The Rust Belt

The Rust Belt The term â€Å"Rust Belt† refers to what once served as the hub of American Industry. Located in the Great Lakes region, the Rust Belt covers much of the American Midwest (map). Also known as the â€Å"Industrial Heartland of North America†, the Great Lakes and nearby Appalachia were utilized for transportation and natural resources. This combination enabled the thriving coal and steel industries. Today, the landscape is characterized by the presence of old factory towns and post-industrial skylines. At the root of this 19th-century industrial explosion is an abundance of natural resources. The mid-Atlantic region is endowed with coal and iron ore reserves. Coal and iron ore are used to produce steel, and corresponding industries were able to grow through the availability of these commodities. Midwestern America has the water and transportation resources necessary for production and shipment. Factories and plants for coal, steel, automobiles, automotive parts, and weapons dominated the industrial landscape of the Rust Belt. Between 1890 and 1930, migrants from Europe and the American South came to the region in search of work. During the World War II era, the economy was fueled by a robust manufacturing sector and a high demand for steel. By the 1960s and 1970s, increased globalization and competition from overseas factories caused the dissolution of this industrial center. The designation â€Å"Rust Belt† originated at this time because of the deterioration of the industrial region. States primarily associated with the Rust Belt include Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana. Bordering lands include parts of Wisconsin, New York, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ontario, Canada. Some major industrial cities of the Rust Belt include Chicago, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Cleveland, and Detroit. Chicago, Illinois Chicago’s proximity to the American West, the Mississippi River, and Lake Michigan enabled a steady flow of people, manufactured goods, and natural resources through the city. By the 20th century, it became the transportation center of Illinois. Chicago’s earliest industrial specialties were lumber, cattle, and wheat. Built in 1848, The Illinois and Michigan Canal was the primary connection between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River, and an asset to Chicagoan commerce. With its extensive rail network, Chicago became one of the largest railroad centers in North America and is the manufacturing center for freight and passenger railroad cars. The city is the hub of Amtrak and is directly connected by rail to Cleveland, Detroit, Cincinnati, and the Gulf Coast. The state of Illinois remains a great producer of meat and grain, as well as iron and steel. Baltimore, Maryland On the eastern shores of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, roughly 35 miles south of the Mason Dixon Line lies Baltimore. The rivers and inlets of Chesapeake Bay endow Maryland one of the longest waterfronts of all the states. As a result, Maryland is a leader in the production of metals and transportation equipment, primarily ships. Between the early 1900s and the 1970s, much of Baltimore’s young populace sought factory jobs at the local General Motors and Bethlehem Steel plants. Today, Baltimore is one of the nation’s largest ports and receives the second greatest amount of foreign tonnage. Despite Baltimore’s location east of Appalachia and the Industrial Heartland, its proximity to water and the resources of Pennsylvania and Virginia created an atmosphere in which large industries could thrive. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh experienced its industrial awakening during the Civil War. Factories began producing weapons, and the demand for steel grew. In 1875, Andrew Carnegie built the first Pittsburgh steel mills. Steel production created demand for coal, an industry that succeeded similarly. The city was also a major player in the World War II effort when it produced nearly one hundred million tons of steel. Located on the western edge of Appalachia, coal resources were readily available to Pittsburgh, making steel an ideal economic venture. When the demand for this resource collapsed during the 1970s and 1980s, Pittsburgh’s population fell dramatically. Buffalo, New York Located on the eastern shores of Lake Erie, the City of Buffalo expanded greatly during the 1800s. The construction of the Erie Canal facilitated travel from the east, and heavy traffic sparked the development of the Buffalo Harbor on Lake Erie. Trade and transportation through Lake Erie and Lake Ontario poised Buffalo as the â€Å"Gateway to the West†. Wheat and grain produced in the Midwest were processed at what became the largest grain port in the world. Thousands in Buffalo were employed by the grain and steel industries; notably Bethlehem Steel, the city’s major 20th-century steel producer. As a significant port for trade, Buffalo was also one of the country’s largest railroad centers. Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland was a key American industrial center during the late 19th century. Built near large coal and iron ore deposits, the city was home to John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company in the 1860s. Meanwhile, steel became an industrial staple that contributed to Cleveland’s flourishing economy. Rockefeller’s oil refining was reliant on the steel production taking place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Cleveland became a transportation hub, serving as the half-point between the natural resources from the west, and the mills and factories of the east. Following the 1860s, railroads were the primary method of transport through the city. The Cuyahoga River, the Ohio and Erie Canal, and nearby Lake Erie also provided Cleveland accessible water resources and transportation throughout the Midwest. Detroit, Michigan As the epicenter of Michigan’s motor vehicle and parts production industry, Detroit once housed many wealthy industrialists and entrepreneurs. The post World War II automobile demands led to the city’s rapid expansion, and the metro area became home to General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler. The increase in demand for automobile production labor led to a population boom. When parts production moved to the Sun Belt and overseas, residents went with. Smaller cities in Michigan such as Flint and Lansing experienced a similar fate. Located along the Detroit River between Lake Erie and Lake Huron, Detroit’s successes were aided by resource accessibility and the draw of promising employment opportunities. Conclusion Albeit â€Å"rusty† reminders of what they once were, Rust Belt cities remain today as centers of American commerce. Their rich economic and industrial histories equipped them with the memory of a great deal of diversity and talent, and they are of American social and cultural significance.

