Titles: United States v. Nixon Labels: Nixon, Watergate, US_v_Nixon





The Cover-up

1. Regardless of the outcome, should the President of the United States have a right to privacy in regards to the Oval Office tapes? Explain.
No he should not have a right because the Oval Office tapes were evidence to an ongoing investigation. The question, "what did the president know, and when did he know it" could be answered by the viewing of the tapes. He should not have a right to privacy because what happens in the Oval office belongs to the federal government and the judicial branch has a right to see what they want.


2. Was President Nixon justified when he fired special prosecutor Archibald Cox? Explain.
President Nixon was absolutely not justified when he fired special prosecutor Archibald Cox because he fired him for basically summoning the court for vital evidence to a case involving the well being of the government. It was near insanity, and many protests broke out against the president. It was not justified because Cox simply did not want a summary of the tapes, but rather the tapes themselves, and Nixon refused and fired him. So Cox was fired because Nixon wasn't getting his way...UNJUSTIFIED.


3. Was Nixon creating a Constitutional crisis by refusing to hand-over the tapes? Explain.
Yes, Nixon created a Constitutional crisis by refusing to hand-over the tapes because it created a huge outpour of protest. The American public created 350,000 telegrams to congress and the white house describing their anger and distaste for the president's actions. It was a constitutional crisis because he was breaking the law by withholding crucial evidence to a court case and he was abusing the executive power.

Closure

4. Why do you think the American public was so outraged by Watergate?
The American public was so outraged by Watergate because it made them lose all of their trust that they had in the government. They could no longer believe or trust what the government was doing and it made them very mad. They were also outraged with the fact that president Nixon was abusing the executive power and acting more like a dictator than a political leader. The government was no long "for the people, by the people" but rather ruled by one individual making decisions for everyone, and it infuriated the public.


5. Do you think President Nixon should have resigned? Explain.
President Nixon most definitely should have resigned because he was doomed. He was charged with misusing presidential power to violate the constitutional rights of U.S. citizens, obstruction of justice, and defying Judiciary Committee subpoenas. His impeachment was inevitable if he stayed in office so he saved himself the humiliation and embarrassment and resigned, which was the right thing to do.


6. Do you think President Nixon should have been prosecuted? Explain.
I do not think President Nixon should have been prosecuted because it would have caused not only a domestic crisis but as well as a global crisis. The United States had already looked bad as they were just getting out of Vietnam, they had let communism spread in Europe and Asia and to have a president prosecuted would have made the united states look pathetic and weak. It was a wise decision not to prosecute the former president because it would have only caused more drama in the world and make the United States look vulnerable.

Watergate: Nixon's Downfall

1. How were the "plumbers" connected to President Nixon?
The plumbers were basically a special investigation team that was created during Nixon's presidency. The job of the "plumbers" was to stop information from being leaked to the press and they were tied up in Watergate.



2. Who was the judge? Why did he hand out maximum sentences?
John Sirica was the judge and he handed out maximum sentences because he believed that the men did not act alone, as well as the thought that the sentences could be reduced and people would give in to talking.
3. How were Mitchell and Dean connected to Nixon?
Dean was a former white house counsel and he provided the first evidence of testimony that Nixon was heavily involved in the scandal. John Mitchell was the former attorney general of President Nixon.

4. How were Haldeman and Erlichman connected to Nixon?
Haldeman was the White House chief of Staff of President Nixon, and Erlichman was the domestic chief advisor of President Nixon and that is how they were connected.

5. What did the following men tell the Senate about Nixon?

a. Dean- "Nixon had been deeply involved in the cover-up"

b. Butterfield- Butterfield told the senate that Nixon taped all of his presidential conversations. He said the system was called, "to help Nixon write his memoirs."

6. Who was fired or forced to resign in the "massacre"?
Richardson refused the order of firing Cox and as a result he was forced to resign and or fired.

7. Why weren't investigators satisified with the transcripts? The investigators were not satisfied because they wanted the unedited tapes but Nixon refused to hand them over.

8. What did the tapes reveal? The tapes revealed that there was enough evidence to impeach president Richard Nixon. The committee approved three articles of impeachment including obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of congress for refusing to give up the tapes.

9. Why did Vice President Spiro Agnew resign? Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned because it was revealed that he had accepted bribes from engineering firms while governor of Maryland.

10. What did the House Judiciary Committee charge President Nixon with?
The committee charged Nixon with three articles of impeachment including obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of congress for refusing to give up the tapes.

11. How did the Watergate scandal create a constitutional crisis?
The Watergate scandal created a constitutional crisis because the American public and the media developed a general cynicism about public officials and made people lose a lot of trust in the government.

Women Fight for Equality

Title: Women Fight for Equality Labels: Women's_Rights, Friedan, Schlafly, Steinem, Roe_v_Wade, ERA, NOW, Feminism,

Directions: As you read about the rise of a new women’s movement, take notes to explain how each of the following helped to create or advance the movement. Most jobs were deemed as male jobs and women were forbidden to do them or suited for them.

1. Experiences in the workplace
Women could only get jobs that were low paying, and even when they got jobs they were rarely ever promoted to a higher or better position. Most jobs were deemed as male jobs and women were forbidden to do them or suited for them. This proved that women were treated unfairly and they didn't get treated like men.

2. Experiences in social activism- Women joined groups where they felt they were treated unequally by men and not given higher positions. The women were given lesser roles when the men had more authority and or power.

3. "Consciousness raising"- they were groups where women would talk about having been discriminated against or experienced sexism. Women figured out that it was common among women to be discriminated against.

4. Feminism- Feminism: the belief that women should have economic, political, and social equality with men. Women took belief in feminism and they developed very strong emotions against men and for women's rights.

5. Betty Friedan and The Feminine Mystique- betty Friedan published the book The Feminine Mystique explaining that woman believed that they were not being treated equally and how it was common for a woman to think that she was not equal to a mans rights and how it often made women unhappy because of the inequality. It showed the sexism of women to men.

6. Civil Rights Act of 1964- The Civil Rights Act of 1964 gave woman determination to advance woman rights. The Act was a good example of showing that change was an extreme possibility and woman became more ambitious for equality.

7. National Organization for Women (NOW)- It was a very helpful organization that came to the aid of women to help them further pursue jobs and ultimately equality. It set up child care facilities that let mothers work and have jobs that were rather high paying and gave them the possibility of gaining a higher position.

8. Gloria Steinem and Ms. Magazine- She spoke publicly and spoke out loud to people and helped create the National Women's Political caucus.

9. Congress- Congress passed the equal rights amendment that gave women equality in 1972.

10. Supreme Court- The Supreme Court ruled to take away the right of women to have an abortion or not in the Roe vs Wade trial. Abortion became a huge issue involving womans rights and decisions.

11. The Equal rights Amendment would have guaranteed equal rights under the law, regardless of gender. Who opposed this amendment? Why?
Phyllis Schlafly opposed the equal rights amendment because she felt many factors would tie in with the amendment that would make women unhappy like, women being drafted for war, it would stop gay marriage, it would make men no longer support for their family as heavily as they did, and it would eliminate laws that protected homeowners.

Why did the USA lose the Vietnam War?

The Americans did not lose purely for military reasons. There were other factors as well.

Write an explanation AND cite a source which shows the importance of the following six factors:

1. US military tactics in Vietnam- The US military tactics in Vietnam consisted of bombing, chemical weapons, and search and destroy missions. The U.S. air power could not defeat the communists, the Viet Cong could still operate their supply lines and were still able to launch major attacks. The chemical weapons like agent orange only worked to a minimal extent because they killed many innocent civilians which made the Americans look bad. Search and destroy missions did not work because they were often based off of unreliable information, they were run by young american soldiers that fell into traps, many innocent civilians died, many cities and towns were burnt down to nothing, and the search and destroy missions pushed peasants to support the Viet Cong. As shown in Source 41, 42, and 43, the Americans were not well liked by the Vietnamese people and they were creating atrocities in Vietnam.

2. The unpopularity of the South Vietnamese regime- Diem was a very corrupt leader. He was a member of the landlord class that treated peasants terribly, and he had a deep disgust for Buddhists as he was a Roman Catholic. He was very corrupt as he chose members of his family or supporters for positions of power and he refused to hold elections. The U.S.A. knew this but they still supported him because he was anti communist and they had no one else better. The U.S. supplied him with a lot of money. Source 35 shows the unpopularity of the South Vietnamese regime.

