I was made aware of a New Deal map last year. Reminder of what the New Deal was:
The New Deal was the effort by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who took office in 1933, to respond to the calamity of the Great Depression and alleviate the despair besetting America. FDR and the New Dealers launched scores of new programs to respond to a wide range of problems facing the country: stabilizing the banks and stimulating the economy, creating jobs and raising wages, investing in public works and modernizing lagging regions, and giving ordinary Americans a new sense of security and hope. The New Deal lasted until American entry into the Second World War at the end of 1942.
The New Deal keeps on giving: most free stuff (parks, schools, infrastructures like water fountains, art and federal buildings) in America is dated from those years. The map is fabulous. I didn’t know, but I am using New Deal work made before 1942, everyday. Their work mostly still stands admirably 82 years later. Beautiful.
Two thoughts:
- The teams of folks who built those thousands of goods for Americans are unsung heroes and should be celebrated over and over.
- What the FUCK happened since 1942? Why is everything private and for profit ever since while we now for sure know in 2024 that this doesn’t give a sense of security and hope at all?
How Los Angeles had a $500M budget (do people realize how much money that is???) to end homelessness in 22-23 and couldn’t? Homelessness actually went up in double digit? And the budget for 23-24 is $600M?? Y’all better audit this shit daily.
For that price New Deal folks would renovate every vacant building and house every homeless folks in L.A. before spring.