If you have never had to use an outhouse, walk ankle-deep in garbage, or endure incredible stench, you can thank local governments that created massive sewer systems, bought landfills and built incinerators, and fielded an army of sanitation workers to make our lives healthier.
Archives for June 2020
State Colleges and Universities
If you attended a state college or university, you benefited from one of America’s greatest investments in its people, the creation and expansion of affordable higher education. How did we get this network of 1,600 state colleges? Through a remarkable collaboration of the states and the federal government that began in the Civil War. It shows us federalism at its best.
30-Year Mortgage
In 1934, the federal government replaced a failed system of home finance, which featured short-term loans, with long-term mortgages backed by federal loan guarantees. If you have a 15- 20- or 30-year mortgage, you can thank the federal government for it.