World war, depression and the rebalancing of Global Power (blog #16)

What I found the most interesting in this chapter was that it showed how actions in one country directly effected another. First through war, and than through the great depression that plagued so many countries after the war. I never realized how closely the end of the war contributed to the depression that ravaged so many countries, nor did I realize that the depression was something that many countries around the world were facing at the same time. This chapter clearly defined and laid out causes of the depression and showed how they were all linked together. Most of the countries that faced a depression after the war were those who gained economic prosperity during the war; usually due to the high demand for certain goods during WWI. When the war ended many of the goods that were in demand lost their value and were no longer needed on the large scale that they were prior to the end of the war. This meant that entire factories were shut down, imports and exports were significantly reduced in several countries and thousands were left without a job. All of those who gained financial independence and security during this time lost it during the depression. What was even more interesting was that those countries who benefited from growing financial independence also lost the demand for luxury items like silk which than created a chain reaction around the globe. It was really interesting to me to see how we are all interconnected throughout the world and how what happens in one place can effect people half way around the globe.