3. The experience of the Viet Cong and the inexperience of the American soldiers- The Viet Cong were very experienced because they were the best soldiers North Vietnam had, they practiced guerrilla warfare that made them very strong and intelligent, they were ruthless and determined to win the war, they knew their way around the jungle and around Vietnam and they refused to give in. The American soldiers were very bad, they were mostly young men that were fresh out of the draft, and there was rarely old soldiers as they kept getting rotated, the American soldiers knew nothing about Vietnam or about how to get through the jungle, and they could not figure out the guerrilla warfare for the life of them. The experience of the Viet Cong and the inexperience of the Viet Cong is shown in Source 36, 37, and 38 as the guerrilla tactics are exploited.

4. Domestic opposition to the war in the U.S.- Many Americans were horrified with the Vietnam war and what they were seeing in the news. It showed prisoners being executed and tortured, or women and children watching the horrors of cities being burnt down and their husbands killed. The American public was disgusted with how the U.S. military was handling the war and how they were going against the morals of the United States, they were killing innocent civilians and breaking other rules of war, and the American people found this barbaric, and they believed the American people did not even need to be in Vietnam and it was a pointless war. Source 45 and 45 show the domestic opposition of the Vietnam war according to the Americans.

5. Chinese and Soviet support for the Viet Cong- The Chinese and Soviet Union supplied weapons, equipment, and money to the Viet Cong during the war. They were for the Viet Cong winning so they would become communist and share the same ideas as them. Although the Viet Cong were outnumbered, their tactics, money, weapons, and equipment received from China and the Soviet Union gave them a lot of power and the necessities to win the war. Source 38 shows how China supports the Viet Cong and communism in Vietnam.

6. 'But did they really lose?' Summarize the argument put forward in Source 57, and your view on it.
Yes, the United states really lost the war and I believe Source 57 is a bunch of lame excuses. The United states fought in Vietnam, they were unable to defeat the Viet Cong and they realized they had no chance, the U.S. backed out before disaster struck, as disaster was inevitable. The U.S. strategically moved out at the right time to save themselves from embarrassment but they did in fact lose the war, they went in to win the war and stop communism from forming in Vietnam, they happened to fail at doing so, therefore making them the losers in the end.

Vietnam War Opposition

1. Note all of the reasons why you feel the war in Vietnam is wrong.
It is a pointless war...the Vietnamese have been ruled by the French for centuries, when they finally get their freedom, they don't want another nation to come in and control them. The Viet Cong and Vietnamese were relentless and they would never give up. The Vietnamese were a lot better prepared and had better war tactics. The U.S. was spending 2o billion dollars a year and was sending 500,000 troops into Vietnam and they were still getting surprise attacks sprung upon them. The U.S. bombed many towns and cities, killing innocent women and children. The burnt down many towns and cities, it was a disaster and was immoral. The U.S. was going against what they believed in.
2. Note what you re trying to achieve with this poster. (e.g. to convince people to write to their Congressmen to get the troops out.)
I am writing this poster to convince people that the government is wrong and what they are doing is terrible. The United states is going against all that it stands for and people need to realize this and protest it so that the Vietnam war will stop and their will be peace across the world. I am trying to get the idea across that it is not our war to fight, it is not our country, not our problem, and we need to let it be. There is no point in wasting our money and our soldiers for something that is turning into a bloody mess, they are going their to look like Nazis! It is blasphemy!
3. List possible images for your poster. Think about: background (e.g. destroyed villages); the central image (e.g. picture of a young soldier); whether you will need words to explain your image.
First Image: Picture of a young Vietnamese child, hurt and helpless. The words describing the picture would be how Vietnamese children were dieing from napalm attacks and they were set on fire and sometimes killed.
Second image: A town destroyed by a napalm attack or a city destroyed. For example a place like Hue that was an ancient city and it was completely destroyed by American bombs.
Third Image: A picture of U.S. soldiers, trekking through the Vietnamese land and how they walked and functioned together. Words would describe the picture as how the Americans fought in battle and how it greatly differed from that of the Vietnamese and their guerrilla tactics.

4. List some possible slogans for your poster.
"Pointless War!"
"Nazi America?"
"Where have the morals of the U.S. gone?"
"America gone bad"
"Screw the president!"

Vietnam War Turning Points

1. Why was the Tet Offensive a turning point? Explain your answer.
The Tet offensive was a turning point because it raised a lot of questions about the war in the United states. The United states had nearly 500,000 troops in Vietnam and they were spending nearly 20 billion dollars a year on the war, so people wondered how the communists were able to pull off a major offensive that took the U.S. forces by surprise. Also, the United states and South Vietnamese used heavy artillery and air power, that resulted in many Vietnamese civilian deaths, and the ancient city of Hue being destroyed. It was a turning point because the U.S.A. realized that what they were doing was against what they believed in and they were not being fair or they did not know what they were fighting for anymore.


2. Are Sources 51 and 52 making the same point about the My Lai Massacre?
No, source 51 and source 52 are very different in their points about the My Lai massacre. Source 51 was written by Ronald Ridenhour, who was appalled with what had gone on at My Lai, he compared it to the work of Nazis, and how innocent women and children were slaughtered. Ridenhour claimed that young American men went to Vietnam to serve as soldiers and to be courageous, not to take away innocent lives. In source 52, Lieutenant Calley claims that he was in My Lai to fight communism, and not to kill humans. The two sources vary greatly because one is stating how the My Lai massacre was a disaster in the war, while the other is stating that the My Lai massacre was a part of the war and it led to the effort of trying to end communism.



3. Why do you think it took 12 months for
anyone to do anything about the massacre?
In my opinion, I believed that the My Lai massacre was covered up by Calley and some other members of the Charlie company. Nobody came forward before twelve months because they were instructed and ordered not to by their generals and lieutenants. I believe that it got covered up because Calley knew that he committed a serious crime and the military would pay greatly for having murdered innocent people. Calley did not want the My Lai massacre to be exploited so he covered it up and made his soldiers believe they did well, until one soldier got a hold off the news and realized what the Americans were doing was very wrong.


4. Why was the massacre so shocking to
the American public?
The American people were so shocked by the massacre because they thought the U.S. military was in Vietnam to strictly try and end communism and fight the Viet Cong. The public believed that the only ones dieing were those who opposed the U.S. army and fought against them. The people of the United states were shocked because they realized innocent people were dieing at the cost of the U.S. and the U.S. was killing people that did not deserve to be killed and it was appalling to them.

The U.S. struggles against the Communist in Vietnam

Step 2: Using pages 356-61 in the Vietnam War Reading, make notes in columns 2 (US Army) and 4 (Viet Cong) to record how far each side had each quality.



Stage 2: Thinking it through

Step 3: in each row of column 3, draw some scales to show which way the balance falls for this quality. Did the USA or the Viet Cong have the advantage?

1. Now think about the overall picture - how the strengths and weaknesses work together.

a) Were the armies finely balanced or was the balance strongly weighted to one side or the other?
The balance of the armies was strongly weighted towards the side of the Viet Cong because they had a lot more advantages. For example, they had more dedicated soldiers, better war tactics, support from the Vietnamese, and a good amount of equipment from other nations. The U.S. army was strong but they could not stand up to the guerrilla tactics of the Viet Cong and the abnormal fighting style they brought forth.

b) Which quality was most important in determining who won the war? Was one feature so important that being ahead in that area meant that other advantages or disadvantages did not matter?
No because the war was very wide-based. There was many areas that all combined ultimately decided who won the war. Mainly, if communism stayed than Vietnam won the war and if the U.S. was able to abolish communism than they would have won the war. The feature that was most important was the amount of casualties of one side and how the government stood after the war.

Stage 3: Explaining your conclusions
The failure of the U.S. army to beat the Communist in Vietnam was the result of its own weaknesses and Viet Cong strengths.

