Abstract
This paper explains that both the Korean and Vietnam Wars were Cold War conflicts waged by the United States against what was believed to be the global communist of expansion. The author points out that, although the Korean War was a conventional war, the Vietnam War was a guerrilla war fighting an insurgency similar to the current Iraq War. The paper stresses that the difference is that this Middle Eastern war, to a significant extent, is being fueled by religious factors. The author concludes that LBJ and his advisers blundered their way into the wrong war at the wrong time in the wrong place just as Bush has done in Iraq.

From the Paper
"By the early nineteen-sixties, the situation had deteriorated to such an extent in Laos and South Vietnam that President Kennedy increased military and economic aid and sent thousands of American military advisers to train the South Vietnamese Army. For these Green Beret advisers, training the South Vietnamese inevitably involved engaging in combat with Viet Cong forces, which resulted in the first significant American casualties of the Vietnam War."

Tags:communist, insurgency, escalation, dereliction, hatreds

Abstract
This essay explores the media portrayal of women in post World War II America and whether these portrayals were accurate. The essay discusses television figures such as June Cleaver, Donna Read, Mary Tyler Moore and Marlo Thomas and compares these portrayals of women with the reality of the female environment of decades following World War II. The essay finds that the media portrayed women as subservient to men in the 1950s and in later decades portrayed women as completely independent and financially successful. The essay argues that neither portrayal accurately reflected the reality of the post WWII American woman.

From the Paper
"What, then, was the purpose of departing from reality in so drastic a way between 1950 and the later part of the 1970s when portraying women as less capable than men, and subordinate to the patriarchal society? The answer, of course, is that those depictions served a purpose in society. The early post war depiction of the woman as a high-heeled, neat, orderly housewife was actually presenting an escape from the reality of the American woman and family, is explained in part by films like The Searchers and other John Wayne films. It is not a depiction of what the American woman was, or needed, but a depiction of what the American man needed to be, and how he needed to feel about himself (McCarthy, Patrick, 1997, 165)."

Tags:American society, post WWII America

Abstract
This paper describes the war that existed in the Philippines after the Spain's defeat at the hands of the United States during the Spanish-American War. As a direct result of the war, the Philippines were given to the United States and the Filipino people who originally believed that they were fighting a war for freedom and independence against the Spanish begin to turn against American troops who they view as simply another occupying force. The first part of the paper gives a background to the Filipino insurgency and its main leader, General Emilio Aguinaldo. Aguinaldo's tactics of fighting a guerrilla war against American troops is examined, as well as the effectiveness of these attacks on shocking the American public back home. Feeling betrayed by America who promised the Filipino people freedom after the Spanish were defeated, Aguinaldo embarked on a series of deadly attacks on American soldiers in the Philippines. As a result, American troops responded with equal brutality in their reprisals with very little organized military command holding them back. Diaries are heavily cited in this section of the paper, giving primary sources that tell of how desperate the American soldiers were at the time and how they needed to racially dehumanize the enemy in order to commit such vicious acts of reprisal. The second part of the paper deals with how the American press responded to the war. Numerous newspaper articles and other criticisms of the war are given as examples, some written by the early 20th century's most prominent figures such as Mark Twain. The general point of this section is to show how deeply divided the American public was over the war in the Philippines and how many felt that it would lead to American involvement in other world affairs. A direct parallel is also drawn to the Iraq War in modernity. Finally, the paper ends with a detailed account of how individual soldiers from both sides viewed the conflict. The Filipinos clearly viewed the insurgency as a necessary action in order to preserve their promised independence, while many American soldiers were disgusted and frustrated with why they were in the country to begin with, and often responded violently towards the natives since they began to view them as subhuman. The psychology of warfare is briefly discussed, as soldiers often dehumanize the enemy as a means of justification of their own violent behavior. The end of the insurgency is also discussed, with American troops brutally putting down the rebellion and establishing a tight control over the entire area for decades.

From the Paper
"On April 11th, 1898, the President of the United States William McKinley went to Congress and asked the elected body to declare war on Spain for their role in oppression overseas and to accommodate public opinion that was strongly anti-Spanish due to the sinking of the United States battleship Maine only a few months earlier that was blamed on Spanish agents. Congress eventually sanctioned the war, and the Spanish-American war commenced with several battles over Spanish colonies such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. The war itself was over fairly quickly, as hostilities were ended only a few months after war was officially declared. The involvement in the former Spanish colonies clearly demonstrated that America had shifted to a strong imperialistic attitude when it came to the Western Hemisphere and indeed the world in general, and would be forced to endure all of the benefits and tribulations that came from being an imperialistic power."

Tags:aguinaldo, american, emilio, filipino, history, philippines, spanish, war, wars

Abstract
John Hay, the U.S. Ambassador to London, called the war of 1898 with Spain ?a splendid little war.? His statement, often quoted about the war, indicated his recognition that this war would change the position of the United States in the world and have ramifications for decades to come. This paper shows that the Spanish-American War often gets little attention in history texts, overpowered by the bigger, longer-lasting wars such as the War Between the States, World War I and World War II. The fact is that the Spanish-American War, which included significant action both in the Caribbean, especially Cuba, and the Pacific, especially involving the Philippines, had complex causes and complex long-term ramifications.

