The changing quality of life Flashcards
What was leisure and travel like from 1945-61 (1945-61) (7)
-TV watching became a favoured activity for over half of Americans
-Tourism grew in the 50s, due to increased leisure time and transport
-Car owning culture continued rising (by 1960, 80% of families owned a car)
-Growth of suburbs led to facilities such as shopping malls and bowling allies
-Baby boom led to family leisure activities, as Disneyland opened in 1955
-Increased leisure time and money led to growth of spectator sports
-Dramatic rise in passenger air travel
How did living standards change/not change following WW2 (1945-61) (8)
-Real median household income grew 74%
-Average GDP growth in the 3 decades following WW2 was 3.8%
-People went from rationing and recycling to spending recklessly
-In 1940 there were 2.6million births, 4.1million in 1955
-Production rose from $213 billion in 1945 to $284 billion by 1950
-White life expectancy (70.3) 7 years more than that of Black life expectancy (63.3)
-White people on average earned $10,000 more than black and Hispanic people
-A gender pay gap of $1 - $0.70 remained
What evidence is there that living standards did improve from the 40s to the 60s (1945-61) (6)
-By 1949, US GDP per capita was nearly 2x that of other prosperous nations
-Unemployment remained under 4%
-8 million veterans gained opportunities through the GI bill of rights
-The US became an archetypal consumer society, buying cars and LSD’s which improved the standard of living (between 1939-1948, home appliance sales rose 500%)
-In 1950, teenagers spent $1.5 billion on entertainment
-Home ownership rose from 43% in 1940 to 62% by 1960
Why did the 1950s boom happen, and sustain a consumer society (1945-61) (7)
-The war created mass employment, as output/business grew
-The US came out of the war a world leader in technological innovation
-War production and loans meant national debt massively decreased
-Demand for consumer goods immediately rose after WW2, allowing an easier transition for manufacturers
-The baby boom (1955-65 = 40mill babies), the teenage market and increased wages all contributed to creating a long term consumer society
-Advertising targeted specific groups and encouraged spending
-Manufacturers produced a variety of goods with built in obsolescence
What were some factors which led to a post war boom (1945-61) (6)
-WW2 led to a post war boom since production and loans meant the US received interest back
-The baby boom led to a post war boom since it led to increased childcare spending, increased government spending on school and a future market
-Cheap oil led to a post war boom since it led to cheaper transport and cheaper costs of production
-Low interest rates led to a post war boom as they encouraged spending and investment
-Consumer confidence, wages and demand all rising led to a post war boom as they increased consumption
-Adverts and a consumer society led to a post war boom as they ensured people spent the money they had, leading to increased GDP
What evidence is there of living standards not improving in the post war boom (1945-61) (4)
-There were massive disparities of wealth, between both rich and poor and different races
-over 25% of Americans still lived in poverty
-Some, such as John Galbraith, felt that consumerism led to Americans becoming grossly materialistic, and many felt it led to standardised, bland suburbs
-Truman’s fair deal legislation was rejected by congress, being deemed as too socialist
What were the pros and cons of JFK’s new frontier (1961-68) (8)
-Put poverty firmly on the national legislative agenda
-Food stamp programme fed 240,000
-Focus of government spending was on areas with high unemployment
-Continued Eisenhower’s school lunch and milk programme, feeding 700,000 kids
-1961 housing act provided federal loans for low cost housing in areas of low home ownership
-None of JFK’s major legislative ideas passed by congress
-1961 housing act aimed to get the US out of recession, helping democrats and developers more than people in need
-Had to cater what he wanted to do to the upcoming election
What were the successes of Johnsons war on poverty (1961-68) (10)
-3.9% unemployment in 1967 was a 13 year low
-In 1964, the economic opportunity act created the office of economic opportunity, with a $960mill budget, to coordinate Johnsons war on poverty
-The 1965 social security act created Medicare and Medicaid
-Medicare(old) and Medicaid(poor) helped 19mill in 1966, as 1/5 of the American population had benefitted by 1976
-13 million students gained from education legislation
-By 1970, 25% of college students received financial aid from the higher education act
-From 1965-70, the % of Americans in poverty fell from 17% to 11%
-The 1968 housing act provided assistance with rent, as well as $8billion to create low-moderate income housing