2. Now write up your answer. Use this structure:
a. The U.S. weaknesses were: the failed strategy of bombing and marching in groups to fight the Viet Cong, the lack of understanding of the jungle, the lack of understanding of how the Viet Cong fought, not enough determined soldiers, and no true influence or support from Vietnam.

b. At the same time, the Communist strengths were: the very successful guerrilla tactics, the understanding of the jungle, determined soldiers, the support of Vietnam, a good amount of equipment supplied by the Soviet Unions and China.

c. The U.S. forces did have some successes. For example: they were able to successfully bomb North Vietnam, disrupted the war efforts and supply efforts of the communists, they showed how powerful their army was and inevitably how much the U.S. opposed communism and the Tet offensive.

d. However, there were some major failures as well. Examples of these were: not winning the Vietnam war, failing to stop communism, supporting a corrupt leader and government in Vietnam, not being able to stop the spread of communism and keep South Vietnam free.

e. The Viet Cong had some major successes, such as: successfully bombing U.S. and Southern Vietnam air bases and supply fields, ultimately winning the war, keeping communism present in Vietnam and supporting Ho Chi Minh which resulted in the communists winning the war.

f. However, they also suffered defeats, for example: the Tet offensive. During the Tet offensive, the Viet Cong lost around 10,000 experienced soldiers and it showed that the people of South Vietnam did not stand up to support the Viet Cong.

g. If I had to identify one major American weakness, it would be [not being able to fight well against the guerrilla tactics] because: the U.S. was very old fashioned and they fought by marching and in open fields by following the rules of war, while the Viet Cong used guerrilla tactics that thrw off the U.S. armies whole plan of fighting and it was a nightmare for the U.S. The guerrilla tactics proved to be very successful and work tremendously well for the Vietnamese and the Americans could not successfully fight back.

h. The key Viet Cong strength was [guerrilla tactics] because: they were able to go all throughout the jungle, retreat very fast, attack the U.S. when they were tired, and the Viet Cong was very durable. They were determined to never give in or give up and they did whatever it took to win.

The U.S. Enters the Vietnam War

1. Many neutral observers in Vietnam were critical of US policy. Explain why.
In 1954 the U.S.A prevented Vietnam from holding elections in fear that a communist leader would be elected. In 1955 the Americans help set up the Republic of South Vietnam. The U.S. supported corrupt leaders in Vietnam and supplied over a billion dollars in the 1950, they had no other way to try to stop communism but to support anti-communist people, weather they were corrupt or not. President Kennedy sent military personal that he referred to as advisers to fight the Viet Cong, but as time went on, between 1963 and 1964, tension between North and South Vietnam increased and so did the amount of military assistance in Vietnam. Many neutral observers were critical of U.S. policy because the U.S. was sending astonishing amounts of money as well as a great deal of soldiers into Vietnam without any real reason. They were bombing helpless citizens and they supported corrupt leaders.

2. Explain how US politicians would have defended their policies.
US politicians would have defended their policies because they claimed that if Vietnam fell to communism, than it would have been the start of all of Asia. American's saw what was happening in Vietnam as a domino effect, if Vietnam fell to communism than many other Asian countries like Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Burma and maybe even India would fall right behind them. Communism was a huge fear of the United States and they went to any measure they could in stopping it. The policy of sending troops into Vietnam was one of the only ways that the US could be sure that they were driving out communism and keeping a nationalist balance. The money they gave anti-communist leaders in Vietnam was very important because it was able to set up a government that was anti-communist and supported by some peasants.

3. The following events are not listed in correct date order. Place them in the correct chronological order. (Write the year inside the parenthesis, i.e. (1965). Then note the reason for each U.S. action, and how it brought the U.S. into deeper involvement in Vietnam.
The reasons you can choose from are: No direct involvement; financial support; political involvement; military involvement. Also, note what events triggered the increased involvement.

( 1963 ) Assassination of JFK - Johnson becomes president- political involvement- When Lyndon Johnson became president, he was more prepared than Kennedy to commit the USA to a full-scale conflict in Vietnam to prevent the spread of communism. It brought the U.S. deeper into involvement in Vietnam because Johnson was up for a war while Kennedy was hesitant, so with Johnson being president, the U.S. was ready to go to war.
( 1954 ) Formation of South Vietnam- political involvement- elections could not be held to determine what was going to happen in Vietnam, so at the Geneva peace conference in 1954, Vietnam was split into two different countries, North and South. With the constant fighting and disagreements between the communists and the anti communists in Vietnam, the involvement was increased. The U.S. was brought deeper into involvement with Vietnam with the formation of South Vietnam because the U.S. needed to stop communism from spreading, and making sure that Vietnam was equally divided, it would not spread any further.
( 1964 ) Gulf of Tonkin Incident- military involvement- North Vietnamese patrol boats opened fire on US boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. This infuriated Johnson and members of conference. The US was now authorized to do whatever it took to prevent further aggression in Vietnam, and the answer was war. The Gulf of Tonkin increased the US' involvement in Vietnam because now Vietnam was threatening US people and started fighting against them.
( 1962 ) Number of 'advisers' reaches over 11,500- military involvement- Kennedy was sending military 'advisors' to Vietnam to fight against the Viet Cong. When the tension increased between the Vietnams, more and more advisors were sent. With the increasing of advisors entering Vietnam, it increased the involvement of the USA because more and more American soldiers and people were entering Vietnam, they needed to fight and help defeat the Viet Cong.
( 1962 ) JFK sends military advisers- military involvement- JFK sent military personal to Vietnam to fight the Viet Cong, it was a sign that the Viet Cong was very strong and powerful and US assistance was needed. The sending of military advisers was an increase of involvement of the USA because the president was sending members of the military to engage in undeclared warfare in Vietnam and to help out fighting against the Viet Cong and their guerrilla tactics.
( 1965 ) U.S. Marines land at Da Nang- military involvement- with the landing of U.S. marines on Da Nang, the Vietnam War was started. Fire was opened upon U.S. ships, so war was declared and Marines were station to Da Nang. This brought the US into deeper involvement in Vietnam because they were now at war and fighting against the communists and the Viet Cong.
( 1954 ) U.S. stops elections in Vietnam- political involvement- the U.S. stopped elections in Vietnam because they were in fear that a communist would win and it would then result in a domino effect and other Asian surrounding countries would fall to communism. The involvement was triggered because the USA was scared of what would have happened if communism kept growing. The U.S. stopping elections in Vietnam increased the involvement of the U.S. in Vietnam because now they were interfering with the government of the Vietnamese.
( 1963 ) U.S. supports South Vietnam government after army overthrow Diem-political involvement- the U.S. supported the South Vietnam government because they were anti-communist, although they have may have been corrupt and not the best leaders or government to support, the U.S. had no other choice, they knew no one that was better. The involvement was triggered by the overthrowing of Diem by the army because his decisions and actions were not working. The supporting of the South Vietnam government increased the U.S. involvement in Vietnam because now they were supporting part of the country and the government that ran it.
( 1960-2 ) Viet Cong attacks on U.S. and South Vietnam bases- military involvement- The Viet Cong attacked American air force and supply bases as well as the South Vietnamese government's buildings, forces, and officials. The involvement was triggered by the formation of the Viet Cong and their ideas of communism and how they were against the South Vietnamese government and it's supporters. The Viet Cong attacks increased the involvement of the U.S. in Vietnam because they were now fighting the Viet Cong and the communists in Vietnam.
( 1960 ) Viet Cong formed-military and political involvement- the Viet Cong was against the South Vietnamese government and they killed peasants who were not in support of them. They attacked the US and the Southern Vietnamese government. The involvement was triggered by how the Viet Cong used guerrilla tactics and were extremely hard to face when it came to fighting. The formation of the Viet Cong increased the involvement of the U.S. in Vietnam because now they had to deal with skilled fighting and another force that wanted communism to expand and wanted the United States out.

4. Choose two events that you think were critical in getting the U.S. involved in a war in Vietnam. Explain your choice.
The Gulf of Tonkin incident- The Gulf of Tonkin incident was critical in getting the U.S. involved in a war with Vietnam because now Northern Vietnamese people and ships were fighting against the U.S. American lives were now at risk and were being threatened, Johnson and the Congress agreed that something had to be done and they had to take desperate measures to conserve peace and prevent further aggression.
JFK sends military advisers- JFK sending military advisers was very critical in getting the U.S. involved in a war in Vietnam because he was basically sending the army into Vietnam, they were in fact military personal. With American soldiers going into Vietnam to fight the Viet Cong, it was battle. When the numbers of 'advisers' increased, the fighting came more and more, and eventually a war pursued.

The Cuban Missile Crisis

1. Kennedy described Wednesday, Oct. 24 and Saturday, Oct. 27 as the darkest days of the crisis. Use the information on page 350 to explain why.
October 24 was a very dark day because the blockade began and the Soviet ships closest to the blockade stop or turn around. October 27 was a very dark day in the crisis because the Soviet Unions refused to remove their missiles from Cuba unless the United States removed their missiles from Turkey. They could not do this and a U-2 plane was shot down over Cuba, the pilot was killed and Kennedy was advised to attack but held off.

2. Do you think that nuclear war was ever a possibility in this crisis?
Yes I do because Iron Ass was part of the crisis on the American side and his strategy was just to bomb Cuba instead of an invasion. It would have been a very bad idea as the Soviet Union would have bombed the USA.
3. Is Source 26 a Soviet or an American cartoon? Explain your answer by referring to the details in the cartoon.
Source 26 is an American cartoon because it is explaining how the nuclear bombs of the Soviet Union were controlled by the decisions and the strength of president Kennedy and the United states. Whoever had more strength was able to drop and release the bombs first. The reason that U believe it is an American cartoon is that it clearly shows how things are based on the decisions of Kennedy.

