Depression Articles

Lessons Learned From the Great Depression

Jupiter, FL (PRWEB) March 26, 2008 -- Sean Brodrick takes a closer look at the Great Depression and the similarities that the U.S. is now facing with the current recession. Brodrick examines the things that can be learned from the past situations and how those can be applied to current conditions in the U.S.

During the Great Depression, one of the Democratic candidates was an East-Coast swell named Franklin Delano Roosevelt. FDR's platform was to give people jobs with a huge public works program to build America's infrastructure, and he went on to become President. FDR made bold moves that pulled the country out of its slumber. FDR is famous for getting America through the Depression. Along with Social Security and other landmark programs, much of his energy was focused on stopping the Dust Bowl (a series of dust storms causing major ecological and agricultural damage to American and Canadian prairie lands from 1930 to 1936 caused by severe drought conditions coupled with decades of extensive farming without crop rotation or other techniques that prevented erosion), which spread like a cancer through America's heartland. At its peak, the Dust Bowl covered one hundred million acres. By the end, some scientists estimated that more than 80 million acres in the southern plains were stripped of their topsoil.

But, with FDR's leadership, the problem wasn't insurmountable:

? Four million acres of abandoned farmland were bought up.

? Young men were paid a dollar a day in the Civilian Conservation Corps. to plant trees from the North Dakota border with Canada all the way to Amarillo, Texas.

? A government program taught farmers a new way to till the soil and farmers agreed to abide by strict soil conservation standards.

? New technology allowed those farmers who remained to tap the Ogallala aquifer in even the driest times.

By these combined efforts, the Dust Bowl was tamed. Thanks to these efforts, along with other new programs, the country emerged from its economic slumber. Here's what the U.S. can learn from history:

1)    Good laws are good for business.

"FDR railed against crooked bankers and called for more regulation. His bank holiday and subsequent regulation restored America's faith in banks. Recently, the U.S. just saw the government pony up $30 billion of taxpayer dollars to enable one bunch of sharks in pinstripe suits to buy another. Some of the financial instruments that got Bear Stearns in trouble are so complicated that even highly educated analysts can't understand them, let alone value them. It could be time for more regulation, not less," states Mr. Brodrick, natural resource analyst for MoneyandMarkets.com.

2)    Not all change is good. Just like back then, all of the current Presidential candidates say they're agents of real change. But one change that got the U.S. in its current financial pickle is letting unregulated institutions take over the roles traditionally filled by regulated banks. That's the kind of change the U.S. can do without.

3)    Bull markets can end with a bang. The 1929 bull markets in both grain and equities ended rather suddenly, when everything looked great. This is a reminder to all to keep one eye on the exit even in the best markets.

The end of the current grain bull market is nowhere near over. After falling hard and fast, grain prices are moving higher again. This time around, U.S. farmers aren't just feeding America, they're feeding the world. And the world has never been hungrier. World wheat inventories are expected to fall to 110.4 million metric tonnes in the fiscal year ending May, the lowest since 1978, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on March 11. The USDA went on to say that U.S. supplies may drop to 6.6 million tonnes, down 47 percent from a year earlier.

"Meanwhile, floods in the nation's midsection are delaying soybean and corn crops. And out in the old Dust Bowl, parts of western Kansas, the Oklahoma Panhandle and West Texas received so little rain in the past month that the winter wheat crop may be hurt," Brodrick explains.

To read this issue online, please visit:

http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/Issues.aspx?Market-Lessons-from-the-Great-Depression-1591

About SEAN BRODRICK & MONEY AND MARKETS     

Sean Brodrick joined Weiss Research in 2000 as an analyst, bringing more than 25 years experience as a journalist and financial analyst to the position. He is Weiss Research's small-caps specialist, especially in natural resources, and is the editor of the company's Red-Hot Canadian Small-Caps, as well as a regular contributor to its daily e-letter, Money and Markets.

Previously, Mr. Brodrick was the investment director of The Sovereign Society, the world's leading publisher of offshore asset protection strategies and global investment opportunities.

Recognized for his expertise on Canadian and Australian investment opportunities, Mr. Brodrick has been featured on many financial talk shows, including CNBC Squawk Box and Bloomberg Market Line. He is a weekly guest on Market Matters Radio, a contributing columnist to MarketWatch.com and a frequent commentator on one of Canada's premiere financial websites, HoweStreet.com. His report, "70 Days to Empty," has garnered acclaim for its analysis of the forces pushing America toward its next oil crisis and was described by

The Daily Reckoning as "the most important report you're likely to read this year," while his knowledge of uranium has helped investors earn solid gains on the commodity.

Mr. Brodrick holds a B.A. degree from the University of Maine.

Money and Markets (www.moneyandmarkets.com) is a free daily investment newsletter from Dr. Martin Weiss and Weiss Research analysts offering the latest investing news and financial insights for the stock market, including tips and advice on investing in gold, energy and oil. Weiss Research, Inc. is located in Jupiter, Florida. For more information about our editors, or to set up an interview, please contact Jennifer Moran at 561-627-3300 or visit www.moneyandmarkets.com.

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