Woodrow Wilson and Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan came into office with little experience in foreign relations but with a determination to base their policy on moral principles rather than the selfish materialism that they believed had animated their predecessors' programs. Convinced that democracy was gaining strength throughout the world, they were eager to encourage the process. In 1916, the Democratic-controlled Congress promised the residents of the Philippine Islands independence; the next year, Puerto Rico achieved territorial status, and its residents became U.S. citizens. Working closely with Secretary of State Bryan, Wilson signed twenty-two bilateral treaties which agreed to cooling-off periods and outside fact-finding commissions as alternatives to war.
In a statement issued soon after taking office, Wilson declared that the United States hoped “to cultivate the friendship and deserve the confidence” of the Latin American states, but he also emphasized that he believed “just government” must rest “upon the consent of the governed.” Latin American states were hopeful for the prospect of being free to conduct their own affairs without American interference, but Wilson's insistence that their governments be democratic undermined the promise of self-determination. In 1915, Wilson responded to chronic revolution in Haiti by sending in American marines to restore order, and he did the same in the Dominican Republic in 1916. The military occupations that followed failed to create the democratic states that were their stated objective. In 1916, Wilson practiced an old-fashioned form of imperialism by buying the Virgin Islands from their colonial master, Denmark, for $25 million.
The price of goods rose as wages decreased
Answer that I'll offer: PURSUING WISDOM
There were many Greek philosophers, and their ideas were not all in agreement with each other. But in general, the Greek philosophers all agreed that pursuing wisdom is the most important thing in life. One of the earliest of Greek philosophers, Pythagoras (in the 6th century BC), is thought to have coined the term "philosopher." The report is that Pythagoras did not want to claim to be a wise man who already had great wisdom, but that he was a "lover of wisdom" who sought to be wise. In Greek, "philos" is a word for "love" and "sophia" is the word for wisdom. So a "philosopher" is a "lover of wisdom."
The great philosopher Socrates (5th century BC) was famous for saying, "The unexamined life is not worth living." He saw the goal of his life as constantly seeking wisdom -- and that what truly made him wise was recognizing how little he truly knew with certainty.
Other Greek philosophers like Plato and Aristotle and more followed in that tradition. They did not all agree on all the details of what the best pattern is for life in this world. But they did all seek wisdom as the most important thing in life.