4. Using Source 27 list any evidence you can find for and against each of the explanations.
To bargain with the USA- For bargaining, the United States would benefit because the Soviet Union would take the missiles out of Cuba. Against bargaining, the United states had to give up some of their concessions when it really was not fair.
To test the USA- For testing, it showed the strength of the United States and how they could go up against the soviet union without being afraid. Against the testing, the Soviet Union wanted to test out the abilities of Kennedy and thought he would back off to them.
To trap the USA- For trapping, if the Soviet Union was trapping, the United States should not have had any thoughts of negotiating with them or removing their bombs. Against trapping, the Soviet Union was trying to trick the Americans and making them start a nuclear war.
To get the upper hand in the arms race- For getting the second hand in the arms race, the U.S.S.R wanted to take the missiles off Cuba because it meant that the USA would be less likely to attack. Against getting the upper hand in the arms race, the U.S.S.R. was seizing opportunities against the United States.
To defend Cuba- For defending Cuba, the United states were not in direct threat with the U.S.S.R., against defending Cuba, the U.S.S.R. was giving Cuba too many weapons and missiles.

Why did the Soviet Union place nuclear missiles on Cuba?
To bargain with the USA

To test the USA
.....................................................................................
To trap the USA

To get the upper hand in the arms race

To defend Cuba

5. Choose the explanation(s) that you think best fit what you have found out about the crisis. Explain your choice.
To test the USA is most definitely the best fit of what I have found out about the crisis. The Soviet Union was testing the USA and they planted missiles in Cuba to see what the United States would do. The United states could either back off or threaten the Soviet Union and Cuba. By testing the United States, the U.S.S.R. was able to discover how strong the United States was and how much they would fight back to the Soviet Union.

The U.S. Attempts to Contain Cuba

1. Why was Cuba so important to the United States?
It had been an American ally for a long while and Americans owned most of the business on the island. The USA had a very large naval base there. The United states had a lot of influence in Cuba and they controlled most of the business, including many sugar industries.

2. Why do you think the Americans chose to equip Cuban exiles rather than invading themselves?
I believe that the Americans chose to equip Cuban exiles rather than invading themselves was because they knew that that if they invaded Cuba, than the Soviet Union would launch bombs at attack them. The United States did not want to be the cause of an invasion of Cuba because it would just create a lot of tension between them and the U.S.S.R.

3. Why did the invasion fail?
The invasion failed because the Cuban military was equipped with tanks and modern weapons, along with 20,000 troops, which overwhelmed the exiles. The United States was suppose to provide air support, which would have given the exiles a chance. But because the United States is filled with political babies, they became scared and failed to authorize the air strikes.

4. Compare Source 17 on page 345 (in the Arms Race.pdf reading) with Source 24 on page 348. Describe how the Soviet Union missiles on Cuba changed the Cold War balance of power.
American missiles were stationed in the USA and they were aimed toward Soviet Union cities and were estimated to take about 30 minutes to hit, according to source 17. With the Soviet Union having missiles set up in Cuba, the amount of accuracy at where they could aim their bombs sky rocketed, the time it would take the bombs to hit decreased drastically, and it made everything easier. It chanced the Cold War balance of power because now the Soviet Union was a major threat to the United states. They could fire deadly missiles at short range with barely any warming and it would be devastating to the U.S.

The American Dream in the 1950s

For each term or name, write a concise sentence or two explaining its significance.

1. Baby Boom
The Baby Boom was significant because it explained the population explosion in the United States from the 1940s to the 1960s. The birthrate soared and at it's height in 1957, one baby was born every seven seconds, resulting in the largest generation in United States history.

2. Dr. Jonas Salk
Dr. Jonas Salk was very significant because he discovered a vaccine for the crippling disease of polio. Polio killed many people, most of them being children, in the 1900's. His vaccine would prove to prevent polio from crippling children.

3. Interstate Highway System
The Interstate Highway System was significant because it created 41,000 miles of expressways in the United States. The new roads encouraged the development of suburbs outside of cities. They made high-speed, long-haul trucking possible which lead to a decrease in the need of commercial railroads. It also helped to unify and homogenize the nation.

4. Franchise
A franchise is a company that offers similar products or services in many locations. The development of franchises were significant because they generated a lot of money. By offering low prices and being convenient to the customer, places like fast food restaurants received a lot of money and were able to expand and become franchises.

5. In a paragraph, describe in detail how Americans spent their leisure time in the 1950s
There was a great deal of leisure time in the 1950's due to new innovations that made chores quicker, set hours for jobs, and a higher ambition to get work done. Millions of Americans engaged in sports such as fishing, bowling, hunting and golf. Sports like basketball, baseball, and football saw many more fans as people became interested in them a lot more and other Americans watched professional sports on television. Many Americans read a lot, they read books about virtually everything from cooking to homemaking. People began to read a lot more magazines and comic books and that is when they became pouplar.

The Arms Race

Your answers are due by 8:20 a.m. Monday, April 12.

1. Read Source 12. What methods do you think Dulles had in mind to 'liberate captive peoples' without a war?
Dulles was thinking about the methods short of war, including the method of containment. But some people felt containment was weak and did not work. Dulles was referring to the anticommunist organizations he set up throughout the world, including SEATO and CENTO. They were anti communist alliances that were made by Dulles to resist communism.
2. Look at Source 13. Would you agree that the Communist world was encircled? Explain your answer.
Yes I agree that the communist world was encircled because they had anti communist allies surrounding them in every direction. The anti communist allies were set up in different parts of the world so that the USSR would be encircled and could not expand any further.

3. Carefully examine the verticle timeline on page 343. Then look back at Source 12. Do you think the development of nuclear weapons was what Dulles might have had in mind?
No I do not believe that the development of nuclear weapons was what Dulles might have had in mind because with the development of nuclear bombs, war would be inevitable if one of them was dropped. The bombs created great concern in both the US and the USSR, if one was actually dropped than a war would have happened, and Dulles was against having a war so he was not talking about nuclear weapons and their development.

4. Look at Source 16. What is the Soviet cartoon saying about the U-2 plane?
Source 16 is saying that the U-2 plane is spying on the USSR and that the United States is watching the Soviet Union. The Soviet cartoon is saying that the U-2 plane is flying over the USSR and looking at what is going on in the Soviet Union and is spying.


5. Read the Factfile on page 344. Explain why the USSR was so angry about the US spy flights.
The USSR was so angry because the U.S. was spying on them by using U-2 flights because the U-2 flights flew so high that they could not be shot down and the US could keep tabs on the weapons being made by the USSR. The USSR was also very mad because when first accused Eisenhower lied about the spying and then when the evidence was overwhelming he had to confess.


6. How would the USA justify this violation of Soviet territory?
Eisenhower lied about the violation of Soviet territory. When accused he denied it and said that the planes were just flying over for no reason and that they were not spying. But when the Soviets shot down a U-2 plane and providing evidence that they were spying, Eisenhower had to come clean.


7. If the USSR had had U-2 planes, do you think it would have used them? Why?
Of course they would have used them. The U-2 planes were very helpful in spying because they had very high tech cameras and speakers that made it easy to hear and see from very far away. The U-2 planes provided very helpful information for the US during the Cold War and they worked very well.

8. Look at Source 17. Why do you think the USA had missiles based in Europe?
The US had missiles based in Europe because the missiles based in Europe were a shorter distance to the USSR, therefore the short range missiles would have better accuracy and aim to the USSR, so the United States had some of their missiles based in the NATO countries of Europe.

9. Define the term 'nuclear deterrent' in not more than 20 words.
No side would attack first if they knew that their attack would screw them over and hurt them as well as their enemy.

Eisenhower & The Cold War

How did the United States react to the following 7 events, and why?

1. The Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb in 1949.
The United States reacted to the Soviet Union exploding its first atomic bomb in 1949 by forcing Truman with the decision to make a deadlier weapon. The bomb would be more horrifying and more powerful.
2. In 1951, the Iranian prime minister placed the oil industry in Iran under the Iranian government’s control.
The United States reacted to this by sending money to anti-Mossadegh supporters because the US feared that Mossadegh might look to the Soviet Union for money because the economy went down when Britain stopped buying oil. The CIA wanted the pro-American Shah in charge of the oil and they returned to power eventually. They did this to avoid communism leaking into Iran.


