The Cold War

Post-War America
Demobilization

Size of the armed forces was decreased - 1946 - 12 million to 3 million

Some still served in West Germany and Japan to ensure a smooth governmental
transition
Election of 1948
Democratic Nominee: Harry S. Truman- Incumbent Pres.
Democratic Party Split - Opposed to Trumans stand on civil rights
Republican Nominee: Thomas E. Dewey - Gov. of New York
Truman - Campaigned by train - Whistle Stop
TV was a factor
Truman wins a close election
Truman- Wanted to give the American people a Fair Deal
Fair Deal - An extension of New Deal reforms
Atomic Energy
Atomic Energy Act - Preserved government control of fissionable materials
Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) - Encouraged private and government research and
development of atomic energy
National Security Act
Armed forces- Placed under a new Cabinet department
o Headed by a civilian: Secretary of Defense
Created the National Security Council and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Presidential Succession Act
Succession passed from Vice President to Speaker of the House and then to the
President pro tempore of the Senate
Truman- Believed the president should be someone elected to office
Twenty-Second Amendment
Limited any President after Harry Truman to two terms
o A reaction of FDRs time in office
Post War America: Affluent Society and Culture
White collar jobs:
o Jobs that are mainly in sales and management
Blue collar jobs:
o Jobs that are physical in nature
o Construction, factory workers, miners
Labor
Laborers- wanted wage increases
o Many had not received them during the war, and inflation concerns were growing
Both the railroad and coal mines went on strike

Taft- Hartley Act:

o Goal: To achieve a better balance between labor and management
o President- if strike endangered public safety he could require cool off period
o During this period, Unions could not call a strike, and management could not call
a lockout
G.I. Bill of Rights
Provided veterans of WWII with a variety of services

Example: hospitals, payments to vets without jobs, free tuition, books and expenses for
job training, college, or advanced education
o Helped veterans with their transitions back to civilian life
Multi-national Corporation
A corporation that has branches in other countries
Franchises
One person owns or operates several stores of a particular chain
Typically have a specific uniform and style
o Continuity
Baby Boom
Soldiers coming home from World War II
Number or babies increases exponentially
Baby Boom
o Typically born between 1946-1964
Consumerism
People desire the objects their neighbors have - keeping up with the jones
More disposable income = more spending
Luxury items
Advertising
People are buying more
Companies market goods to try and sell
Advertising explosion
Levittown
Levittown, NY one of the first suburbs
Bill Levitt-mass produced similar looking houses
Houses were inexpensive
Other Levittowns spring up
Reasons for Moving to the Suburbs
Escape crime and congestion
Better life
Picturesque environment
Affordability
Effect: Leads to urban sprawl

Technological Breakthroughs
Polio vaccination
o Jonas Salk - 1954
Polio was a huge issue in the 1950s
We didn't know what caused it
Polio Vaccine
Jonas Salk first tests it on himself and family
Albert Sabin invents oral vaccination
Polio cases plummet across the U.S.A.
1950s Popular Culture and The Other Side of American Life

Rise of Television Popularity

TVs more affordable
o 1946 - 7,000 sets
o 1957 - 40,000,000
Advertising finds a new outlet
Athletic events become very popular
Popular TV Programs of the 1950s
Comedy Shows
o Bob Hope and Jack Benny
Action Shows
o Lone Ranger, Gunsmoke, Dragnet
Variety Shows
o Ed Sullivan Show, quiz shows
Movies in the 1950s
TV grows; movies deline
o Try different things
3-D
Widescreen
Drive in movies
Youth Culture
Rock n Roll
o Early forms grew from R&B
Music was ideal for dancing
o Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Bill Haley, and the Comets
Draws teens in
Music and Youth
ROck n Roll became the popular music of the times
o Parents do not like it
o Youths rebel
People complain that Rock n Roll incites youth
o Generation Gap
African American Entertainers
TV tended to shut out African American Entertainers
o Few break through
Chuck Berry, Ray Charles, Little Richard popular
o Female groups became popular
Other Side of African American Life
In 1950, 1 in 3 were impoverished
o End of the 50s 1 in 5
Most were blind to the nation's poor
o Thought all were well
Not all Americans were apart of the affluent society
o Minorities and rural poor
The American Dream remained out of reach for these people
Decline of the Inner City
White families move to suburbs
o Tax money goes with these people
o Urban centers begin to decline

