In our last Name That Part, we blatantly used the article for a bit of gratuitous self-promotion. We’d like to say that we’re ashamed of it, but let’s face it, we’re not. it’s the UberBird, and it’s awesome. Okay, maybe it’s not the fastest car on the LeMons track, but it’s beautiful and we love it. And by “beautiful”, we mean… uh… “blue”, and by “love”, we mean “have”.
On to today’s Name That Part!
There is a great deal of debate in the United States about the impact of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, or FDR, on the Great Depression. This debate, of course, is fairly new, and rather puzzling to those of us who are genuine students of History. Indeed, FDR is becoming something of a living experiment in the school of Historiography; after decades, his legacy is slowly being selectively rewritten in the United States, to the great bewilderment of the rest of the world.
Looking back, however, it was major portions of Roosevelt’s first New Deal legislations — the FDIC, for instance — that kept our current financial situation from being far, far worse than the original Great Depression. The most important thing, however, was that FDR gave the public impression that he clearly had a plan, and a path to follow, that would bring the United States out of the Great Depression. It was this outward confidence and certainty that made the difference. As a result, the press agreed to a handshake agreement; he’d be open and honest, and speak frequently with them, and they, in return, would keep his paralysis as a result of polio a secret from the American people. They would work very hard with the President to ensure that each of his photos was taken from either a creative angle, or carefully posed so that you could not tell that he was a paraplegic. The press kept a civil, friendly relationship with the White House through all three terms of Roosevelt’s presidency, and through the presidency of Harry Truman. Never since has any Administration been able to keep such a tight reign on the information that was allowed into the press; and, given the dramatic deterioration of the quality of reporting in the press today, it’s unlikely any Administration will again, unless they can somehow manage to monopolize the market on fart jokes and police car chases.
What does any of this have to do with today’s Name That Part? Well, with that many tips, you should be able to figure that out in less than five minutes. On your marks, get set, GO.