Cold War Era & Threats

706 Words3 Pages
The Cold War Era and Threats Ricky Jackson SS310-23: Exploring the 1960s - An Interdisciplinary Approach Professor Karney Platt Rose May 30, 2012 The Cold War Era and Threats The Cold War began in 1945, and persisted for over four decades. Conflict between the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) and the United States, after World War II, is what ignited the Cold War. A war is considered “cold” when political opposition between countries exist, but without the means of armed warfare (“Definitions of Cold War”, n.d.). The two super nations demonstrated extreme differences politically and economically. The war was essentially fought with the Communist nations led by the Soviet Union, and the democratic nations led by the United States (“What Was the Cold War”, 2012). Both parties due to the threat of nuclear mass destruction avoided direct military action. Several major catastrophes occurred during the Cold War era, however, open war never transpired because of nuclear weapon dangers. The events that took place were the Berlin Airlift (1948-1949), the Korean Conflict (1950-1953), the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), the Vietnam War (1964-1975), and the Afghan Invasion (1979-1989) (“Cold War: After World War 2 Ended”, 2012). The Cold War was a peculiar era – and the American people experienced most of it first-hand. Technology developments such as television and broadcasting, allowed the public to become more intimate. The United States government was impacted as well. According to Naranjo (2012), “The Cold War shaped American foreign policy and political ideology, impacted the domestic economy and the presidency…” (para. 1). One specific and immediate threat to the American citizens during the Cold War era was the fear of communism. President Johnson influenced Americans to believe
Open Document