Urban Renewal
o Tear down slums
o Nice high rise towers
Overcrowded; leads to violence
African Americans in the 50s
City population increase
o Mostly due to African Americans moving north during/after WWII
Life was typically not better in the north
o Racial discrimination continues
o Last hired, first fired
Hispanic-Americans in the 1950s
Bracero Program
o Brings millions of workers to work on farms in SW
Temporary-started during WWII
Long hours, little pay
o 10-12 hour days
o 100 degrees
Slept where they could, ate what the could
Native Americans in the 1950s
Made $1000 less than a typical African American worker
Termination Policy - federal government terminated separate status
o Forced them to assimilate into society
o Disastrous policy
Juvenile Delinquency
Increase 45% in the early 50s
Crime increases
o Car theft
o muggings
Why?
o Stereotypes abound
Education System
o Focus is thrown into better educating younger citizens
Interstate Highway System
Beginnings
Eisenhower and army personnel crossed the country in 1919
Autobahn
Eisenhower liked the autobahn in Germany
Thought it was efficient
o Kept that in his head
How it came to be
Eisenhower: threw his support behind creation of the Interstate System
Revitalizing nations highway system was a high priority
Ownership and Operation
The individual state's own and operate the Interstate System
Currently 46,867 miles of highway
Speed Limits
States control the MPH limit

In 1974 it was 55 mph

You could go over, but lose federal funds
Hotness Level
How hot was the Cold War?
Level 1: Friends - Team you support (Phillies/Eagles)
Level 2: Acquaintance- Team you mildly support/indifferent about (Pirates/Steelers)
Level 3: Disliked person- Team you dislike (Nationals/Redskins)
Level 4: Strong Dislike- Team you would never root for (Braves/Patriots)
Level 5: Mortal Enemy- Team you actively hate and root against (Mets/Cowboys)
o

Early Cold War Foreign Affairs

United Nations
A new organization to replace the League of Nations
Organized to promote international security and cooperation
General Assembly from every member nation

Truman Doctrine
Attempted to contain communist growth
o Containment Policy
Did so by supporting those who resisted Communism
Peacetime military aid to other countries; became our diplomacy
o Example: Turkey and Greece
Marshall Plan
Sec. of State Marshall - Provide gifts to Europe
Wanted to prevent economic, social, and political deterioration
o Also, the US was concerned that countries that were in disrepair would turn to
communism
Russia and satellites did not accept aid
Berlin Airlift
June 1948- Russians banned all traffic between Allied controlled West Berlin and
Russian controlled East Berlin
Russians- Wanted to drive Allies out of West Berlin by cutting off supplies
US, England, and France supplied West Berlin by air
May 1949- Russians lifted the blockade
Fall of China
US former ally, Chiang Kai-shek, was driven out of mainland China
October 1949- Chinese Communists, led by Mao Zedong, controlled the Chinese
mainland
The fall of the mainland seemed like one more defeat (to communism) for the U.S.
N.A.T.O.
NATO- North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied US and Canada with then W. European nations from Norway to Portugal;
Eventually 15 members
Signed April 4th, 1949; An attack on one is treated as attack on all
U.S. joined the first peacetime alliance in its history
General Eisenhower- Commander of NATO forces
Korean War

Invasion by North Korea:

o 1949 & 1950- Skirmishes took place between N & S Korea along the 38th
parallel (dividing line)
o Suddenly on June 25th 1950 135,000 North Korea's, armed and organized by the
Soviets, attacked South Korea
Truman's Action
Had the attack brought before the UN security council
UN - Called for an end to fighting
General MacArthur- Told to furnish arms and naval & air support to South Koreans
UN Action
2 days after invasion, UN Security Council calls on member nations to aid S. Korea
General McArthur- Put in command of UN forces
Inchon Landing

Early days of the war North Korea pushed South Korean and UN forces south into a
small area around Pusan
Sept. 15, 1950 - MacArthur lands forces from sea at Inchon
A daring and successful flank maneuver
Chinese Communists in Korea
UN - Wanted to defeat North Korea and create a unified, independent, and democratic
government
Chine warned - If UN crossed 38th parallel, the Chinese would defend North Korea
Chinese troops joined North Korea after UN troops crossed the 38th parallel
Truman vs. MacArthur
MacArthur - An entirely new war - Wanted to bomb mainland China
Truman and Joint Chiefs of Staff refused him
Truman relieved MacArthur from his position
Today: The border (close to the 38th parallel) is a Demilitarized Zone (2 miles long)
It is the most heavily militarized border in the world
Post WWII Korean Leadership
Kim II-Sung 1948-1994
Kim Jong-il 1994-2011

Kim Jong-un 2011-Present