-44 states had anti-poverty programmes in 1965
-Many non-white citizens could now advance in professions such as law
What were the failures of Johnsons war on poverty (1961-68) (10)
-The Vietnam war drained the budget (1966 = $1.2billion on poverty, $22billion on war)
-Gaps in Medicaid and Medicare coverage (no glasses)
-Medicaid and Medicare were more expensive than planned, and Medicaid funding ended up being double that of federal funding for healthcare for the poor
-Income inequality had still risen from the WW2
-The 1968 fair housing act, which aimed to eliminate housing discrimination, was scrapped due to white opposition
-Programmes were hastily planned, and underfunded/coordinated
-Non-white poverty remained at 1/3
-1966 demonstration cities were a failure (6-150 cities were going to be planned with cheap housing, facilities and slum clearances)
-Many thought affirmative action increased resentment
-Liberals thought there wasn’t enough spending, conservatives thought there was too much
What did Nixon try to do to deal with poverty (1961-68) (3)
-Nixon’s poverty efforts were concentrated at the working poor, elderly, children and disabled
-Nixon wanted an emphasis on ‘workfare’, welfare based around getting people in work
-In 1970 Nixon began dismantling the office of economic opportunity, to reduce welfare payments
What was the impact of TV (1961-68) (8)
-Created a homogenised American culture
-Became a favoured leisure activity for many
-Promoted consumerism through adverts
-Had an impact on how politicians were viewed
-People could now be aware of the world they lived in
-People could be aware of new perspectives
-Some thought there was a link between TV and violence/mental passiveness
-Some thought it led to decreasing educational test scores
Why was/wasn’t the US economy in the 1960s good (1961-68) (5,5)
-Economic growth was 19% under Eisenhower, 39% during JFK and LBJ
-per capita income rose from $2,157 to $3,050
-The 60s saw the longest period of uninterrupted US economic growth in history
-% of people in poverty fell from 22% to 12%
-American industry was technologically innovative
-The USA lost its place as the worlds leading exporter
-A trade deficit in 17/18 previous years, but 1967 $4billion deficit 3x that of the year prior
-Vietnam war drained government finances
-A $10billion budget deficit with 4.5% inflation led to 60% of the population fearing cost of living
-Gap between the gold reserves and the money supply was increasingly getting bigger
What problems did Americans face in the 60s, and what was Johnsons great society (1961-68) (3,5)
-Poverty was often invisible in the midst of affluence
-There were structural imbalances in the ownership and access to wealth
-Rural and deprived inner cities vs affluent suburbs
-Johnsons great society aimed to redistribute societies wealth, giving the poor more wealth and opportunities
-The 1965 medical care act created Medicaid and Medicare
-The 1965 higher education act provided federal funding for post-secondary education
-The 1964 urban mass transportation act provided federal aid for cities with high poverty concentrations
-The 1965 air and water quality act set tougher standards and brought quality control
What was JFK’s new frontier, and what did he actually achieve (1961-68) (3,3,3)
-The new frontier was a combination of foreign and domestic policies
-JFK believed the US should aggressively contain communism
-He wanted a united, equal society at home
-He demonstrated his decision making at Cuba
-He continued to expand social welfare, raising the minimum wage by 9%
-He promised a civil rights bill, which eventually was passed under LBJ
-However, he lacked Johnsons skills in getting things through congress
-His policy making was affected by considerations for the 1964 election
-Some thought his advisors lacked variety, all being liberal elites
What long term processes led to the 1970s economic crisis (1968-80) (3,6)
-The USA always had a strong currency, being linked to the gold, leading to stability but low exports
-Nixon, in an attempt to improve the US’ foreign position, took the US off the gold standard
-However foreign economies were more productive, innovative and had cheaper costs of production, so the US still couldn’t compete
-At the turn of the 20th century, the US was a world leader in technological innovation
-However, by the 50s other countries such as Japan and Germany had caught up
-The US’ hold on manufactured exports fell from 29% in 1953 to 13% by 1973, as the US entered a trade deficit in 1971
-Higher business taxes led to decreased profits and reinvestment
-Lower reinvestment lead to less innovation, and a worsening of the US current account
-All this led to stagflation, and a rise in unemployment
