The Cold War is noted as the struggle between two of the world’s superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, who are both trying to expand their spheres of influence. The government provided large sums of money for the defense industry and the American public was constantly in fear of a nuclear attack launched by the Soviets. The conflict can be viewed as an ideological confrontation between the democratic United States and the communist Soviet Union resulting in a peaceful ending, or a comfortable situation for both nations involved and the fact that it ended did no favors for the United States, but actually hurt it.
The peaceful ending of the Cold War marked a great triumph for the United States because it proved freedom outlasts …show more content…
The quarrel with the Soviet Union allowed the United States to expand its political influence across the globe, especially to third world countries. The United States helped these countries, and the United States, as a country, grew stronger. Steel mentions (p. 329) that without the Soviet Union trying to spread communism, there would have been no public support to intervene in the affairs of the younger nations. If the Cold War had continued, the United States could have expanded its influence even more. During the years of the Cold War, the United States invested heavily in the military and defense industry. Steel explains (p.327) that the situation with the Soviet Union gave rationale for high military spending that shaped the economy at the time. There was a threat of a nuclear war, and the United States did not want the Soviet Union to appear as if they were “beating” the United States by having a superior military. The powerful military that was created helped the United States to remain a world power and gave the American public a sense of security. Throughout the Cold War, Steel says (p. 328) the Soviet Union was much weaker than originally thought by the government. Also, the war ended without one country majorly defeating the other. These reasons suggest that the United States needed a reassessment of the beliefs on which American actions were based. Americans were not able to make correct assumptions, and that lead to bad decisions and being doubtful about the future. While Steel’s argument was convincing, there was a flaw in it. He claimed (p. 330) the Cold War was economically manageable and militarily unthreatening. This is false because
The peaceful ending of the Cold War marked a great triumph for the United States because it proved freedom outlasts …show more content…
The quarrel with the Soviet Union allowed the United States to expand its political influence across the globe, especially to third world countries. The United States helped these countries, and the United States, as a country, grew stronger. Steel mentions (p. 329) that without the Soviet Union trying to spread communism, there would have been no public support to intervene in the affairs of the younger nations. If the Cold War had continued, the United States could have expanded its influence even more. During the years of the Cold War, the United States invested heavily in the military and defense industry. Steel explains (p.327) that the situation with the Soviet Union gave rationale for high military spending that shaped the economy at the time. There was a threat of a nuclear war, and the United States did not want the Soviet Union to appear as if they were “beating” the United States by having a superior military. The powerful military that was created helped the United States to remain a world power and gave the American public a sense of security. Throughout the Cold War, Steel says (p. 328) the Soviet Union was much weaker than originally thought by the government. Also, the war ended without one country majorly defeating the other. These reasons suggest that the United States needed a reassessment of the beliefs on which American actions were based. Americans were not able to make correct assumptions, and that lead to bad decisions and being doubtful about the future. While Steel’s argument was convincing, there was a flaw in it. He claimed (p. 330) the Cold War was economically manageable and militarily unthreatening. This is false because