No Sex Before Marriage Essays

No Sex Before Marriage Essays No Sex Before Marriage Essay No Sex Before Marriage Essay I know sex before marriage is not the right thing to do, but why? Who has the right to tell me that it is wrong? There are so many different perceptions toward this central knowledge claim. I have been told in church, by my priest that sex before marriage is bad- this called authority. Authority is an important part of how we believe and act. Is authority always right? Authority is only sometimes a one man descion, which then is only one person’s perception towards it. Our religions Christianity, Islamic, Jewish and other religions have said that sex before marriage is a sin and shouldn’t be conducted. Authority’s strength is that many people follow them, so it creates a combined believe. The weakness for authority, its only one-person perception. Feeling can create thinking that sex before marriage is bad, if we don’t feel very comfortable become someone has told us, we believe that sex isn’t good before marriage which then creates personal feelings. The weakness towards feeling is that you can’t always know exactly how you’re feeling. The strengths are that we feel more comfortable following our gut feelings. Social norm, everyone else is doing it which then makes you follow him or her. We do that in an every day life, I also do that. When someone else has it, you want it to because you don’t want to feel left out. This goes back to authority, many people use celebrities in their advertisements and many people look up to them because they pretty and successful and are so famous and causes people to think if they do or have what that person has, it makes them pretty, successful and famous. Sex before marriage has become a less serious matter, because of newer generation creating new technology for safe sex and also many people aren’t getting married anymore, and just being partners for life. Rules are changing and authority is changing and many people are going again no sex before marriage.

Ethical argument-Abortion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ethical argument-Abortion - Essay Example Ethical claims and principles suggest that women should have a right to abort a fetus because pregnancy and child birth is a personal matter and only a woman has a right to decide her destiny. The issue of moral choice centers on the factor of meaningful human life or personality. From the biological perspective, the fertilized egg is not a human being yet. The concept of individualization is not identified until the first stages of cell division are completed. So, fetus is not an individual and a woman does not violate human rights and does not 'kill'' a baby (Colker, 3). From the religious point of view, beginning with the premise that God infuses the soul at the moment of conception, church maintains that every unborn child must be regarded as a human person. The main controversy of his argument is that at what point it is morally wise to charge fetal life as human life. Too much stress on the fetus can lead to an abstracting from the important role the woman's body plays in the d evelopment of a child. In speaking of the view of convinced critics that the status of the child is the most important issue to resolve in the abortion controversy, Marquis gives examples of pain on animals (Stetson 101). The second controversy is that Marques states: "Presumably abortion could be justified in some circumstances, only of the loss consequent on failing to abort would be at least as great" (Marquis). He does not take into account that women should have a right to abort a fetus as a preventive measure not to born cripples (physical or mental). In reality, nobody will benefited from this new life: a mother will suffer all her life raising up a disabled creature, a parasitic twin will not become a society member able to work and lead an independent life. In this case, a fetus does not possess psychological characteristics and is not entitled to have full moral status, and should be aborted (Kramlich 7830. Therefore, pro-choice advocates like Warren and Thomson believe that banning abortions without any exceptions is a cruel and unjustifiable practice. Probably, Marcuqy would respond that abortion is also very bad for the morality of society as a whole. Abortion is an easy way out, so it encourages promiscuity and unprotected sex. The very notion of abortion is immoral because it ruins the whole concept of responsible parenthood. The society has the duty to protect the life of its citizens. The right to life has been the foundation of the civilized society. It seems that the most persuasive argument of the pro-choice lobby is that sometimes pregnancy occurs due to rape or incest. The most appropriate answer to this problem is the state taking a firm ground with a view to decrease the rate of rape and incest. And, in fact, not all rape and abortion victims want abortion. On the one hand, the opponents state that if humans are killed before birth, they are the same person as the other hu man beings (Stetson 32). The concept of killing contradicts with all existed religious and moral practices. Some people are content to continue with the moral traditions in which they were raised, while others are drawn toward systems of belief that they find match their needs and perceptions of this spiritual dimensions. "Fetuses seem to be like arbotraroly chosen human cells on some respects and like