the FDR administration. Today, and for the next two episodes after, I'll be breaking down the major pieces of legislation that constituted the New Deal's first round. Both what they were and what they hoped to accomplish in the face of the Great Depression. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 171 - The 117 Days Before the First 100 Days

Getting back onto the chronological history of the United States, I take a look at the lame-duck period leading up to FDR's swearing-in. Unlike other lame-duck periods, things actually happened during this one. The economy entered a last freefall that might have spelled the end of the nation, the population sunk into despair, and Hoover tried to sabotage the incoming administration. But it didn't matter, the New Deal was coming all the same. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume I: The Crisis of the Old Order 1919-1933 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

 

Episode 170 - FDR, Part II

FDR takes the national stage with his appointment to Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and he's off to the races. No, that's not a crack on his bout with polio, although I finally get around to covering that today. Even with health and marital setbacks, FDR never lost sight of the high office he coveted, which carried him through to the triumph of 1932. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Smith, Jean Edward FDR Random House 2008
2. Dallek, Robert Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life Viking 2017
3. Simon, James F. FDR and Chief Justice Hughes: The President, the Supreme Court, and the Epic Battle Over the New Deal Simon & Schuster 2012

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 169 - FDR, Part I

The time has finally come to return to the United States and kickoff the history of the New Deal. But what would the New Deal be without the blue-blooded president with the gumption to defy convention? Today starts a quick two-parter covering the life of Franklin Delano Roosevelt up to his election to the presidency in 1932. 

 

Bibliography for this episode: 

 

1. Smith, Jean Edward FDR Random House 2008
2. Dallek, Robert Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life Viking 2017
3. Simon, James F. FDR and Chief Justice Hughes: The President, the Supreme Court, and the Epic Battle Over the New Deal Simon & Schuster 2012

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

Episode 168 - Speak Softly and Carry a Big Industrial Sector

To close out this miniseries on the First Five-Year Plan I'm covering Soviet diplomacy during the early 30s. The Great Depression came at a good time for the USSR and covered up much of its weakness during the dislocations of the period, but there was still threats that needed addressing. 

 

1. Haslam, Jonathan Soviet Foreign Policy 1930-33: The Impact of the Depression Macmillan Press Ltd 1983
2. Kotkin, Stephen Stalin: Waiting for Hitler, 1929-1941 Penguin Press 2017
3. Suny, Ronald Grigor The Cambridge History of Russia Volume III: The Twentieth Century Cambridge University Press 2006
4. Kenez, Peter A History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to the End, 2nd Edition Cambridge University Press 2006

 

Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com