Transcript Why is this period in history referred to as the Cold War?

THE COLD WAR BEGINS
- The Cold War was the period of
tension between the U.S. and
U.S.S.R. from 1945-1991.
- How many wars were fought
between the 2 nations?
- Why is this period in history
referred to as the Cold War?
Communism
101
In the United States, some people
are extremely wealthy, such as Bill
Gates, C.E.O. OF Microsoft Corp.
Bill Gates home in Medina, Washington. The mansion is 60,000 square
feet, about 30 times larger than the average American house.
While many others work hard, long hours, for little pay
When this kind of inequality occurs, the poor become
very upset, and it could lead to civil unrest
Communists offer a solution
Instead of some people
getting extremely
wealthy owning
businesses, and workers
making little, let’s have
the workers be the
owners, and they can
share the profits equally
Share the Wealth
Bill Gates net worth =
$67 billion
If Bill Gates money was
shared, 1.34 million people
could each have $50,000.
A Flaw in the Plan?
• Sounds great, right?
• There will be plenty of money to go around
• So, what’s the problem?
A Flaw in the Plan?
• Why do people like Bill Gates start businesses?
• To make money
• Would people like Bill Gates invest thousands
and millions of dollars to start businesses if
they had to share the profits?
• No!
A Flaw in the Plan?
• So, in a communist system, there is no profitmotive (incentive) to start new businesses
• There also is no incentive to work hard, since
everything is shared – Why bust your tail and
work hard when you will make the same as
someone who is not?
• So communist countries are typically poor, and
lack new technology
Bye-Bye Freedom
Since businesses are not
being started, and people
are not working hard, the
government must take
over and force people to
start businesses and work
hard.
Bye-Bye Freedom
• People are unhappy by this and start to
complain, so the government then takes
away freedom of speech and other rights.
• So in a communist system, there is not
only no economic growth (high poverty
rates and little new technology) but also a
lack of freedom
Capitalism (Adam Smith) v.
Communism (Karl Marx)
• The communist system goes against the
system used in the U.S.
• What is that system called?
• Good, it’s called Capitalism
• As a result, the United States and the
U.S.S.R. remained at odds for years
From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the
Adriatic an iron curtain has descended across the
Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the
ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe.
Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest,
Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia; all these famous cities
and the populations around them lie in what I must call
the Soviet sphere, and all are subject, in one form or
another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high
and in some cases increasing measure of control from
Moscow.
Iron Curtain:
Imaginary line
separating
Eastern
Europe
(communist)
from Western
Europe (free)
Truman Doctrine (1947)
U.S. gave weapons and
supplies to Turkey and
Greece to prevent
communist takeovers
Marshall Plan (1948)
U.S. gave billions of $
to European countries
to rebuild so they
would not be taken
over by communists
The Berlin Problem
• Following WW2,
Germany divided
• West Germany,
freed by Americans
and British,
became democracy
• East Germany was
made communist
by the Soviets
Map shows the two Cold War alliances:
U.S = NATO Soviet Union = Warsaw Pact
The problem
was the capital
(Berlin) was in
East Germany
• Berlin divided after WW2 between U.S., G.B., France, and the Soviet Union
• U.S., G.B., and France combine zones into West Berlin (part of West Germany)
• Soviet zone becomes East Berlin (part of East Germany)
Roadways
would
connect
West
Berlin to
the rest of
West
Germany
• Soviets had
major problem
in Berlin
• Citizens saw up
close how West
Berlin
(capitalism)
was doing
much better
than East
Berlin
(communism)
• To solve problem, Soviets
cut off access to West
Berlin from West
Germany
• Soviets didn’t want to
look like bad guys, so
they claimed roadways
were being repaired
• Soviets thought West
Berlin would run out of
supplies, and be forced to
ask Soviets for help
United States Responds
• U.S. had policy of containment, so couldn’t
let communism spread to West Berlin
• If you were President Truman, what would
you do?
The Berlin Airlift
Truman decided to have planes fly supplies to West Berlin
NATO (U.S. and its Allies) v.
Warsaw Pact (U.S.S.R. and its satellites)
Soviets Develop Atomic Bomb (1949)
Arms Race is On!
Communist North Korea, with approval from China and
U.S.S.R. invaded non-Communist South Korea. The U.S., with
help from United Nations, drove out North Koreans
Background to
the Crisis
On January 1, 1959, Fidel Castro takes over Cuba
and makes it a communist country
In October of 1962, an
American U-2 spy plane
takes this photo of
Cuba
The photo shows missile
launchers being built in
Cuba by the Soviet
Union
Cuban Missile Crisis
(October, 1962)
• In the end, the Soviets
turn ships around
• Represents “Height of
Cold War” as U.S. and
Soviets begin dialogue and
in the 1970s enter into
period of détente (easing
of tensions)
Vietnam War
(1954 – 1973)
Vietnam War
• Vietnamese defeated French (1954)
to gain independence
• Country was temporarily split into
north and south
• When south backed out of
agreement to unite country, the
north (communist) invaded
• U.S. sent troops to stop communist
takeover but was unsuccessful
Decolonization
Begins as Cold
War Continues
Cold War Affects the World
Non Alignment
Some countries able to avoid taking
sides in Cold War (worked both sides
to their advantage)
India
Egypt
Global Economy
• During time Cold War was
going on, countries of the
world were become more
closely connected
• Economic interactions b/t
nations grew, and many
multinational corporations
were formed
Multinational Corporations
• Generally started in
West and moved to
other areas of world
• Vastly affected regions
they moved to
(sometimes positively,
but sometimes
negatively)
Problems Created by
Multinational Corporations
• Workers exploited and
pollution problems
• Oil shortages (1973,
1979) showed how
economy was becoming
global b/c they affected
so many nations around
the world
Cold War
Ends
Scaring the “eViL eMPire”
Star Wars (SDI):
Reagan’s Plan for a
missile defense shield
Reagan’s excessive
spending on the
military scared the
Soviets into making
concessions to the U.S.
The End of the Cold War
As countries of Eastern Europe are gaining freedom, Soviet leader Mikhail
Gorbachev disbands the Soviet Union and the Cold War ends December 25th, 1991
The World Beyond the 90s
End of Cold War represented new period in world
history still going on today in which:
• U.S. only superpower
• Regional tensions have emerged: Pakistan v. India, fighting in
former Yugoslavia, mass killings in Africa
• Increase in regional trade: European Union, NAFTA
• Nations around the world have moved away from state
controlled industry to private enterprise