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New Weapons of the War
During the Vietnam war new weapons were being used. The US would drop Napalm firebombs on Vietnam. They destroyed buildings and injured or killed many people. Another new weapon was a herbicide called Agent Orange that was sprayed over Vietnam. It was estimated that 400,000 people were killed or maimed because of the herbicide, and 500,000 children were born with birth defects. However, the goal of using this was not to hurt people but to clear out forest vegetation and expose the enemy. -
Rock n' Roll
During this time Rock n' Roll was a new and exciting form of music. It attracted a lot of media attention and it's fan base was mostly made up of teenagers. One of the most famous Rock n' Roll icons of all time was Elvis Presley. Teenager's idolized him and spent money on records and tickets to see him. However, some parents found the things he was portraying to be inappropriate and scandalous. -
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Decades Review
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New Frontier
The New Frontier was a concept brought up by President John F. Kennedy in his acceptance speech. Kennedy's New Frontier focused on fixing the economy, aiding developing countries, building the nation's defenses, and winning the space race. Under Kennedy more laws were passed that helped to end poverty. Social Security benefits and unemployment benefits were expanded, minimum wage became higher, and aid was given to areas that were in distress. -
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
In the1960's the United States was in a space race with the USSR. In 1961 President Kennedy pledged to put an American on the moon, and in 1969 we did. However, we did have to make small accomplishments first. In 1961 the first American was sent up in space, and by 1962 John Glenn Jr. was sent up into space and orbited the earth three times. In 1966 the Surveyor 1 spacecraft successfully landed on the moon. Then in July of 1969 we reached the goal and put not one but two Americans on the moon. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
In Cuba Fidel Castro was running a communist government. The US wanted him out of power so they planned an invasion called the Bay of Pigs. However, the invasion failed and the USSR made an alliance with Cuba. They didn’t want the US to attack again so Cuba was offered protection. One day a US aircraft flew over Cuba and took pictures of nuclear missile sites being built. Kennedy talked with leaders in the USSR and convinced them to deconstruct the sites and take the nuclear weapons elsewhere. -
Economic Opportunity Act
The Economic Opportunity Act was signed in 1964 and it was made to help fight the war on poverty. The act had created many social programs that promoted health, education, and the welfare of the impoverished. These programs include the Job Corps, Project Head Start, and VISTA. It is because of the Economic Opportunity Act that poverty rates in the United States were cut almost in half. -
Americanization
During the 1960's there were conflicts throughout the world. In 1965 the United States sent troops to fight in the Vietnam War. The US government decided to get involved in the war to try to stop the spread of communism, and to further their plan of containment. The US fought on the South Vietnamese side of the war, and it became clear that the Vietnamese couldn't defend themselves without help. However, after years of fighting the US troops were pulled out and the war was coming to an end. -
Watergate Scandal
In June of 1972 five men broke into the Democratic National Committee Headquarters at the Watergate complex. There was cash found on the five men, and the FBI connected the money to a fundraising group for the Nixon campaign. President Nixon tried to cover it up but there was still going to be an investigation, and he was likely to be removed from office. The scandal led to the resignation of Nixon in August 1974. -
Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty
During the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union were in an arms race. Both countries kept building their supply on both regular and nuclear weapons, which was very dangerous. So President Nixon and Soviet Union leader Leonid Brezhnev met and signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty. This treaty placed limits on the amount of weapons that the two countries could have. -
War Powers Resolution
The War Powers Resolution is a law intended to limit the president's ability to send US troops into combat. The president is required to notify Congress 48 hours before committing to any military actions. The president is only allowed to send troops into foreign combat if it is authorized by Congress, or if it's a national emergency. The War Powers Resolution was Congress's way of reacting to Nixon's actions in Cambodia. -
Gender Equality
During this time women weren't thought of as equal in the workplace, and it was hard for them to find jobs. Then in 1970 was the Women's Strike for Equality. This strike mainly focused on equal opportunity in the workforce, political rights for women, and social equality in relationships. The strike was sponsored by the National Organization for Women. -
Three Mile Island Accident
The Three Mile Island Accident was when there was a partial nuclear meltdown at the Three Mile Island power plant in Pennsylvania. This resulted in the release of small amounts of radioactive gases and radioactive iodine into the air. The accident was considered the worst accident in US commercial nuclear power plant history. -
Nuclear Freeze Movement
During the Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union were rising. This created a fear of nuclear war between the two countries. The Nuclear Freeze Movement was an agreement between the US and USSR about the end of nuclear weapons in the world. It called for both countries to stop production of nuclear weapons, and disarm any nuclear weapons that they had. -
Reagan Doctrine
The Reagan Doctrine was a strategy to fight communism that was orchestrated by the United States under the Reagan Administration. Under this doctrine the United States provided aid to anti-communist groups. This was just part of the effort to bring down Soviet-backed communist governments around the world. -
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
This treaty put limits on the ranges of nuclear weapons. It required the elimination of all nuclear weapons with ranges between 625 and 3,500 miles by 1991. Between the United States and the Soviet Union 2,692 missiles were to be destroyed. Not only that but all operating bases that were associated with the weapons were closed. This eventually caused the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union. -
Iran-Contra Affair November
When Reagan was in office there were hostages being held in Lebanon by some terrorists. The Reagan Administration, in hopes of getting the hostages released, made a deal with Iran, the enemy, and supplied them with weapons. The United States took the money that they got from the trade and gave it to the Contra group. This action was not approved by Congress, and the transactions that took place in this scandal were illegal. It wasn't until 1986 that word about the whole affair had gotten out. -
George H. Bush
George H.W. Bush was the 41st president of the United States. He unsuccessfully ran for president in 1980, but did become vice president under Ronald Reagan. In 1988 Bush launched a successful campaign, and won the presidential election. In his campaign he promised to not raise taxes and improve the economy. However, after a struggle with Congress he had to break one of his campaign promises and raised taxes. -
Persian Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War was codenamed "Operation Desert Strom" and was a war that was waged by a UN authorized coalition force. It was led by the United States against Iraq, in response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. Eventually the coalition forces liberated Kuwait and advanced into Iraqi territory. -
Fighting Terrorists
On September 11 2001 four passenger jets were hijacked by al-Qaeda terrorists. They flew two of the jets into the twin towers, causing both towers to collapse. Another jet crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth one was meant to crash into the Capitol Building, but the passenger's tried to overcome the hijackers, and the jet crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Thousands of innocent people lost their lives in these attacks. It was then that the US declared war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan. -
Barack Obama
Barack Obama is the 43rd and current president of the United States. He served three terms in the Senate and ran unsuccessfully for House of Representatives. He began his presidential campaign in 2007 and won the election against John McCain. He was inaugurated on January 20th 2009. Early in his first term as president Obama signed into law economic stimulus legislation, which was in response to the recession.
