What were some positive and negative effects of the split in american politics in the early 1800s?

The major cause of the split in American politics in the early 1800s was over slavery, so a positive effect was that it forced the nation to deal with the slavery issue, while a negative effect was that it led to the Civil War. 

Currently, as of february 2016, an american traveling in france would be by the exchange rate. the weakness of the euro and the strength of the us dollar means that items in france cost less to an american than they otherwise would. of course, if this trend reverses and the us dollar weakens and the euro strengthens, such as was happening in early 2008, an american traveling in france would have an adverse experience because items would cost relatively more.