3. TIL Andrew Jackson, the 7th President of the United States, was deeply opposed t...

TIL Andrew Jackson, the 7th President of the United States, was deeply opposed to the idea of a federal bank. He vetoed the "Second Bank" and was quoted saying "I will kill it". Now his face is one of the most circulated denomination of the US currency printed by the Federal Bank; the $20 bill.

Which would be next to none?

It was hard getting over how despicable a lot of the early American politics were while taking US History... not that they're perfect now. So much general misunderstanding about what happened because we focus on stupid stuff like "Oh he was the first president from the 'people'". Jackson was one of my least favorite presidents to learn about.

He was a lawyer, slave owner, and a major general in the War of 1812. Glossing over the entire discussion of 1812, he wasn't really a "common man". Van Buren came up with the dickish idea of rewarding supporters with government power, and only threw in with Jackson for the election in '28 because of equally corrupt actions by others. The two-party setup and shit throwing that came out of '28 is largely the sort of shit we deal with now.

Back then primary interests were either farming or manufacturing, with banking finding more relevance with those in the North. Many of the actions that were considered "right" or "wrong" in early America were simply based on different ways of living. States' rights became about how each state could make the most money. If the states had alike ways of making money, of course they'd share common interests. Jackson, and others supporting States' rights, were just as likely to use federal power to push their own agenda. Indian Removal had been an issue for a long time, but Jackson had campaigned on platform of allowing greater control of the natives. Before he was even in office, some Southern states enacted laws that "gave" them the power to do what they saw fit. It was a disgusting display.

I'm not a fan of Clay's system either, but that's a whole other issue. I just don't like when history becomes about who was right, as clearly no one was completely right. Regardless of what he did economically, Jackson mistreated an entire group of people and used power to further his own view rather than being fair and just. He should not be lauded, he should be remembered for what he was. Figures in history can be learned from regardless of whether they're right or wrong; putting them on a pedestal will only recreate the problems their view had.

Not saying that you're putting him on a pedestal or anything, just wanted to get that out there since I've seen it around here in general.

/r/todayilearned Thread Link - en.wikiquote.org
Previous
Next

Recently removed from /r/todayilearned

TIL Thomas(ine) Hall was declared both a man and a woman in a Virginia court in 1629 and ordered to wear men's clothing with a woman's apron and bonnet. He/She would present as either gender carnally and when working as soldier, lacemaker, field laborer, or maid. Thomasine was physically intersex. TIL that the low cost wine brand "Two Buck Chuck" was created by Fred Franzia, who bought the Charles Shaw name from a bankrupt winery for $27k. Once when asked why his wine was cheaper than water, he replied "They're overcharging for the water. Don't you get it?" TIL that butterflies have 4 wings not 2 (found out on an episode of Benidorm during a pub quiz) TIL Don Quixote, considered one of the first modern novels, is also one of the first stories that uses meta-fiction, as the author plays pretend that his story comes from historical sources and had to search for lost documents and translations to complete it. TIL "Rudy", of Notre Dame football fame, was involved in a pump-and-dump scheme and had a settlement with the SEC for >$380,000. TIL Brazil found incarcerated populations read 9x as much as the general population. They made a new program for prisoners so each written book review took 4 days off a prison sentence. TIL most English speaking countries around the world pronounce “Z” as “zed” but the United States is the only one that does not. Unlike other English speak countries the US pronounces it “zee.” TIL Snoop Dogg was excommunicated by the Rastafari Council after his attempt to rebrand as Rastafarian "Snoop Lion" TIL Some of the reasons people drive aggressively include a sense of anonymity while driving, feeling more empowered driving than in the rest of their lives, and a feeling that other drivers have previously driven aggressively around them. TIL about Nasubi from Japan's (perhaps the entire world's) most controversial TV show ever recorded. Nasubi lived alone in a tiny room for 15 months completely naked and only able to survive based on items he won from sweepstakes. More info in comments. TIL by passing a law requiring pharmacies to be owned by a licensed pharmacist, North Dakota has essentially done away with corporate chain pharmacies. Corporations that own pharmacies must be majority owned by licensed pharmacists. TIL that the Fahrenheit scale was standardized 18 years before Celsius. The world switch due to the British Empire. The United States is actually using the earlier standard. TIL that the famous James Bond theme (first heard in 1962 in Dr. No) was source of a long running dispute between John Barry and Monty Norman. Norman had originally written a song for a musical adaptation of V. S. Naipaul's novel A House for Mr Biswas which was the inspiration. TIL that the parasite H. zschokkei is the only multicellular organism that does not rely on Oxygen for respiration. It relies on a currently undiscovered energy metabolism to sustain itself. TIL, cold or rainy weather cannot make you sick

More Random Comments

The [Silver Discussion] Sticky. Come shoot the shit and discuss the bad economics. - 28 May 2016 Social anxiety is a bitch... imac Refresh ? Chaos Conversion isn't Dead. Milk alternatives for a toddler Razer is a terrible company. What is the best deck I can build with these cards? Check-in Post - Have something to say but don't want to make a post about it? Comment here! that awful time Visit Australia! (Satirical ad) [WP] You have a power. Everyone thinks this power is completely lame. They are wrong. "All these folks on this thread are racist wastes of oxygen. Damn." Top Photographers Reveal Their Most Valuable Mistakes - Great Read! [FStopppers] Street preacher hit in the back of the head by a teenager with a bat Polls show Bernie Sanders would do better than Hillary Clinton in a head-to-head battle against Donald Trump.