"Cold war" is the term given to the competition, conducted through means short of direct military conflict, between the United States and the Soviet Union since World War II. Its roots go back to the 1890s when, after a century of friendship, Americans and Russians became rivals over the development...

The Downfall of Communism in Eastern and Central Europe The shocking fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe in the late eighties was remarkable for both its rapidity and its scope. The specifics of communism's demise varied among nations, but similarities in both the causes...

From the year 1968 to the present there were many events which either traumatized the world or provided a stepping stone for the different areas of success. Technology vastly affected and promoted the competition of the two most diverse systems in the world. Better known as the cold war, the c...

As one looks at international relations in this post-cold war era, it is important to know that the liberal-realist ideologies are crucial elements to understanding post-cold war conflicts. Realists believe that wars arise from the efforts and desire of states to obtain power and security in an ana...

The Space Race The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialists Republic, now known as Russia) and the United States had been disagreeing on things since 1917. When World War ** ended in 1945, the Cold War began. The Cold War was not an actual war, but more like a competition over military leadership (or...

The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy About the author's relation to the book and the book itself: A mutiny on a Soviet destroyer stimulated Clancy to write "Red October"; it was an instant hit. This novel has been adapted for film, with Sean Connery as Cpt. Marko Ramius and Alec ...

The shocking fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe in the late eighties was remarkable for both its rapidity and its scope. None more than for East and West Germany. "The unification of Germany has been one of the most significant and moving events of the 20th century. Yet the ...

American Politics in Transition For the United States, as for most states in the world, the 1980’s and 1990’s were a time of change and challenge. During this period the effects of change both within the US and internationally acted as push factors in many areas of life, including e...

The Cold War was already underway during World War II, we the United States were always worried about what the Russians next move would be. They had violated many agreements that they made with America. America was in great fear of the expansion of the Communist Party in parts of Europe and othe...

Economic Transitions for the European States After 1945 The greatest challenge for Germany after World War II was economics. Nothing remained of Germany except rubble and graves. It was impossible for the Germans go get food and clean drinking water. It was even more impossible for the German...

"Nuclear Rites" is a book based on the fieldwork of Professor Hugh Gusterson who conducted his research at a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, near San Francisco. As an anthropologist and a former antinuclear activist, the author set out to examine the scientists in order to und...

The Monroe Doctrine The nineteenth century was an exciting and vibrant era that not only dramatically altered the physical face of our nation due to the rapid development of large cities and manufacturing facilities, but also helped modify and shape the values that have come to define our Amer...

The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 was a pivotal political event of the 20th century that signaled the eclipse of a major political and economic ideology of the 20th century, i.e., Communism, and left the United States as the sole and unchallenged superpower in the world. Most political analys...

The Cold War began as an ideological struggle between the two superpowers that emerged in the aftermath of World War Two (WWII). The destruction of the former Western European balance of power post-WWII allowed for new nations to emerge superpowers. The tensions that arose from the restructured bipo...

"Can Vietnam Succeed?" When questioning the chances of success for Vietnam, we need to understand that Vietnam's 'success' can only be assessed by the extent to which Vietnam's economy, political system, and administrative institutions are successfully meeting the n...

In the early decades of the twentieth century, the world was shocked by the progression of warfare in ways that were previously unthinkable. The First World War, or The Great War, as it was called during that time, was the result of political tension between established governments of the Balkan Pe...

What would Europe look like 10 years after the end of World War II and today without the implementation of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan? In order to truly determine what Europe would have looked like 10 years after the end of World War II and today without the implementation of the...

During the Cold War, the United States of America was determined to act as the superior nation in the world. They believed that every country was inferior to them in regards to military power, economic stability and moral beliefs. After the assassination of former President John F. Kennedy, the Vice...

The Cuban Missile Crisis: Conflict between the U.S. and Russia What happened, who caused it, and how it could have been avoided The Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest the world ever came to nuclear war. The United States armed forces were at their highest state of readiness an...

The victorious forces at the end of the war divided Germany into four zones. They also divided Berlin into four zones. Each of the victorious nations controlled one zone and one sector of Berlin. The Allies (Britain, America and France) ran their zones differently to the areas controlled by Russia...

The Influence of the Cold War and the Space Race On the Evolution of Today's Technology A few hundred key inventions have marked mankind's progress from the Stone Age to the Space Age. What were these inventions? Who made them possible? Where would the world be today if the space r...

The Influence of the Cold War and the Space Race On the Evolution of Today's Technology A few hundred key inventions have marked mankind's progress from the Stone Age to the Space Age. What were these inventions? Who made them possible? Where would the world be today if the space r...

It has been a 'splendid little war' wrote John Hay to Theodore Roosevelt after the fall of Santiago. Little, the Spanish-American War was; it was over in barely four months. Splendid? Maybe for those at home, reading the headline about its lucky victories. But for those men who fo...

During the period of the Cold War, the world's two superpowers, America and the Soviet Union, exploited every aspect of national life and policy in their countries for purposes of propaganda. The Cold War was "a war fought with propaganda and economic weapons, stopping short of military co...

THE RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE AFTER WORLD WAR II Even while World War II war still being fought, leaders of the Allied powers began thinking about how to reconstruct Europe after the war. Winston Churchill of Britain, Franklin Roosevelt of the United States, and Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union a...