Why did the Whiskey Rebellion occur in western Pennsylvania in 1794 A. Farmers were angry because the price of whiskey had fallen, and they were earning less money.
B. Farmers refused to pay an excise tax that Congress had placed on whiskey..
C. Farmers were protesting a protective tariff that had been imposed on imported goods.
D. Farmers were protesting the prohibition of the sale of alcohol

is b: farmers refused to pay an excise tax that congress had placed on whiskey

1. international: struggle for hegemony and empire outstrips the fiscal resources of the state

2. political conflict: conflict between the monarchy and the nobility over the “reform” of the tax system led to paralysis and bankruptcy.

3. the enlightenment: impulse for reform intensifies political conflicts; reinforces traditional aristocratic constitutionalism, one variant of which was laid out in montequieu’s spirit of the laws; introduces new notions of good government, the most radical being popular sovereignty, as in rousseau’s social contract [1762]; the attack on the regime and privileged class by the literary underground of “grub street; ” the broadening influence of public opinion.

4. social antagonisms between two rising groups: the aristocracy and the bourgeoisie

5. ineffective ruler: louis xvi

6. economic hardship, especially the agrarian crisis of 1788-89 generates popular discontent and disorders caused by food shortages.