<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > the last straw that crushed the camel: the great U.S. stock market crash of 1929</h1>
After the end of World War I, the United States ushered in the prosperous 20s. The laissez-faire economic policy of total non-interference pursued by three Republican presidents in a row created the conditions for a major outbreak in the US economy.
At this time, the emergence of various mass production technologies greatly improved production efficiency, and the rapid development of the automobile industry made the U.S. economy more powerful, and in 1929, one in five Americans owned a car.
The surge in production efficiency, excessive concentration of wealth, and the low purchasing power of most people lead to a backlog of products, the failure of the economy, and eventually the economy will collapse.
The last straw that crushed the U.S. economy was the U.S. stock market.
From 1922 to 1926, the U.S. economy grew rapidly, stocks rose steadily, and such a good investment environment led to a large influx of gold into the United States.
From 1927 to 1928, the stock market almost doubled, a large number of stocks were bought through leverage, a large number of retail investors entered the stock market, and the market speculative atmosphere became more and more intense.
In 1928, the Fed began to tighten monetary policy, liquidity fell, a large amount of money withdrew, and the bubble began to burst.
In 1929, Hoover, blinded by a false boom, said in his swearing-in presidency:
"We want the United States to completely eliminate poverty, let Americans eat chicken every day, and own two cars at home."
Hoover was sworn in as president
In October 1929, the bubble burst completely, the US stock market experienced a liquidity crisis after a sustained plunge, and on the 24th, a "Black Thursday" sell-off was staged. In just one month, the stock index has fallen nearly 40% from its peak.
"Black Thursday" people outside the New York Stock Exchange
From October 1929 to mid-1932, the Dow fell by 87.4 percent, plunging the U.S. economy into a devastating catastrophe: crazy runs, bank failures, factory closures, and worker unemployment— the four years of Hoover's presidency.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Hoover: America's Last President of Laissez-Faire Liberalism</h1>
Herbert Clark Hoover, 31st President of the United States. Coming from a family of blacksmiths, he became an engineer and businessman, and his extensive experience in managing businesses in many countries, Both East and West, led him to appreciate the American system more and more.
Hoover
He argues that the essence of the American system is autonomy, which must avoid the concentration of power, and the government can only act as a referee in economic relations, not directly participate, because the nationalization of any sector will lead to the loss of economic freedom, and ultimately to the loss of all freedom.
However, the negative effect of autonomy is procrastination, which is politically acceptable but economically fatal, because economic management requires seizing the opportunity and making a decision.
His stubborn insistence on liberalism dragged the United States step by step into the abyss of the Great Depression. He has also been called the last president of American laissez-faire.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > insist on doing nothing, even if it takes the United States into the abyss</h1>
Hoover's laissez-faire liberal concept is what we often call "rule by doing nothing."
In the face of the Great Depression, he desperately tried to find a solution, but he could not take the step of letting the federal government directly engage in relief. As millions of Americans face hunger, he is thinking about the consequences of government meddling in the economy for the American system.
During his four years as president, 8.3 million people were unemployed; about 300,000 students dropped out of school; about 2 million Americans wandered around just to find a job; about 1/3 of the population without any income; in the cities, people lined up in long lines to receive food for relief; and in the countryside, people ate wild weed roots and dandelions.
1932, Hoover's last year as president, was also the worst of the Great Depression. The wanderers have dubbed Hoover everything that can be named: the shantytown made of cardboard is called "Hoover Village"; the sacks used to pick up scrap are called "Hoover bags"; the old newspapers built by homeless people sleeping on the streets are called "Hoover blankets"; and the hares caught by farmers to fill their hunger are called "Hoover pigs".
Hoover Village
Even so, Hoover stubbornly believed that the economy would automatically improve, and after four years in office, he was still running for re-election. Amid the outcry, he lost to Franklin Roosevelt, who offered reforms to help the country out of its predicament, with the biggest vote gap at the time.
History has left him with only the title of "Hungry President."
Hoover and Roosevelt