The Cold War and the American Society

Paper Summary:

This paper explains the Soviet Union?s physical and ideological expansion, post-World War II, into many countries, known as the ?Soviet Block?; on the other hand, the American economy was much stronger than the Soviet economy, and many countries in the United Nations were friendly toward the United States. The author points out that, during the Cold War, there was never a direct confrontation between the United States and the Soviets; however, there were conflicts between client nations, which were used to carry out the policies of the superpowers, such as Korea and Vietnam. The paper elucidates that the Vietnam War did more than any war to change the American perspective on foreign involvement

From the Paper:

"The Vietnam War had a significant impact on life in the United States. College campuses became center of debate and Kent State is still remembered for a campus demonstration that turned deadly. Opposition to the war had created a movement and in response to Nixon's decision over whether troops would be sent to Cambodia. A group of approximately 300 hundred students gathered at Kent State in Ohio to for a formal ceremony in which they burned copies of the Constitution. Mob mentality took over and that evening demonstrators moved into town and smashed shop windows as well as burning down an Army ROTC building. The mayor declared a state of emergency and as a result, the governor National Guard was called in to keep the peace. When students gathered for another anti-war rally, they resisted orders to disband. In response to this, the guardsmen stepped in, students then began to throw rocks at them, which in turn caused to guardsmen to fire. In the aftermath of the riot, four students were killed and nine were injured. At Jackson State in Mississippi, two students were killed at a similar protest. It is important to note that in both incidents, the students were unarmed."

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