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The 1950s And 1960s

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The 1950s and 1960s represented a shift in the Cold War and society within the United States that would come to be a defining time period in United States history. At this point, the Soviet Union and the United States are in the full swing of the Cold War as well as taking actions that would increase the tension and fears of the time. Most importantly, the 1950s and 1960s would serve as a true example on how global the Cold War was. The struggles between the two world super powers would touch every corner of the globe with lasting impacts. The relationship between the United States domestic developments and the Cold War are in direct correlation with each other, and were easily impacted by the other. As the Cold War treaded on, the idea of …show more content…

One example of this is the advancement in science and math. Following the launch of Sputnik, the United States had an increased fear of Soviet prosperity in the space race and in science. This caused increased spending to occur in the disciplines of math and science, and would change education at home. It also led to the creation of NASA, in order for society to help the nation’s mission of getting to space and being better than the soviets. However, the military industrial complex was the main component to Cold War Policy following World War Two. As time went on, the military demands only continued to be more strenuous on the American People. During the Cold War, the United States engaged in the Korean War as well as the Vietnam War. In Vietnam, in 1963, there was 16,000 troops. In 1967, there was over 500,000 American troops in Vietnam. “The escalation did not deter the enemy” and seemed to be counterproductive to the American public but a necessity in the eyes of President Johnson. (Pg. 588) Through both enlistment and the draft, young American men were called on by their country to enforce the ideology of the United States and the containment policy. The draft and the Vietnam War would be points of contention in the Cold War that would lead to outrage, violence and disagreement in the United States. The Vietnam War was the first was to be televised, and this directly impacted social sentiment about the war. Many Americans were able to tune in and see the horrors that the young men were facing in the foreign country. During the Cold War, the United States got involved in a variety of nation’s affairs in order to endorse their own ideology. In nations like the Dominican Republic, Chile, Korea and Vietnam, the United States set out to contain communism as well as promote democracy. However, as the Cold War and fragmented fighting ensued the American people lost sight of the reason the United States was

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