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End of WWII
The End of WWII was the unofficial start of the Cold War. Because we were no longer allies, the USA and the USSR were now able to start a political conflict. America was afraid that, because it was very appealing, communism would make democracy obsolete. Many Americans thought that no other type of government could ever be as good as democracy, so they were scared of the big bad Commies. Communist were scared that because America was very prosperous that the freedom would appeal to their people. -
Truman Doctrine Announced
The Truman Doctrine was an official promise by Harry Truman that America would protect any country that was being attacked by Communism. He also promised that we would back any country financially as well. This was how we got involved in Korea and Vietnam. Truman got a lot of flack for this, but he was basically making Americans' fears official. -
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Berlin Blockade and Airlift
The Berlin Blockade was an attempt by Soviets to stop Eastern influence and strengthen communism. Oppositely, the Berlin Airlift was an attempt by Eastern culture to help underdeveloped countries, prove that communism was flawed, and spread the love of their influence. This was kindling to the already spreading flame of the Cold War. -
NATO Created
NATO was basically the official decloration of the Cold War. Many countries all over the world joined us in our Red Scare. Also, this may be the cause of WWIII. We did exactly what we promised not to do after WWI, but it has been helpful. NATO was a kind of a deterant to the USSR saying that if they attacked one person the etire world would be against them. -
First Lightning - First Soviet Nuclear Bomb
One of the biggest parts of the Cold War was the nuclear arms race. This was a major soviet advance. First Lightning was the first tested Soviet nuclear weapon. It proved that they were just as able to kill us as we were to kill them. This fueled the Red Scare, because USA scientists had said they would have a bomb for a few more years. People automatically jumped to spies. Unfortunately, they were right. -
McCarthyism is Created
Douglass McCarthy was a senator runing for re-elletion. His cause to rally around? Hidden Communist spies. Because a poitician was saying it, people believed him. They started to accuse their neighbors and enemies of being Communists. It was a recreation of the Salem Witch Trials, as illustrated in The Crucible. This kept the Cold War going when it could have ended. -
Warsaw Pact Created
The Warsaw Pact was the counter attack to NATO, even though it was very delayed. Now not only would it be the USSR against Western culture in the potential WWIII, it would be West versus East, like some world wide gang war. -
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Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a symbol of the power and influence of Communism. It was also a symbol of the oppression and hardship that those in the USSR faced. In the air of helping the oppression, but really because if it fell it would symbolize communism failing, NATO worked to get the Berlin Wall dismantled. After 28 years, the wall fell, and communism was soon to follow. -
Tsar Bomba
Tsar Bomba was a colassal nuclear test. It proved that the Soviets had the technology to destroy the world, and it scared the crap out of America. The mushroom cloud was 54 km tall. 5+ times bigger than the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima. This was a one up by the Soviets. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
This was the closest to WWIII we have ever come in US history. This ignited more tension, but at the same time opened the way for a bit of settlement of the Cold War. Because of this conflisct, the US and the USSR created an emergency hotline for negotiation and other peace keeping purposes. -
Dissolution of the USSR
This was the official end of the Cold War. The USSR dissolved, it proved that Communism was flawed and would not work in this society. America's main problem with the USSR was Communism, so because it was dead, the conflict was dead. A semulence of peace was created.