From the Paper
"The war of 1898 represented a turning point in the United States? international standing. The country acquired its first overseas territories and pushed Spain out of the Western Hemisphere (Rodriguez, 1998). It laid the groundwork for our involvement in World War II, as our growing interests in the Pacific had a profound effect on Japanese action in that arena. Until the Spanish-American war, our influence had been limited to North America. Now we had presence in both major oceans and had contended with other great powers, either by warfare or by maneuvering, and had emerged victorious (Rodriguez, 1998). It was not a challenge to defeat Spain, but the long-term effects of the war dramatically affected history for the following century. The groups who drew us into the war, both in the Caribbean and the Pacific, revolutionary factions in both Cuba and the Philippines, did not fare well. Cuba was liberated from Spain but under profound influence of the Untied States. In the Philippines, the people simply traded one country's domination for another's."

Tags:Monroe, Doctrine, Manifest, Destiny, Mexican, War, President, McKinley

Abstract
This paper shows that George W. Bush's reasons for the war on terrorism are similar to those of his father in the first Persian Gulf War and to those of President Johnson at the start of the Vietnam war. The paper analyzes several of the reasons why these earlier presidents waged war, and illustrates that the strategy behind George W. Bush's war on terrorism is aligned with them.

From the Paper
"Presidents Lyndon Johnson and George Bush took the United States to war for remarkably similar reasons. We will see that George W. Bush's reasoning also runs along the same lines. They were convinced that military intervention against North Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan was necessary to uphold international order. Failure to respond to these acts of aggression, they contended, would have resulted in the erosion of a stable world."

Tags:George, W., Bush, Presidents, terrorism, cause, and, effect

Abstract
The paper interprets and explains the significance of the Mexican-American War. The paper discusses its importance for the Chicano/Latino community as well as the larger Californian and American societies. The paper briefly examines the background and causes of the war and then analyzes its aftermath and significance.

Outline:
Background of the War and its Causes
Aftermath & Significance of the War for the American & Californian Societies

From the Paper
"In order to understand fully the significance of the Mexican-American War, it is important to briefly examine its background and causes. Much before the start of its war with Mexico, the Americans were infused with the concept of Manifest Destiny : the view that the United States had a God-given mandate to expand its territories in the West in order to spread the American ideals of freedom and democracy to the supposedly inferior and uncivilized peoples of the Continent (Decebal, n.d.)."

Tags:Manifest, Destiny, Chicano, Latino, community

Abstract
This paper presents an overview of Italian economic history, post World War II. It looks at the GDP per capita increase, the complex melding of private and public sectors and the liberalization of the Italian economy.

From the Paper
"WWII has been a complex melding together of the public and private sectors. The phenomenal growth of the Italian economy post WWII is indisputable and was based on a variety of factors. Starting from the centralized economy inherited from the repressive regime of Benito Mussolini, two generations of Italians have shepherded their economy into the global market and the European Union EU. The private sector has benefited greatly from the liberalization of the Italian economy but the country continues to maintain ..."

Tags:Italy, Economy, Private, Public, Sector, World War II

Abstract
This paper explains that the Mexican-American war pointed out the wide differences between two very opposing societies. Whereas the American nation represented a new emerging society in which the norms and the rules were inspired by an old system of laws and democratic beliefs, the author relates, the society of the Mexican nation still showed signs of the rule of the Spanish colonial system upon which this country was based. The roles played by minority groups in the armies of the United States and Mexico, the paper emphasizes, are important because they shed light on the way in which these groups were treated and on their influence on the outcome of history.

From the Paper
"The issue of race and class distinction during the Mexican war must be seen from the perspective of the political and economic situation in the region. Therefore, the American government was encouraging the emigration in Texas as a means of establishing a more comprehensive grip on the area, while the Mexican government tried to limit and even restrict it. Thus, it is clear that the American side used the issue of the population as a means to increase its influence in Texas, while the Mexicans used their authoritarian grip on the society and on the rules as a means of reducing the freedom of movement between the two regions."

Tags:manifest destiny, blacks conquistadors armies indians

Abstract
This paper presents a review of the main development in U.S. history under President Harry S. Truman from 1945-1951. It explores his foreign policy during the post WW II era and shows the many precedents he set. The writer then examines several of the Presidents who took office after Truman and how his foreign policy and legacy influenced their decision making policies. Presidents examined are Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Ford, Reagan, Bush and Clinton.

From the Paper
"President Harry S. Truman is considered by many to be one of the greater Presidents of the United States. Truman was Vice President for a few weeks before he became President on April 12, 1945. During his term as Vice President, he saw little of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was not briefed on the development of the atomic bomb or of the United States' problems with Soviet Russia. When he became President, these problems became life. Truman later told reporters, "I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me." (Cochran, 1973)"

Tags:president, american, clinton, reagan, ford, bush, kennedy, eisenhower, cold, war

Abstract
This paper introduces, discusses, and analyzes the topic of American history. Specifically, the paper discusses the Mexican-American War and how it was a controversial war that promoted American expansionism and took advantage of Mexico.

Outline:
Origins of the War
Manifest Destiny
The War Itself
Desertion
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
After the War

From the Paper
"Even though the Americans had won many key battles, the Mexicans still refused to negotiate, so American commanders believed they had to hit the heart of the country, its capital Mexico City, to get them to capitulate. General Winfield Scott, the Commanding General of the American army, landed troops in the coastal city of Vera Cruz and quickly took over the community. He used it as a base to launch his advance on the capital. Historian Black notes, "Santa Anna had created another army after his defeat at Buena Vista, but it was defeated at the pass of Cerro Gordo on 18 April, with heavy Mexican losses. Santa Anna had hoped to confine the Americans to the lowlands" (Black 124). However, Scott's army defeated Santa Anna's, and his next step was to defend the capital. The armies fought several more battles before they engaged at Mexico City. They took Mexico City in September 1847, just six months after landing in Vera Cruz."

Tags:mexico, american, war, manifest destiny