3. The Guatemalan head of government gave American-owned land in Guatemala to peasants.
The United states reacted to this by training an army which then invaded Guatemala, the army did not defend the president and he had to resign and the military leader became the dictator. The United states invaded because it was believed that Guatemala had communist sympathies.



4. In 1956, Britain, France, and Israel invaded Egypt and occupied the Suez Canal.
The United States reacted to this by persuaded Britain, France, and Israel to withdraw from the Canal so they could avoid a war with Egypt. Egypt kept control of the Canal but the US made a good decision because they believed that if Britain, france and Israel occupied part of the Canal and Egypt part of the Canal than the forces would clash and fighting would break out.

5. Soviet tanks invaded Hungary and fired on protesters in 1956.
The United States did nothing to help Hungary break free of Soviet control because the American policy of containment did not extend to driving the Soviet Union out of it's satellite nations.

6. In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik.
The United States reacted to the Soviet Union launching Sputnik by pouring money into their own space program because the US was shocked that the Soviet Union had beat them in creating an artificial satellite. The first attempt of a US satellite failed but the second was successful.

7. In 1960, the Soviet Union brought down an American U-2 piloted by Francis Gary Powers.
Eisenhower denied that the U-2 had been spying over the Soviet Union because it would create great tension between the two powers but the Soviets had evidence that the U-2 was there to spy, and Eisenhower had to admit it, and inevitably it caused a lot of tension.

The Red Scare (1950s)

Title: The Red Scare (1950s). Labels: Red_Jello, Red_Scare, McCarthy, McCarthyism, Rosenbergs, Blacklist, Alger_Hiss






For each term or name, write a concise sentence or two explaining its significance.


1. HUAC
HUAC was an agency that investigated possible Communist influence in the U.S. government as well as outside of it. HUAC investigated the movie industry for possible communist propaganda ideas.

2. Blacklist
The blacklist was a list that was instituted by Hollywood executives that was a list of people who they condemned to have a Communist background. Around 500 people were on the blacklist, and their careers were virtually ruined.


3. Alger Hiss
A former communist spy, Whittaker Chambers, accused Alger Hiss of being a soviet spy in 1948. Hiss was convicted of perjury
and sent him to jail.

4. Ethel and Julius Rosenberg
They were minor activists in the American Comunist party. The Rosenbergs denied all of the charges that were brought up and pleaded the fifth amendment. They were found guilty of espionage and were sentenced to death. To some, the Rosenbergs were responsible for one of the clashes of the Cold War.

5. Joseph McCarthy
He was the most famous anti-communist activist and he was a Senator. McCarthy needed an issue that would make him reelected and he came up with the issue that Communism was taking over the government.


6. McCarthyism
McCarthyism was when McCarthy made accusation after accusation with no evidence to back them up, the attacks on suspected communists in the early 1950s were referred to as McCarthyism. It is the unfair tactic of accusing people of disloyalty without being able to back it up.


7. In a paragraph, describe the motivations and actions of Joseph McCarthy during the 1950s. What prompted his actions? What did he do? What happened as a result of his actions?
Joseph McCarthy was a senator and republican of Wisconsin. He was very much an anti communist. His actions were prompted because he had a reputation for being ineffective in the legislator. He needed a winning issue in order to be reelected in 1952. McCarthy came up with the idea that Communism was taking over the government. He made many accusations on suspected communists without supporting the accusations. McCarthyism was invented by the actions of Joseph McCarthy and it was the unfair tactic of accusing people of disloyalty without providing evidence to back it up.

Korean War Lessons

Dear Mr. Eisenhower,
There is numerous reasons of what the United States can learn from the war. The U.S.' aims was to drive North Koreans out of South Korea to prevent South Korea from going communist. The support of the UN helped tremendously because eighteen states provided troops or support of some kind, although most of the members in the UN were American, including the commander General Macarthur. The United States and United Nations exceeded their aims by driving North Korea beyond the 38th parallel in weeks, as well as advancing into North Korea, despite the warnings by China. China's leader Mao warned the UN that if they invaded North Korea that China would get involved in the world and they did just that.
General Macarthur should not gave been able to invade North Korea because it caused many problems which led to a great deal of US casualties. The Chinese were powerful and when they joined the North Korean troops they launched a very big attack. The soldiers were taught to hate Americans and they were avid supporters of communism, therefore they were not fond of American's and the ideas they brought to North Korea. Th soldiers pushed the UN back into South Korea and the fighting reached stalemate around the 38th parallel.
The United Nations advised the United states and General Macarthur not to attack China. Macarthur ignored the instructions set forth by the UN and threatened an attack on China, that is when Truman removed Macarthur from the position of commander and ordered him to return home. The military suffered 30,000 American lives and 4,500 other United Nation lives and a great deal of money was lost to the Korean war with tanks and war supplies.
The policy of containment worked to a minor extent because the UN and the US itself kept communism out of South Korea, Greece, and other southern European countries, but communism did take over many European countries, also known as the Satellite countries, which is the case as to why containment did not work as well as it was intended to. Stalin and the Soviet Union set up communist governments in many European countries and tried in many more but the policy of containment prevented them in doing so.

Dropping the Atomic Bomb

1. What factors have affected viewpoints on Truman's decision?
There were many factors that affected viewpoints of Truman's decision. Viewpoints that were opposed of the decision rely on factors like some people believed the war was already over and the Allied had had it won. Some thought that as an anti-communist Truman chose to drop the bombs to scare the Soviet Union. Other factors include that some people believe Truman dropped the bombs only to please military leaders that were eager to drop atomic bombs in real warfare. Viewpoints that were for Truman's decision relied on factors like how the Japanese guards tortured American soldiers.


2. Do you think he made the right decision? Give your reasons.
I think Truman made the right decision on dropping the atomic bombs because if the bombs were not dropped than the United States would have to invade the Japanese mainland. Military advisors estimated that there would be 220,000 casualties and the the campaign would last till 1946. Truman made the right decision because he made the decision that is for the welfare of the American people. He saved tens of thousands of lives by opting not to invade Japan and the atomic bombs was the only other way to win the war. Truman wanted to end the war and the dropping atomic bombs was the fastest way to do it.

War in the Pacific

1. What was the importance of the Battle of Midway?
The importance of the Battle of Midway was that it was a turning point in the war. The Allies started "island hopping." Where they went from island to island and gained territory back from Japan. And with every island, the Allied forces got closer to Japan.
2. What strategy did the United States adopt in fighting Japan?
The United States developed an offensive strategy. They leapfrogged across the Pacific toward Japan and attacked in heave numbers. Hundreds of thousands of troops started in the Philippines and they were working their way up. The United states used 738 ships in fighting Japan and fought from the water.
3. Why did the Japanese fight so hard on Iwo Jima?
The Japanese fought so hard in Iwo Jima because other than Iwo Jima, Okinawa was the only other island that stood between the United States and Japan. The United States were advancing quickly and Japan mad a desperate attempt to stop them at Iwo Jima by having 20,700 troops fighting the marines. 6,000 marines died, but only two hundred Japanese were left, the hard fighting did not pay off.

4. Why did the Allies believe Okinawa was a foretaste of an invasion of Japan?
They believed it was a foretaste of an invasion of Japan because so many lives were lost. Churchill predicted the cost would be one million American lives and half that number of British lives. Okinawa was the closest thing to Japan and it was near the same so they thought the battles would be alike.



5. What was the Manhattan Project?
The Manhattan Project was the development of the atomic bomb. More than 600,000 Americans were involved in the project, it was tested in New Mexico for the first time, and it worked.


6. Ultimately, why did President Truman decide to drop atomic bombs on Japan?
To bring an end to the war. Truman did not hesitate on dropping the bombs and he claimed that it was his decision and he had no doubts about it.

War for Europe & North Africa

1. To what did Roosevelt and Churchill agree early in the war?
Roosevelt and Churchill agreed that they would become alliances in the war very early on after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The two agreed early that Italy and Germany were a bigger threat than Japan, so they decided to strike first against Hitler. When the Allies gained power in Europe, they could poor resources into the Pacific war.


2. Why was winning the Battle of the Atlantic so crucial to the fortunes of the Allies?
Winning the battle was crucial to the fortunes of the Allies because Britain depended on supplies from the Sea and Germany would have cut off the supplies that Britain was getting if they won the Battle of the Atlantic. The three thousand mile long shipping lanes from North America were her lifeline and Hitler knew that if he somehow cut off the lanes than Britain would be starved into submission. If the Allies lost then Britain would be cut off of supplies and resources and would no longer be able to fight to full capacity.

