Chapter 42: The American People Face a New Century

Question 1

1. Was the growing inequality in American wealth and incomes the result of natural economic market forces, or was it encouraged by deliberate political policies, especially the tax cuts and trade policies of the 1980s?

Answer 1

To be honest, I feel like this question is somewhat biased against conservatives. However, the answer depends on your political views, and as I still have not settled on a specific viewpoint due to my lack of knowledge of economics, I will present both the conservative and liberal answers. Liberals generally believe in government regulation of the economy, while Conservatives believe in a free market. Therefore, a liberal would say that the growing inequality in American wealth was a result of the tax cuts and trade policies of the 1980s and a conservative would say that the growing inequality was a result of natural economic forces. Liberals would say that the inequality increases with tax cuts because the government no longer has the ability to redistribute the wealth to the poor as welfare, Medicare, and other social benefits. Conservatives don’t see the growing income gap as a result of tax cuts. They believe that tax cuts should actually help the economy, because the wealthy will create more jobs. Ultimately, the answer comes down to your perspective. The argument continues. Conservatives believe that the liberal system of government regulation will harm the economy by causing the poor to have less motivation to work. Liberals believe that Conservatives are ignoring the issue of the inequality gap altogether.

Question 2

2. Has the nature of American race relations been substantially altered since the 1960s civil rights movement, or are relations between whites and African Americans fundamentally the same? Has African American society itself undergone substantial changes?

Answer 2

American race relations, for the most part, have changed much since the 60s. Interracial marriage is widely accepted and tolerance is preached all over the West. The US elected Barack Obama, a black president, and because African Americans are a minority, whites obviously voted for him. Although not everyone has adopted this progressive mindset, racial inequality is accepted on a much wider scale. African American society has undergone changes just like any other society. Cultures have begun to mesh together, and African Americans and white Americans live together normally in a majority of areas. However, rap, a major part of African American music, as well as dance, has evolved since the 60s.