Essay - Question 2: in Rebutting the Words of the Historian in...

QUESTION 2: In rebutting the words of the historian in Question 1, an equally perceptive scholar argued, "The most damning force in America, **********, was the rise of bus*****ess. Corporations produced little but hardship and despair, and gave us nothing. Indeed, this period was marked by the rise of large corporations, but it was the growth of the ***** corporation instead that doomed American society and destroyed democracy."

In ***** years prior to Theodore Roosevelt's presidency, two of the greatest social/political problems facing America were based on the continuing warfare between ***** poor ***** wealthy classes and the expansion of "Manifest Destiny" in foreign lands. Domestically, ***** country ***** burdened by a financial panic in the 1890's which complicated ***** lives ***** the urban poor and made the wealthy even more prosperous. In ***** cities, people dem*****ed democratic change in many areas, such as the twelve hour work day, the dangerous conditions ***** ***** factories, ***** exploitation of immigrant laborers, corporate resistance to the formation ***** labor unions, political corruption in ***** leaders of the great cities, child labor, inadequate wages and most importantly the on-going concentration of wealth by such "Robber Barons" ***** J.P. Morgan and the Vanderbilts.

As President ***** ***** United States between 1901 and 1909, ***** Roosevelt applied his progressive beliefs towards the monopolies held ***** many American *****s which he felt adversely affected the divisions ***** the rich ***** ***** poor. As America's "Trust Buster," Roosevelt attacked big business and demanded a cessation to their monopolistic activities. At the same time, Roosevelt supported ***** ***** labor force by initiating child protection laws, aimed at preventing children from *****ing in factories, and introduced workman's compensation in order to protect company employees from utter poverty if they were injured on the job. Roosevelt also proposed the Pure Food ***** Drug Act in order ***** protect consumers from unsafe "patent medicines" and contaminated meat. In spite of all *****, the huge corporations which emerged from the beginning years of ***** twentieth century continued ***** unfair practices ***** increased in scope and power throughout America.

By the time Woodrow Wilson had become President of the United States in 191*****, *****n corporations continued to expand and many Americans became fearful ***** corporations, due ***** their vast financial holdings, would absorb smaller companies, thus creating more monopolies and limiting fair competition. The Clayton Anti-Trust ***** of 1914, designed to limit or prevent corporate monopolies, was only part of the entire package which also included Wilson's "New Freedom" program in 1913 and ***** Federal Reserve Act which created the ***** Reserve banks. Wilson also issued his "cease and desist" ********** aimed at preventing unfair *****. In addition, the principles of Frederick Winslow Taylor, based on ***** system ***** Scientific Management, greatly affected corporate America by attempting ***** raise ***** st*****ards of ***** practice; however, his methods actually detracted from the overall success of ***** American worker and aided the ***** by showing how they could further exploit their employees.

With the onset