Welfare Capitalism- Part Seven- Teddy Roosevelt

Part One - Boot Straps. 

Part Two - Jacob Riis

Part Three - Yellow Journalism 

Part Four - Spanish American War

Part Five - American-Filipino War +

Part Six - McKinley Assassination +

Part Seven - Ida Tarbell vs Rockefeller +

Part Eight - Panama Canal & Yellow Fever +

Part One - Boot Straps 

Early Years - free will and personal responsibility 

Theodore Roosevelt was a President, Soldier, Police Commissioner, Explorer, Boxer, Cowboy and inspired the Teddy Bear. But he didn't start that way. 

Born with asthma, he was an imaginative child who took an interest in the natural world. When he was 13 his father gave him his first shotgun. He discovered he was a terrible shot and it's said that's when he realized he was near sighted. He got his first pair of spectacles. While away on a school trip, young Roosevelt, an asthmatic and spectacled teenager, was bullied and beaten up. When he told his father, his dad told him he needed to work on his body physically. So his dad hired a prize boxer to train young Roosevelt. His father also hired a respected tutor. With his help, Teddy got into Harvard university. He was a popular classmate who excelled in boxing club, rowing and debate. He was also a bit of a character with trademark phrases like "bully" and "DEElighted" to express approval. He became known for his masculinity. On vacation he would much rather ride the rapids into some unknown south American jungle, hunt lions on the African Savannah or climb the biggest mountain in Europe. 

Teddy loved adventure and the outdoors. He took a vacation to the Dakota "badlands" where he wanted to hunt bison. He loved Dakota so much that he bought a ranch out there and enjoyed being a part time cowboy.

Initially met with scoffs from locals, he learnt how to cattle drive, lasso and hunt. "They took the snob out of me" he said. Roosevelt became deputized as a police officer and once captured and marched three boat thieves to the nearest jail for 40 hours at gunpoint. He considered his time as a cowboy hugely influential and said "I never would've been president, if not for my time in Dakota." After years of hardwork and practice, the cowboys of Dakota grew to consider Roosevelt as one of their own.

Lesson One

He believed that each man was in control of his own destiny, however he also realized the system was unfair. He wanted to give more Americans the ability to succeed.

Do you think Teddy's life experiences effected his outlook?

What lessons could we learn from Teddy's struggles?

If you have struggles, despite the odds against you, the outcome is within your power.

Part Two - Jacob Riis

Social Awareness and helping others

Welfare Capitalism 7.5

Part Three - Yellow Journalism 

Media Literacy

Worksheet in box

https://youtu.be/tRPDwSSjdOM

https://youtu.be/YDxGZIW8Z74

https://youtu.be/U26-D-7Ey2w

https://youtu.be/UF3TrTIZbCA

Part Four - Spanish-American War 

Egmont Key

https://youtu.be/7fcqhU-23TA - 4:30-12:35

Roosevelt personally formed his own cavalry unit known as The Rough Riders. (Bottom of page 43 True Flag) They saw action in Cuba that year. Roosevelt was pro-imperialist. He was interested in American power and culture spreading to other countries. This wasn't a new idea and was just a continuation of the old idea of Manifest Destiny. However, instead of claiming unknown lands occupied by native Americans, the Mexican-American War and American-Spanish War were the attempts to out wrestle other nations for territory.

In truth, the war should've been called the Spanish, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Filipino, American War. The Spanish had be stretched and strained fighting these nations for years before America joined the struggle. 

The War only lasted 5 months. The War was against Spain and focused on Cuban independence. However, ghe US attacked Cuba and key Spanish territories in the Pacific. The US didn't attack Spain directly. What might be the motivation for this?