3. Why was the Battle of Stalingrad so important?
The Battle of Stalingrad was so important because it was a turning point in the war. At first, Germany was advancing through the Soviet Union and they were looking stronger than ever, and if they had taken over Stalingrad and the rest of the Soviet Union, they would have won the war by a long shot, except the winter came to the rescue and helped the Soviet's keep Germany out. From that point on, the Soviet army began pushing westward towards Germany and surrounded the Nazi's with the Allies. It was the beginning of the end for Germany.

4. What happened in the war in North Africa?
Allied troops landed in the Algiers in North Africa. They sped eastward following the Afrika Korps, they fought for months and then the last of the Afrika Korps surrendered in the May of 1943. British General Harold Alexander reported that the Allies were in control of the North African shores.

5. What happened after the Allies invaded Italy?
After the Allies invaded Italy, Hitler wanted greatly to fight the Allies in Italy rather than in Germany. One of the hardest battles the Allies fought in Europe was fought less then forty miles from Rome. The battle called the "Bloody Anzio" lasted about four months and ended in the May of 1944. There was about twenty five thousand Allie casualties and thirty thousand Axis casualties. German armies continued to put up strong resistance but eventually Italy collapsed as well as Germany itself.

Mobilizing for WWII.

1. Selective Service System
The Selective service system expanded the draft to make it so more young men were able to go to war and engage in combat. The act was to get more young men to get into the war and fight for the army.

2. Women
Marshall pushed for women and the Woman's Auxiliary Army Corp was invented. Women could become things like nurses and cooks where they were not involved in combat, women were not alloud to engage in combat with the opposing forces but they were alloud to help in the war with positions that did not involve fighting.

3. Minorities
Most of the minorities in the United states were allowed to fight in the military and in the army, except they were always segregated against. Although they were in the military, they were in different units with a much lower ranking and they were always commanded by a white general. Iit didn't matter that they were part of the U.S. army, they were black and the white soldiers saw them as unequal.

4. Manufacturers
Many manufacturers stopped what they normally manufactured and started to manufacture war materials. They would make something along the lines they normally would, just war style. For example, a beadspread manyfacturerer made mosquito netting.


5. Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD)
The OSRD was responsible for the improvements in all of the technology, for example, improvements in radar and sonar, improvements in locating submarines, and encouraged the use of pesticides which made U.S. soldiers free of body lice.
6 Entertainment industry
Hollywood created waroritented propaganda films that made a lot of people want to join the war effort and take part in the fighting because it was all after the attack on pearl harbor.

7. Office of Price Administration (OPA)
The OPA fought inflation and froze the prices on most goods to make them the same and make them fair, the OPA also set up a rationing system. The government encouraged the Americans to use their extra money to buy war bongs.

8. War Production Board (WPB)
The WPB decided what companies were to convert from peacetime to wartime production and allocated raw materials to key materials. The WPB also held drives to collect things like paper and tin cans that could be recycled and then used in the war.

9. Rationing
Rationing was a system that made people use less of materials and give out coupons to buy scarce goods like meat, shoes, sugar, gasoline, and coffee. Most Americans were happy to ration because it was their way of contributing to the war and it was the civilian part to help the military and give back to the country.

Japan and U.S. Relations in 1941

Title: Japan and U.S. Relations in 1941 Labels: Pearl_Harbor, WWII, FDR, Japan, This is due at the beginning of class on Friday.

Japan and U.S. Relations in 1941

Document A
Japan believes that Italy and Germany will take over and beat England. If they do than they can take more pacific colonies and be able to get a lot more land and acquire other places. After England loses America will be left in the dust and will not engage in warfare.

Document B
Japan is running around the important American figures. Japanese generals are basing their decisions based off of what the American leaders do and they are trying to entrap America.

Document C
Japan breaks off negotiations with America. They want to lie to America and give them a false sence of hope when they want to stab them in the back later.

Document D
The Japanese empire is paying back their God's and by fighting America and getting freedom. Tojo believes that every man should fight and the nation will be victorious and become much better.

Document E
On 12-7-1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and destroyed the Pacific fleet. Japan broke the peace between America and and Japan and America declares war on Japan.

America Moves Toward War

Title: America Moves Toward War Labels: FDR, Pearl_Harbor, WWII, Japan, Great_Britain, Axis_Powers,

1. What did the 1939 Neutrality Act allow?
It allowed nations in war to buy weapons from America only if they paid in cash and provided their own means of transportation for the weapons and war material.
2. Who were the Axis powers?
The Axis powers were Japan, Italy, and Germany.
3. What did the Lend-Lease Act do?
The Lend-Lease Act let American businesses loan weapons and supplies to Britain and the Soviet Union because they were necessary in the defense of America
4. What pledges were contained in the Atlantic Charter?
The pledges in the Atlantic Charter were that their would be freedom of the seas, collective security, economic links between nations, self-determination and disarmament.
5. Who were the Allies?
The U.S.A. in the end, France, England, and the U.S.S.R.
6. What did the attack at Pearl Harbor do to the U.s. Pacific fleet?
Most o the Pacific fleet was destroyed by the attack at Pearl Harbor.
7. Why did Germany and Italy declare war on the U.S.?
Germany and Italy declared war on the United States because they were supplying war goods to the British and the U.S.S.R. and it made them an enemy of Italy and Germany.

"Isolationism" and FDR (1935 - 1941)

1. What were the goals of the isolationists? Why is "isolationism" a misleading term?
Isolationists wanted to stay in the world but they didn't want to be drawn into war and have to fight in war and they still wanted to trade with countries without being effected.
2. What did some isolationists feel that there was no need for Americans to feel threatened by developments in Europe and Asia?
America had friendly relations with all of the countries in the western part of the world and america was separated from Europe and Asia by the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

3. What were the purposes of the Nye Committee hearings?
The Nye committee was made to find out the truth about why the United States fought in the Great War.
4. List two impressions that the Nye Committee hearings created.
One was that big businesses pushed the United states into war because it was good for the economy and that banks were greedy.
5. What were the purposes of the Neutrality Acts?
The Neutrality Acts were originated to stop big businesses from selling war materials to countries that were at war. When war materials were sold to countries at war they are helping the war be fought and the businesses were affiliated with the war.
6. List two reasons that some Americans considered Roosevelt's leadership radical and dangerous.
Some saw his leadership as radical because he was presenting new ideas that would greatly affect the United States economy, he packed the court which made everything in his favor and almost make him seem like a dictator and he was going for the longest term out of any other president.

7. What was "Cash and Carry"?
This allowed countries that were at war to buy U.S. supplies from businesses in the U.S. except the countries had to pay in cash and they had to pick it up, it was a way of the big businesses acting like teens and getting around things.
8. Why did President Roosevelt freeze Japanese assets in the United States?
The Japanese invaded European countries in Asia and this infuriated Roosevelt, making him act on freezing the Japanese assets in the U.S.

9. What was the purpose of the America First Committee?
The America first committee's purpose was to prevent the United States from going to war with Japan and the Nazis.

World Events Set Stage for Isolationism

1. What was the Japanese reaction to the Treaty of Versailles? (pgs. 4 - 5)
Some of the Japanese believed that Japan should become part of the League of Nations and support the international system as means of obtaining the natural resources and markets it's growing economy needed. While others believed that the great powers, (ex. United States, Britain, France) would never treat Japan fairly and with respect, they were just competing for markets and resources in Asia. Others worried that the League of nations would make Japan a second-tier power. The Japanese were discriminated against at the League of Nations and were treated unfairly.
2. Read the pull-out box on page 4 entitled, "Japan Becomes a Great Power." Cite specific evidence Japan was becoming a strong power that rivaled European & American interests. And, why specifically was Japan threatened by U.S. actions?
Japan was becoming a strong power because their economy was growing rapidly. The military of Japan was growing at a rapid pace as well. Japan made a navy like Britain's, banks like the United State's, and an army like Prussia's. All of the goods and services produced by Japan tripled between 1885 and 1920. Japan beat Russia in the Russo-Japanese war and got parts of Manchuria while also annexing Korea. The increasing presence of the United states in the Pacific, which had annexed Hawaii and taken the Philippines and Guam from Spain in 1899 had begun to pose a threat to the Japanese plans of expansion.

3. Why was the Washington Naval Conference convened and what was accomplished? (pg. 6) (Note: Japan signs the agreement.)
The conference was convened because the United States believed that Japan's growth as a naval power in the Pacific threatened U.S. interests. As a result of the conference, parties agreed to limit the size of naval ships, put a halt on building new battleships, outlaw the use of poison gas, and limit the use of submarines in future wars. Also, all nine nations agreed to open trade with China.

