Cold War for Ss310 Kaplan
SS310-02
Unit 2 Assignment: Cold War
July 19, 2011
The Cold War was a state of political, military, and economic tensions and hostilities between the Communist World, primarily the Soviet Union, and the Capitalist Western World, the United States and its allies. The Cold War lasted over 40 years because the beginning and ending of it leaves room for some debate. Some sources say it started in the mid to late 40’ after the Second World War while other historians date it back to 1917 with The Bolshevik Revolution and ending in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. In that case the Cold War then lasted for over 70 years. The periods when tensions were at the most high were from the late 40s to the 70’s. The international incidences of particular note that brought things to the boiling point were the Berlin Blockade (‘48-‘49), the Korean War (‘50-‘53), Berlin Crisis (‘61), the Vietnam War (’59-’75), and the Cuban Missile Crisis (’62). There were points, like the Cuban Missile Crisis, were the United States were very close to engaging in a nuclear war with the Soviet Union and its allies. The Cold War spread at home too during a heightened state of fear and panic called the Second Red Scare. This lasted approximately 10 years from 1947-1957 during a time when the country was worried about national and foreign communists taking over society and the federal government. Anyone, from actors to politicians, and just the ordinary working class person accused of any communist ties, could lose their job, property, and face imprisonment even with lack of proof or evidence to support the claims.
Any military engagement during the Cold War was fought on international soil like Vietnam and Korea. The only threat to American citizens during this time was the ideological perceived threat of communism and its dangers. The only time during the Cold War were American citizens were in possible danger was during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1961. The US tried to
Unit 2 Assignment: Cold War
July 19, 2011
The Cold War was a state of political, military, and economic tensions and hostilities between the Communist World, primarily the Soviet Union, and the Capitalist Western World, the United States and its allies. The Cold War lasted over 40 years because the beginning and ending of it leaves room for some debate. Some sources say it started in the mid to late 40’ after the Second World War while other historians date it back to 1917 with The Bolshevik Revolution and ending in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. In that case the Cold War then lasted for over 70 years. The periods when tensions were at the most high were from the late 40s to the 70’s. The international incidences of particular note that brought things to the boiling point were the Berlin Blockade (‘48-‘49), the Korean War (‘50-‘53), Berlin Crisis (‘61), the Vietnam War (’59-’75), and the Cuban Missile Crisis (’62). There were points, like the Cuban Missile Crisis, were the United States were very close to engaging in a nuclear war with the Soviet Union and its allies. The Cold War spread at home too during a heightened state of fear and panic called the Second Red Scare. This lasted approximately 10 years from 1947-1957 during a time when the country was worried about national and foreign communists taking over society and the federal government. Anyone, from actors to politicians, and just the ordinary working class person accused of any communist ties, could lose their job, property, and face imprisonment even with lack of proof or evidence to support the claims.
Any military engagement during the Cold War was fought on international soil like Vietnam and Korea. The only threat to American citizens during this time was the ideological perceived threat of communism and its dangers. The only time during the Cold War were American citizens were in possible danger was during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1961. The US tried to
References: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/cold_war.htm http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/soviet.exhibit/coldwar.html http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Cold_War http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_war#Aftermath