1. What were the causes of the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression?
-many people had large debt, buying things on credit
-companies started going under because people weren’t buying goods
-stock prices over valued because of speculation, lost faith in stock market
-lack of government regulation- laissez faire
-buying on margin
Causes of Great Depression
-over production
-people had a lot less money to spend because of debt
-people being layed off, companies losing money
-stock market crash
-banks failing
-high tariffs
2. What impact did the stock market crash and Great Depression have on the lives of people in the United States?
-life savings lost
-homeless people, hoovervilles
-unemplyment
-deficit spending
-wages down
-high crime rate
3. What did the United States government do to help alleviate the problems the Great Depression brought to our country?
NEW DEAL
-reconstruction finance corporation
loans to businesses and banks, create jobs- trickle down theory
-bank holiday
close banks for 4 days
-remove gold standard policy
money no longer backed by gold
-FDIC
insure peoples money in banks($1000) $250,000 today
-SEC
regulate stock market
4. What were the causes of WWII?
-Germans were not satisfied with Treaty of Versailles/Weimar Republic
-Rise of facism and Nazi party
-Hitler assumes power
-Nazi acts against Jews
-Germanys remilitarization
-Failure of League of Nations
-Germany re-occupies the Rhineland
-failure of appeasement
5. What impact did the United States have on WWII?
It brought another super power into the war
We had fresh troops to fight against the Axis powers in Europe
The U.S. citizens rallied for war and wanted revenge on Japan
soft underbelly (Italy), then D-Day
US Naval forces were very strong
Shipped out food
Had a very strong army and navy
Great Britain relied on US
Gave them loans
Gave them oil
Without the US, the Allies probably would have won, but it would have taken longer
Used a lot of propaganda
Lend-Lease with Great Britain
Many volunteer groups
Americans saved resources-made sure we were in good shape after the war
Ration food
Were collecting scrap metal and other things to help make armaments
War bonds were bought to help raise money for the war
Made them hate the enemy more and support Allies more
Smart scientists
6. What were the goals for the US during the Cold War?
policy of containment - stop spread of communism
went to war in Korea and Vietnam
promote open markets for US goods
promote democracy
7. What were some of the major events that took place during the Cold War?
Berlin Blockade/Airlift -
Cuban Missile Crisis - soviets had missiles in Cuba, we were going to invade or attack them if they did not remove them, they agreed to remove them, we would withdraw missiles from Turkey 6 months later
Red Scare/McCarthyism - fear of rising communism, McCarthy said he knew communists in the US but people quit believing him and he was accused of making false statements
Bay of Pigs - we trained 1400 cubans to revolt against the government as we were suppose to back them up with airstrikes, we backed out because we didn't want them to know we were behind it
Berlin Wall - to separate East from West (communist from democrat), came down November 9th, 1989
End of Cold War - Why did the US win and the Soviet Union lose?
We had close ties with Allies and Soviets didn’t
China started siding with us after 1972
Soviet economy was in shambles whereas the US's was flourishing
Soviet Union had huge deficit
High inflation
Corruption
Social problems
Shortage of basic needs (food, housing)
The strong anti-communist presidency of Reagan
Gorbachev's willingness for change and reform.
Glasnost and perestroika
Admitted Soviet mistakes
Took blame for the Cold War
Communist system had failed
Allowed Eastern Europe to do what they wanted
Arm's Reduction Talks
Soviet Mistakes
Invasion of Afghanistan
Ignoring Social Concerns
Spent everything on Military
Post-Cold War
in the 1990’s, the world seemed to be a much more peaceful place
President Clinton closed down the numerous military bases around the country reducing the size of the US military
9-11 caught the US off guard.
8. Why did the US go to war in Korea and Vietnam and what were outcome of those wars?
Korean War
to prevent the spread of communism
we said Korea was outside of our defense perimeter
June 25, 1950 North Korea invaded South Korea
North - Kim ll-Sung, South - Syngham Rhee
Kim gained support from Stalin and Mao Zedong
within days the South was in full retreat
General Douglas MacArthur was put in charge of US forces that had airstrikes on North Korea
Fighting on Pusan perimeter
most fighting was here until the United Nations attacked the North and pushed them back past the 38th parallel
policy was placed to shoot any approaching civilian refugees
General MacArthur thought going all the way to China was a good idea, but Truman did not agree
General MacArthur did not listen and was let go of his duties
China invaded as they were concerned and pushed the US back to the 38th parallel
A cease fire was established on July 27th, 1953
A DMZ (demilitarized zone) was put around the area
no peace treaty has ever been signed
first armed confrontation of cold war
expanded cold war
created idea of war without nuclear weapons
Vietnam
to prevent the spread of communism
french had control but withdrew
Geneva Conference
Vietnam split temporarily into North and South by the 17th parallel
North - Ho Chi Minh, South - Emperor Bao Dai (later Ngo Dinh Diem)
north invaded the south
we defended south
vietnamization
pulled out
All is communistic
we won both wars but both were very unpopular with the citizens back home
9. Know these major major post-Cold War Events:
JFK Assassination
Civil Rights - brown vs. board of education, 24th amendment
Watergate Scandal Richard Nixon and his party went into the Watergate and planted bugs and took documents about the democrats, he denied it but was most likely guilty and should not have covered it up
Persian/Gulf War - Iraq invaded Kuwait, we freed Kuwait
911
War in Afghanistan - 2001, Taliban was harboring Al Qaeda, October we invaded, established a democracy there, still fighting
- War in Iraq - 2 years after 911, Saddam Hussein was said to be getting mass destruction weapons, did not allow weapon inspectors in so we invaded, established democracy, rebuild country, left in 2011
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