4. The Senate's willingness to ratify the Kellogg-Briand Pact relected two strong and widely held sentiments. What were they? (pgs. 6 - 7)
The two sentiments were that Americans remember the carnage of WWI and wanted strongly to avoid being dragged into another European war. The other sentiment was that policy makers continued to resist the obligations of permanent alliances and wished to preserve the ability to act when and where they wanted.


5. Why did Hitler enjoy popular support in Germany for most of the 1930s? Give three reasons. (pgs. 9 - 10)
1. Because he improved the economic situation.
2. He reduced unemployment.
3. He restored national pride for Germans still humiliated by the defeat in WWI and by how poor they had become.

6. Japan voiced its intentions to invade China for what two reasons? (pg. 10)
1. To obtain raw materials.
2. Increase Japan's power.

7. Compare the Reichstag fire and the explosion on the Japanese railway in Manchuria. What did they accomplish?
The Reichstag fire was in the parliamentary building in Germany. Hitler blaimed the fire on the communists who he said were planning to overthrow the government and incite a civil war. Today many believe that the Nazis started the fire so that Hitler had an excuse to suspend the freedoms guaranteed by the German constitution. (Ex. Freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of assembly.) The explosion on the Japanese railway in Manchuria was blamed upon the Chinese by the Japanese so the Japanese could invade. The Reichstag fire and the explosion on the Japanese railway are alike because most historians believe that the Germans set the fire on purpose and the Japanese exploded their on railway as an excuse to take away freedoms and an excuse to invade. The Germans and the Japanese accomplished because the fire and explosion created a way to blame the communists and an excuse to invade.


8. Why was the united States unable to oppose Japan in the early 1930s with a significant military force? (pgs. 11 - 12)
They were unable to oppose Japan in the early 1930s because the United states gad drastically reduced the size of it's military since World War I and by 1932 it only had 244,900 troops, which was unable to stand up to Japan.

9. Describe the major similarities and differences among liberal democracy, fascism, and socialism. (pg. 8)
Fascism is a political philosophy that advocates a strong, centralized, nationalistic, government headed by a powerful dictator and that is the belief that the power should belong in the hands of fewer people to have control of more people. Socialism is the belief that the people should rule and it is for the ordinary people where there is a greater political and social change. The two are different because socialism is where the government is very involved and it is run off what the people want and what is "best for the people," and fascism is where the government is not involved at all and the people have no say whatsoever in what goes on in the government. They are alike because both ways the government rules over the people and it never works out with out lives being lost because not everyone believes in the ideas proposed by the government and the only way to settle that is death. The liberal democracy is somewhere in between the two where there is moderates and they can think as both socialism and fascism.

New Deal Essay Outline

Roosevelts aims for the First New Deal
Three R’s
• Relief- Quickly provided jobs for Americans. Fast immediate actions that addressed hunger and poverty.
• Reform- actions that focused on banking, farming and labor reforms.
• Recovery- long-term actions that focused on fixing problems of the past so the future would be better.
Roosevelts aims for the Second New Deal
• The Wagner Act that forced all employers to allow trade unions to operate in their companies and allow workers to negotiate for pay and conditions.
• The Social Security Act that provided state pensions for the elderly and widows.
• The Works Progress Administration that brought together all of the organizations that were aimed to create jobs.
• The Resettlement Administration that helped smallholders and tenant farmers that had not been helped by the AAA.
Roosevelt succeeded in the First New Deal because it created many jobs and helped many people get money and better working conditions with unions. The Second New Deal failed because it led to a Recession because it made jobs go up but wages go down.
Unemployment remained high in the thirties because businesses could not afford to hire workers, the money never trickled down and it just stayed at the top. Wages went down so a lot of workers were not paid. When people had no money, they did not buy things, and when people did not buy things companies did not have to manufacture the product as much and therefore they didn’t need employees.
The New Deal was both a success and not a success, although unemployment rates were high, the New Deal kept many people from starving, it created a good amount of jobs and generated a lot of money. Many organizations were made to help various different things.
The opposition of the New Deal made it hard to work because people like Huey Long described how the New Deal did not help the poor and how that’s what it should have been aimed at to help. The Supreme Court also opposed the New deal and that made it hard to pass everything from it in Congress.
I think that the criticism saying, “The New Deal makes Roosevelt a dictator.” is the most serious because it betrays what America was founded on and it goes against the beliefs of America, having freedom.
The greatest achievement of the New Deal was that all of the voters were in favor it. The Supreme Court may have not agreed with it, but the people that were affected by it were all for it. This is important because it is what the people want, and it is an achievement because the idea was won over by the American people.
Roosevelt would have most definitely agreed with my choice because the New Deal would have been a COMPLETE disaster if the voters were not in favor of it. If the people that were affected by it, did not like it, then why would it be passed in the first place? The New Deal was for the good of the American people and that is why the voters were in favor of it and why it was the most important, he would agree.
The New Deal was a success because it created a good amount of jobs and it generated eighty plus organizations that helped farmers to start farming and selling their goods for a profit from Civilians getting jobs working as typers. The first New deal and the second new deal were good efforts at trying to turn around the economy and it had a big impact on Americans because Roosevelt did the fireside chats and it made Americans feel like they were having a close interaction with the president. The New Deal was opposed because people thought it was too much and it was over thought. People also opposed it because they thought it did not focus on the poor. I believe the New Deal was a success because it made farmers get back into business as well as create thousands of jobs for Americans.

FDR & the New Deal

Read 22-2 and answer the first 3 questions. Then read Chapter 23-1 through page 696 and answer the remaining 4 questions. Please post your answers to your blog. These are due at the beginning of your next class.

Title: FDR & the New Deal Labels: Dust_Bowl, FDR, fireside_chats, Great_Depression


1. Describe how people struggled to survive during the depression.
People lost their jobs, were evicted from their homes and ended up on the streets. People had to sleep in parks and cover themselves with things like newspaper to fight the cold. Shantytowns were made, which was a bunch of little shacks made out of scrap material. People waited in bread lines and soup kitchens for hours to get food.
2. How was what happened to men during the Great Depression different from what happened to women? Children?
Men had trouble coping with unemployment because they were used to working every day and supporting their families, everyday men went out searching for jobs. Some men could not handle it and gave up and left their families. There was up to 300,000 hoboes wandering around in the 1930s. Women were different then men because they worked hard to help their families survive adversity in the great depression. A lot of women canned food and sewed clothing. Some women worked outside of the home and they usually received a lot less money than men did. People believed that women had no right to work when there was unemployed men. Women would starve because they were too ashamed to admit their hardships. What happened to children in the Great depression was different then what happened to men because with no money for health care and bad eating habits, a lot of children became sick. Thousands of children were forced to work in sweatshops with bad conditions.

3. Describe the causes and effects (on people) because of the Dust Bowl.
Causes of the Dust Bowl: Farmers used tractors to break up the grasslands and plant millions of acres of new farmland. Plowing eliminated the thick protective layer of prairie grass. Farmers had worn the crops out by overproduction and left the fields unsuitable for farming. When the drought and wind picked up in the 1930's, there was nothing to keep the soil down. Wind scattered the topsoil and the dust traveled hundreds of miles.
Effects of dust bowl on people: Plagued by dust storms,many farmers and sharecroppers were forced to leave their land. Most of them headed west on route 66. By the end of the 1930s hundreds of thousands of families that were on farms moved out to California.

Objective: Summarize the initial steps Franklin D. Roosevelt took to reform banking and finance.

4. What was the New Deal and its three general goals? (The 3 Rs)
The New Deal was a program designed to alleviate the problems of the Great Depression and it's general goals were..
A. Relief for the needy
B. Economic recovery
C. Financial Reform
5. What did Roosevelt do during the Hundred Days?
Congress passed more than fifteen major pieces of New Deal legislation. The laws significantly expanded the federal government's role in the nations economy. His first step as president was to carry out reforms in banking.
6. Why were Roosevelt's fireside chats significant?
Roosevelt's fireside chats were significant because it made Americans feel as if the president was talking directly to them.
7. Describe four significant agencies and/or bills that tightened regulation of banking and finance.
Glass-Steagall Act- Established the federal Deposit Insurance Agency which provided federal insurance for individual bank accounts up to $5000.
Federal Securiteis Act- Required corporations to provide complete information on all stock offerings and made them liable for any misrepresentations.
Agricultural Adjustment Act- sought to raise crop prices by lowering production, which the government achieved by paying farmers to leave a certain amount of crop unseeded.
National Industrial Recovery Act- Provided money to states to create jobs chiefly in the construction of schools and other community buildings.

