Rivalry: The Cold War

The Cold War was a rivalry that developed after World War II between the U.S., the Allies, and the Soviet Union. It started when the Soviets instilled left-wing governments in the eastern countries of Europe that had been liberated by the Red Army. The Americans and their allies feared that communist rule would influence the Eastern parts of Europe and come to power in democratic countries. During this conflict, the U.S. and the USSR began developing missiles that could reach each continent if the conflict escalated. People all around the world lived in fear of the cost of lives this nuclear war could bring between two of the worlds superpowers. In 1962 the Soviets secretly began deploying and installing missiles in Cuba that could be used …show more content…
The U.S. and Russia wanted to beat each other in every aspect, from weapons to computers. Russia started the space race when in 1957, Sputnik orbited earth. The U.S. followed by sending Apollo 11 to the moon. The rise of radiation experimentation rose due to military exploitation of nuclear fission. Communication also became a huge part of the Cold War. New radio transmitters and chips allowed communication to speed up and computers were used with radar to detect airborne objects and keep track of them. In addition to the Cold War, another important world event that came after the Second World War was the decolonization of dependent territories. An important aspect of decolonization was that it resulted in the creation of the “Third World.” After the end of World War II, many countries that were under colonial rule quickly acquired independence using non-violence. For example, India winning freedom and independence without violence set a precedent that many countries tried to …show more content…
In the home front, the War Against Terrorism led to a recession as a lot of money has been put into defense. The worldwide consequences of acts of terrorism have inflicted direct and indirect economic costs and destabilized economies all over the world. In their paper "The Impact of Terrorism on Financial Markets," Barry Johnston and Oana Nedelescu explain that economic consequences can be largely broken down into short-term direct effects, medium-term confidence effects and longer- term productivity effects. (Johnston, 3) The direct economic costs of terrorism include the destruction of life and property, responses to the emergency, restoration of the systems and the infrastructure affected, and the provision of temporary living assistance while larger indirect costs have the potential to affect the economy in the medium term by undermining consumer and investor confidence. (Johnston,