Chapter 22

If I were an unemployed laborer in 1932 , hearing Roosevelt 's Inaugural Address , I would feel very uplifted by what he had to say

Roosevelt starts out by stating that the crisis is only concerning material things , and these things can be replaced . He does relent however , saying only a foolish optimist can deny the dark reality of the movement (Roosevelt , 1932

He places the blame squarely on the shoulders of the banking interests stating that faced by the failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money (Roosevelt

, 1932 ) Since profits are xistent , they now [plead tearfully for restored confidence (Roosevelt , 1932 ) This all rings well in the ears of the average laborer , who has suffered mightily at the hands of the rich . Roosevelt also alludes to the rich being out for their own interests and out of touch with the mainstream of American life , and [having] no vision and where there is no vision the people perish (Roosevelt , 1932

As an average worker , I would have seen the injustices of society and would have agreed with Roosevelt said , the measure of the restoration lies in the extent to which we apply social values more noble than mere monetary profit (Roosevelt , 1932 ) In other words , Roosevelt advocates that we need to look beyond ourselves and our own wallets to the larger picture of American Life . We need to stop being a narcissistic people and start looking at social issues and social justice for the answers to...