Causes of the Great Depression Outline

Prompt: To what extent was the Wall Street Crash a cause of the Great Depression of 1929? Support your argument with specific examples.



Example of the outline structure:



Thesis
I. Main Point 1
a. Evidence 1 that supports Main Point 1
i. further supporting details
b. Evidence 2 that supports Main Point 1
II. Main Point 2.... and so on.

Thesis: The Wall Street Crash was a significant cause of the Great Depression because it was a big cycle, when the stocks went down, it affected other businesses and people, but there were other factors that caused the great depression because there was numerous factors that caused the Wall Street Crash like stock market speculation and the mass production of farming products.
I. Stock Market Speculation
Stock Market Speculation was a cause of the Great Depression because people were buying stocks with money they did not have, the money they paid the stocks for was money that was an estimate on how much they would get off of that particular stock over a period of time.
The speculation was one of the factors that lead up to the Wall Street Crash because stocks were being bought without ever being paid for. They were paid off of estimates that the stock would make money and the stock brokers would be paid back with that money, but when the stocks did not go up, the stock brokers were never paid and it created problems in Wall Street.
II. Mass production of farming products
a. Wheat is an example of a farming product that was made way to much of. Most ffarmers bought expensive equipment and bought more land to make more crops, but after WWI there wasn't as high as a demand for farming products than there was during the war, so the farmers had more crops than they knew what to do with, and the cost of the products went down because so much of it was being produced.
i. When the farmers were making too much, they could not sell all of it, nobody would buy a lot of it because it became so cheap because there was so much of it that not all of it was needed, and most of the farmers were in debt, which led to the Great Depression.
III. Easy access to credit
a. People began to get credit, which seemed like a good idea at first but it did not work out after awhile. People were spending money that they didn't have, they put everything on credit and then once it was time to pay they did not have the money to pay it with.
i. This caused Wall Street to crash because everybody was in debt, they were using money that they did not have and once it was time to pay that money they used, it was not there, which caused Wall Street to Crash, which lead to the Great Depression of 1929.

1. What happened on "Black Tuesday"?
Black Tuesday was when the markets fell to dangerous levels. A lot of people lost savings and people who had stocks were in debt, millions of dollars were lost.
2. How did the economic trends of the 1920s in industry, agriculture, and with consumers help cause the Great Depression? (Make sure you include significant details about each area in your answer. It should be at least a paragraph)
The main industries in the 1920s were railroads, textiles, and steal and they all were barely making a profit. Mining and lumbering was no longer needed because the war was over. Boom industries such as automobiles and construction diminished. When housing starts declined, a lot of jobs were lost. Agriculture suffered the biggest loss, after the war, demand for wheat and corn went down tremendously. Farmers produced more but this just made things worse because it decreased the prices. By the 1920s, Americans were buying less. Mainly because the prices were so high and there was an unbalanced distribution of income.


3. According to your reading, what are the major causes of the Great Depression?
The major causes of the Great Depression were that major industries like railroads and steel struggled, farmers grew more crops and harvested more livestock than they could sell for a profit, consumers and farmers were going into debt, prices were raised, the unbalanced distribution of wages, and overbuying of credit on previous years.


4. What was Hoover’s philosophy of government?
Hoover believed that one of government's chief functions was to foster cooperation between competing groups in society. Government's role was to facilitate and encourage cooperation, not to force it. He opposed any form of federal welfare.

5. What was Hoover’s initial reaction to the stock market crash of 1929?
He called together key leaders in the fields of business, banking, and labor. He urged them to work together to find solutions to the nation's economic woes. He also created an organization to help private charities generate contributions to the poor.
6. What was the nation’s economic situation in 1930?
It was very poor, the industries lost a lot of money, the agriculture overproduced so much so that the cost for wheat and corn went way down, and the prices of everything went way up, the economy was decreases rapidly in 1930.
7. How did voters in 1930 respond to this situation?
They were furious. The voters were making less money and they were cheated out because the wages were not fair, the economic situation was screwing with voters and it angered them.
8. What did Hoover do about the economic situation?
He signed into law the Federal Home Loan Bank Act which lowered mortgage rates for home owners and and allowed farmers to refinance their loans and avoid foreclosure. He also passed the Reconstruction Finance corporation that authorized up to two billion dollars for emergency financing for banks.
9. How did the economy respond to his efforts?
It responded negatively, despite all of the work and money that went into the RFC and the Federal Home Loan Bank Act, poverty continued, and the depression grew.

The Twenties Woman

Read Chapter 21-2 and answer the following questions. These are due by 3:10 p.m. Friday.
Title: The Twenties Woman Labels: 1920s, women's_rights

1. Note two ways women's fashions changed.
Some women wore bright waistless dresses an inch above the knees and some wore whalebone corsets. Another way women changed their fashion is the twenties is that young women cut their long hair into boyish bobs.

2. Note two ways women's social behavior changed.
A lot of women became more aggressive. Some women began to smoke cigarettes, drink in public, and talk openly about sex, which would have been unacceptable not to many years before.
3. Note two words that describe the attitude reflected by these changes.
Flapper- an emancipated young women that embraced the new fashions and urban attitudes of the day.
Double Standard- a set of principles granting greater sexual freedom to men than women.
4. Note one way women's work opportunities improved.
Some employers hired women even after WWI because women weren't paid as much. Many female college graduates took on woman professions. Before WWI, women were strictly house wives and mothers.
5. Note two ways women's home and family life improved.
New technological innovations and institutions took some of the workload that was done by women at home. Women experience greater equality in marriage and many of them became one with their husbands.

6. Note three negative effects that accompanied women's changing roles in the 1920s.
Women had trouble controlling unruly adolescents. Although women were able to work more, they didn't get paid as much as men which meant that they were not equal and they were still very different. Women mostly had "women jobs" because they were unable to do men jobs because employers thought they were weak.

Prohibition and the Scopes Trial

Do you think the passage of the Volstead Act and the ruling in the Scopes trial represented genuine triumphs for traditional values?
• changes in urban life in the 1920s

• the effects of Prohibition

• the legacy of the Scopes trial

I believe that both cases did not represent genuine trimuphs for traditional values. The passage from the Volstead Act took away American's rights. By prohibiting alcohol, a product loved by many, it creates chaos because it is something that even though it is banned, people will somehow find a way to bring it in to the United states and distribute it. In my opinion it is for the best that the Volstead Act was a complete failure of an agency. Although alcohol creates problems, it also plays a big role in the economy because it is such a popular product and when it was banned, it took away the rights of the people and there is no traditional values there.

The ruling in the Scopes trial was bogus. Teaching evolution is part of history, it is part of learning and it must be done. Opinions on how evolution started vary profusely, but it is up to the teacher to teach every one at an unbiased level. Traditional values lack in the ruling because the law does not make sense, it is controlling the way a teacher is able to teach which is unacceptable, there is no freedom when teachers begin to become limited to what they can do and are controlled by the government. A man that is fined one thousand dollars for teaching a subject is barbaric, it takes away the teacher's rights.

Americans Struggle with Postwar Issues

After World War I, many Americans feared that Communists would take over the country.

1. How did the Justice Department under A. Mitchell Palmer respond to this fear?
By invading people's homes who were suspected to be Communists, anarchists, or socialists and jailed them without trials.
2. Why did Palmer eventually lose his standing with the American public?
Palmer eventually lost his standing because his raids did not reveal any communism revolutions or bomb threats and some thought that he was just trying to get support for his campaign.

3. How did the Ku Klux Klan respond to this fear?
They responded to this fear by trying to get rid of the Roman Catholics, the Jews, African Americans, and other foreigners by using violence.
4. Why did the Klan eventually lose popularity and membership?
They eventually lost popularity and membership because of their criminal activity and violence.
5. Briefly describe how Sacco and Vanzetti became victims of the Red Scare.
They were victims of the Red Scare because they were Italians and they were accused of killing a man, although they had solid alibis and there was only little evidence implicating them, the judge was highly prejudice and convicted them.

Public opinion turned against labor unions as many Americans came to believe that unions encouraged communism.

6. Why was the strike by Boston police unpopular with the public?
Because "there is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time.".
7. Why did Massachusetts governor Calvin Coolidge become so popular?
Calvin Coolidge became so popular because he saved Boston from being unsafe from the polic strike.

8. Why was the strike at U.S. Steel unpopular?
Because the strikers were linked to communists and beaten by police. Their strike did not work.

9. How did President Wilson respond to the steel strike?
He responded to the steel strike by writing a plea to combative negotiators.