The Filipinos, Cubans and people from Guam and Puerto Rico welcomed the Americans to help them fight for their independence. However, after the war was won, the Spanish evacuated the Philippines, Guam, Cuba and Puerto Rico. 3 months after winning the war, the US offered Spain 20 million US dollars for official possession of the Philippines. (725 million today) The Filipinos were devastated. Their dreams of independence became another occupation. Less than 2 months after the US paid 20 million to Spain, the Filipinos declared war on the US. They were again fighting for their freedom. 

Senator of Massachusetts and close friend of Roosevelt said, "The victory at Manila was at first so overwhelming I did not take in all of it's possibilities. We must on no account let the islands go; we must hold the other side of the Pacific; and the value to this country is almost beyond imagination. With out protective tariff wall around the Philippine islands, it's ten million inhabitants, as they advance in civilization, would have to buy our goods and we should have so much additional market for our home manufacturers." 

Questions 

What do you think the US government care for most? Filipino freedom or imperialistic advantage? 

If you're cold, and other people are cold. However some people are hot. They're too warm. Who do you sympathize with more? Now, if you're the perfect temperature are you able to sympathize the same way? 

Was it wrong for the USA to gain advantageous territories in the Pacific?

The US had become what the founding fathers criticized Great Britain for. They had become what they despised. This is how the US came to own Guam, Puerto Rico and American Samoa today. During World War Two, Pearl Harbor was bombed but that same day the US territory of the Philippines and Guam were also bombed. Furthermore, they were invaded by the Japanese and occupied. However, mainland Americans cared very little for the Philippines. They struggled to empathize with Spanish speaking Asians a thousand miles away, even if they flew the American flag.

Part Five - Filipino-American War 

https://youtu.be/Ct9V0Tca4go -

Bottom of page 47 - True Flag 

Domestic injustice 

Page 102

Betraying national myth

Betrays founding values- No taxation with representation- freedom and self governance

Cheering on Aguinaldo against the US. 

Page 143

"They are wolves in sheep's clothing, land grabbers posing as unselfish champions of freedom and humanity, false pretenders who have proved the truth of all that has been said by their detractors as to their hypocrisy and greed.” - Carl Schurz

Arguments for Imperialism 

Global responsibility to spread civilization 

It's for their own good, they're unable to govern themselves 

For our country to prosper we need it. 

Destiny 

They want to criticize our national victory 

We govern our children without their consent because they are not yet mature enough to govern themselves 

Imperialists pointed out that America has always been a country of conquering.

The land was inhabitants before the original 13 colonies. The Louisiana territory was inhabited and obtained. Alaska was bought and the Mexican territory was seized. 

Here are some opinions on the war;

"Americans who advocated US ownership of the Philippines had a variety of motivations: desire for commercial opportunities in Asia, concern that the Filipinos were incapable of self-rule, and fear that if the United States did not take control of the islands, another empire might do so." - Office of the Historian - US Department of State

Mark Twain said, "I have read carefully the treaty of Paris, and I have seen that we do not intend to free, but to subjugate the people of the Philippines. We have gone there to conquer, not to redeem,” said Twain. “And so I am an anti-imperialist. I am opposed to having the eagle put its talons on any other land.”

William McKinley attempted to assure the American people. "...the mission of the United States is one of benevolent assimilation... there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God’s grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellow-men for whom Christ also died." 

"Why should the less than two millions of Cuba receive national existence and the seven and a half millions of the Philippines be denied it? The United States, thus far in their history, have no page reciting self-sacrifice made for others; all their gains have been for themselves.” - Andrew Carnegie 

The Filipino President said, "I have a clear conscience that I have tried to avoid it at all costs, using all my efforts to preserve friendship with the army of occupation, even at the cost of not a few humiliations and not a few rights sacrificed. But it is my unavoidable duty to maintain the national honor, and that of the army so unjustly attacked by those who, posing as friends and liberators, attempt to dominate us in place of the Spaniards..." 

