Transcript Chapter 26: Postwar America

CHAPTER 26:
POSTWAR AMERICA
The Big Picture: In the years following World
War II, the nation experienced tremendous
economic growth and prosperity,
transforming the way middle-class people
lived. The Cold War arms race with the Soviet
Union, however, cast a dark cloud of anxiety
over the Eisenhower years.
Flocabulary:
Cold War
CHAPTER 26 SECTION 1:
THE EISENHOWER
YEARS
Main Idea: The presidency of
Dwight D. Eisenhower was shaped
in large part by the Cold War and
related conflicts.
The Election of 1952
• Following Roosevelt’s 4 terms of president, Congress passed the
22nd Amendment that limited the number of years a president could
serve to 10.
• Ike Eisenhower ran on the
Republican ticket for the
presidency in 1952, became
known as “likeable Ike.”
• World War II Hero, Strong stance
against the Democrats handling
of the Korean peace talks.
The Cold War Continues
• Eisenhower’s Secretary of State John Foster Dulles wanted not
only to contain Communism but to push it back.
• Favored building more nuclear weapons, only the threat of nuclear war
would threaten the Soviet’s.
• Believed in brinkmanship or the diplomatic art of going to the brink of
war without actually going to war.
• Dulles advocated for massive retaliation or the pledge that the United
States would respond with overwhelming force against the Soviet
Union.
• Meant to scare the Soviet’s into surrender.
• CIA or Central Intelligence Agency was created to collect
information and spy on foreign governments.
• Collected intelligence but also were active in other nations
governments to advance American interests.
The Warsaw Pact
• In 1953 Soviet leader Joseph Stalin died, Nikita Khrushchev
emerged as the new leader of the Soviet Union.
• The Soviet Union established a new organization called the Warsaw
Pact with communist Eastern European countries that created an
alliance amongst these nations.
• Similar to NATO, except the Soviet Union was in charge.
• Soviet’s would crush many oppositions that arose in Eastern Europe.
US and Soviet Relations
• The Americans and the Soviet’s met for the first Cold War summit in
1955 in Geneva, Switzerland.
• Eisenhower proposed an “open skies” policy in which each power
would be allowed to fly over the other, Soviet’s rejected it.
• America flew over the Soviet Union anyway to try and gain intelligence,
Soviet’s shot down the American pilot and held him captive until he was
traded for a Soviet spy.
Cold War “Hot Spots” – Vietnam
• In 1954 France lost the bloody battle to keep control of their colony
in Vietnam, many rebels in Vietnam had turned communist.
• Agreed to divide Vietnam into two parts – Northern and Southern, this
division was meant to be temporary until elections could happen in which
the people would be able to choose what kind of government they
wanted.
• US would did not even want to give the Communist’s the chance to
come to power – US established the Southeast Asia Treaty
Organization or SEATO with Great Britain, France, New Zealand,
Pakistan, the Philippines, and Thailand.
• Helped to establish the anti-communist government in South Vietnam.
Cold War “Hot Spots” – Middle East
• There were many tensions in the Middle East between Jews and
Arabs, only increased after Israel established independence in
1948.
• Egypt and other Arab nations were upset by the creation of Israel.
• In response Egypt took over the British Suez canal that helped
Britain and France extract petroleum from the Middle East.
• Soviet’s intervened on the side of Egypt, Great Britain and France
invaded the Suez canal attempting to gain control – Eisenhower
insisted that they withdraw and allow the canal to remain under
Egyptian control.
• In response to the crisis Eisenhower responded with the
Eisenhower Doctrine that declared the US right to help, upon
request, any nation in the Middle East attempted to resist
Communist aggression.
CHAPTER 26 SECTION 2:
ATOMIC ANXIETY
Daisy
Commercial
1964
Main Idea: The growing power of,
and military reliance on, nuclear
weapons helped create significant
anxiety in the American public in the
1920s.
The Hydrogen Bomb
• The atomic bombs that the United States had dropped at the end of
World War II had changed the world.
• Atomic bombs would be the future of military weaponry and the US
was building its stockpile and creating new and improved weapons.
• The hydrogen bomb was one of these weapons, it would be powered by
fusing together hydrogen atoms, would be more powerful than the
standard atomic bomb.
• Some argued against even building it since it was so destructive.
• The first H-Bomb was so heavy it could not even be used against
enemies.
• The development of missiles allowed for long range firing rather than
reliance on airplanes.
The Arms Race
• The United States and the Soviets had roughly the same
technology.
• To ensure neither country had the edge the two countries began building
stockpiles.
• Eisenhower decreased spending on soldiers and tanks and
increased spending on nuclear weapons as a way to protect
America from it’s enemies.
• New technology permitted the US to become a more formidable
power.
• Developed Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMS)
• USS Nautilus used nuclear energy to create steam to power the engine,
enabled the submarine to go months without refueling.
Soviet Advances in Technology
• The Soviet Union was lacking in the number of weapons it
possessed in relation to the United States.
• Soviet Union launched the first ever satellite named Sputnik, a month later
they launched Sputnik II that carried the first ever live animal into space.
• Americans feared that if the Soviet’s had surpassed the United
States in relation to space technology they would surpass them in
weapons technology as well.
• Congress established National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) and launched a satellite of its own to keep
up with Soviet technology.
Americans React to the Threat of Nuclear War
• Truman administration created the Civil Defense Administration to
help educate and prepare the public for nuclear emergencies.
• Created videos for school children, air raid sirens were installed,
housewives prepared their homes for emergency.
• While the preparations ensured that America would be prepared for
the threat of nuclear attack it also increased fears of nuclear attack.
• In his farewell address Eisenhower warned the nation of the
military industrial complex, or becoming an industrial power based
upon weapons development and build up.
“Duck and
Cover”
CHAPTER 26 SECTION 3:
THE TELEVISION AGE
Main Idea: Television was a major
influence on American culture in the
1950s, mirroring larger changes in
technology and culture.
Television Changes American Life
• Televisions biggest immediate impact was on politics, politicians
were now able to connect with their viewers visually as well as
audibly.
• They were able to experience the different political styles presented at
political debates.
• Advertisers also took advantage of the opportunity of television,
allowed them to more persuasively reach viewers than radio.
• Programs made TV the most attractive to viewers.
• Favorites included I Love Lucy and The Honeymooners.
Other Technological Advances of the 1950s
• Researchers began to develop the first computers in the 1940s,
during this time the computer was as big as a large room.
• The first computers were made out of a series of vacuum tubes that broke
often, transistors were developed as an alternative to the tube and would
allow the computers to be smaller and more efficient.
• Ten years later scientists developed the first computer chip called a
integrated circuit that allowed for the computer to be even more efficient.
• Polio was a common contagious disease during the early 1900s,
Jonas Salk developed a new vaccine in order to help prevent
outbreaks.
Cultural Change in the 1950s
• In the 1950s America had clearly emerged as the world’s leading
industrial leader producing 1/3 of the world’s goods and services.
• After WWII there was also a baby boom and population in the
United States soared causing an increase in housing development.
• Automobile industry also boomed and they created new makes and
models in order to appeal to consumer demand.
New Communities and Highways
• One of the most famous communities built in the 1950s was
Levittown in New York.
• They were successful because the houses were made for a single family
and were affordable, often with help of the GI Bill.
• Discrimination within the housing communities that developed were
common.
• Movement toward warmer parts
of the United States became
more common, called the Sunbelt.
• California is a major sunbelt location.
• The United States started on the
Interstate Highway System in the
1950s that would create standard
highways across the nation to increase
travel and transport
“Little
Boxes”