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Commie Timeline of 'Merica
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Dixie Mission
The United States Army Observation Group, commonly known as the Dixie Mission, was the first U.S. effort to establish official relations with the Communist Party of China and the People's Liberation Army, then headquartered in the mountainous city of Yan'an. This mission was launched on 22 July 1944 during World War II, and lasted until 11 March 1947. -
Roosevelt Dies
President Franklin D. Roosevelt suddenly suffers a cerebral hemorrhage and dies, leaving his vice president, Harry Truman, to assume the presidency. Truman has only been vice president for 82 days, and has had little communication with Roosevelt about the administration's policies. After taking his oath of office, Truman tells reporters, "Boys, if you ever pray, pray for me now." -
United Nations Founded in San Francisco
The United Nations Charter is adopted in San Francisco, California, by representatives of 51 countries. This marks the founding of the UN. -
First Atomic Bomb
American scientists successfully test the first atomic bomb in New Mexico -
Hiroshima
The American bomber Enola Gay drops an atomic bomb nicknamed "Little Boy" on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The instant devastation unleashed on Hiroshima shocks the world and ushers in the nuclear age. -
Nagasaki
The American plane Bockscar drops an atomic bomb nicknamed "Fat Man" on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. -
Korea Divided at 38th Parallel
At the end of World War II, Korea—occupied during the war by Japanese forces—is divided at the 38th Parallel, and two new states are established. North Korea is run by Communist Kim Il-Sung, while South Korea is run by anticommunist autocrat Syngman Rhee. -
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Chinese Revolution
The Chinese Revolution was the second part of Chinese Civil War. In some anti-revisionist communist media and historiography, as well as the official media of the Communist Party of China, this period is known as the War of Liberation -
Bikini Atoll Tests
Idyllic Bikini Atoll, in the South Pacific, becomes the site of a series of giant nuclear weapons tests. Codenamed Operation Crossroads, these tests are part of a study of radiological effects and are also shown to the Soviets as a demonstration of the weapons' power. -
Mao's Paper Tiger
In an interview with American correspondent Anna Louise Strong, Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong dismisses the atom bomb as nothing more than a "paper tiger." -
Truman Doctrine
In a speech later remembered as the "Truman Doctrine," President Harry S. Truman pledges American assistance to any nation in the world threatened by Communism, officially establishing the worldwide containment of Communism as a vital American national security interest. -
US Italians Against Communists
Concerned about the possibility of a Communist victory in the upcoming Italian elections, the US government undertakes a campaign to get Italian-Americans to write letters urging their relatives in Italy to vote against the Communists. Italy's elections result in a landslide victory for the anticommunist Christian Democrats. -
Economic Cooperation
COMECON, the Council for Mutual and Economic Cooperation, is formed as a Soviet answer to the Marshall Plan. The Soviets recognize the popularity of the Marshall Plan and seek to match it to prevent their own satellite nations from defecting to the West. -
NATO Formed
Ten Western European nations join the United States and Canada to form the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an anti-Soviet military alliance that extends the deterrent threat of America's nuclear weapons to cover Western Europe. -
Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union forms the Warsaw Pact, a Communist military alliance intended to counter the threat posed by the West's North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). -
Soviet Atomic Bomb
The Soviet Union detonates its first atomic bomb, causing shock and fear in the United States. -
Communist Win in China
Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong declares the People's Republic of China as the Communists win their civil war against Chiang Kai-Shek's Nationalists, who flee to Taiwan. -
Chinese and Soviet Alliance
Soviet leader Josef Stalin celebrates his 70th Birthday, and Chinese leader Mao Zedong visits Moscow to negotiate an alliance with the Soviet Union. -
Defensive Perimeter to Protect Asia
In a speech, Secretary of State Dean Acheson pledges that the United States will fight to defend all territory within its "defensive perimeter," which he defines to include Japan, and the Philippines—but not Korea. Soviet leader Josef Stalin misinterprets this speech as to indicate that he can green-light North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung's "liberation" of South Korea with little risk of intervention by the United States. -
Sino-Soviet Treaty
Soviet leader Josef Stalin and Chinese leader Mao Zedong sign the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance, and Mutual Assistance, an agreement committing the two nations to 30 years of mutual defense. -
Stalin Concedes to Korean Invasion
North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung goes to Moscow to ask Soviet leader Josef Stalin's permission to invade South Korea and begin the Korean War. Stalin gives the green light because he believes the United States has little interest in Korea. -
Nuclear Fear
American official Paul Nitze issues the National Security Council report NSC-68. The report predicts a Soviet nuclear attack and calls for greater defense spending. -
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McCarthy's Allegations
McCarthy's fame following these allegations (whichh were never proven) allowed him to publicly attack various government agencies, including the U.S. Army. He also accused high level government officials of being communists. -
Hydrogen Bomb
The United States explodes its first hydrogen bomb—a weapon hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945—at Enewetak in the South Pacific. -
Soviets Develop Hydrogen Bomb
The Soviets explode their first hydrogen bomb, a mere nine months after the United States accomplished the same feat. The Soviets' determination to keep up with American technological developments signals their commitment to the arms race. -
Khrushchev Leads Soviets
Nikita Khrushchev becomes Soviet Communist Party leader after triumphing in the intra-party power struggles that follow Josef Stalin's death. -
Domino Theory
President Dwight Eisenhower publicly articulates the "Domino Theory" in reference to the threat of Communist gains in Indochina. The theory holds that the fall of one nation (like Indochina) to Communism might lead, like a chain of dominoes, to the fall of neighboring nations as well. -
McCarthy Censured
he United States Senate censures Senator Joseph McCarthy for "conduct contrary to Senatorial tradition." -
China Pursues Bomb
Chinese leader Mao Zedong decides China should build its own nuclear bomb. -
Joseph McCarthy Dies
dies of hepatitis at the age of 47