The fighting was fierce, unlike the Spanish, it was hard to identify enemy from ally. The Filipinos strength came in their soldiers ability to blend in and out of towns and jungles. The stronger American army had a hard time even finds the enemy soldiers. The Filipino freedom fighters hid in the wild and undeveloped mountainous region. Mountain in the Filipino language is bundok, which is where Americans inherited the word boondock. Meaning, a remote and rural area. 

This difficulty in identifying friend from foe caused great confusion and the deaths of many innocent people. American soldiers were extremely distrusting of anyone Asian. 

"A soldier from New York wrote home this way about his experience with the occupation of a Philippine town: "Last night one of our boys was found shot and his stomach cut open. Immediately orders were received from General Wheaton to burn the town and kill every native in sight, which was done to a finish. About a thousand men, women, and children were reported killed. I am probably growing hard-hearted, for I am in my glory when I can sight my gun on some dark skin and pull the trigger."

In one particularly harrowing encounter, an American unit was having breakfast in a large tent when they were abruptly ambushed by the native villagers. The villagers attacked mostly with hatchets and killed 74 men. The American soldiers fought back and killed 24. 

General Jacob Smith told the commander of a Marine battalion under his command, that “I want no prisoners. I wish you to kill and burn, the more you kill and burn the better it will please me. I want all persons killed who are capable of bearing arms in actual hostilities against the United States.” When the commander, asked for clarification on the age limit for those who would be killed, Smith told him “Ten years.” The ensuing indiscriminate attacks on Philippine civilians killed 2,000. 

"You seem to have about finished your work of civilizing the Filipino; it is thought that about 8,000 of them have been completely civilized and sent to heaven; I hope you like it.” - Andrew Carnegie 

"If old Dewey had just sailed away when he smashed thar Spanish fleet, what a lot of trouble he would have saved us." - McKinley 

Ironically, General Arthur Mcarthur was one who fought to subdue the Philippines to American control. However, his son Douglas Mcarthur liberated the island from Japanese control during World War Two.

- our country isn't perfect. It's run by people. Our country is no better morally than the next. 

Part Seven - Death of McKinley 

After Teddy Roosevelt returned from the war with Spain, he got back into politics and campaigning on his war service, was elected Mayor of New York. 

Shortly after he was chosen as Vice President to President William McKinley, despite once stating "McKinley has the backbone of a chocolate eclair!"

McKinley was in Buffalo, New York for the Pan-American Fare. It was an event celebrating all the achievements of the Americas. McKinley was meeting and greeting people. He shook hands with many. Although he had secret service officials with him, an innocent looking Polish man with a bandaged arm concealed a pistol and shot McKinley twice. The first person to grab the assassin wasn't secret service but a 6ft 6in black waiter. He punched him four times, knocking teeth out, breaking his nose and knocking the pistol out of his hand. 

With the death of McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt became president and even today, remains the youngest man to hold the presidency at age 42. 

Profiling? 

Meek, childlike with bandage on hand 

6ft 6in black chef 

Teddy Roosevelt was president 1901 to 1909

Ida Tarbell & John D Rockefeller 

https://youtu.be/tfmClwDrw1Q - 

After his Presidency 

Roosevelt was invited on a Smithsonian sponsored research trip. He traveled with a scientific exploration to East Africa (Kenya & Tanzania) They were collecting specimens for study but Roosevelt was mostly there for adventure and to shoot things. They shot cheetah, lions, warthogs, zebra, Hyena and rhino. They captured leopards, lions, eagles, vultures and took them back to the Smithsonian zoo.

https://youtu.be/HGStqh1gvR0

Return to US

When Roosevelt returned to the US he got back into politics. However, he disagreed with his fellow Republicans and formed his own party known as the "Bull Moose Party"

Called Taft, a man he once endorsed, a "fathead" with "the brains of a guinea pig".

https://youtu.be/eb2v8aZvyfQ

https://youtu.be/4m01JzVyNpc

https://youtu.be/yKpOdEFvtew

Teddy Bear

https://youtu.be/KAk7ZMxqedg

Face is on mount Rushmore