Significant Historical Events in the World - Essay Example

Significant Events
Impact Worldwide
1) The Korean War (1950-1953):
This war started when the North Korean Communist army tried to cross the 38th parallel and invaded non-Communist South Korea on June 25, 1950. In 1953, both South and North Korea signed a peace treaty which essentially ended them still in a divided status as before the war. (AsianInfo, 2000)
The Korean War has negative and positive effects. Both North and South Korea had many causalities and property destruction but they both were stretched economically. The Korean War also legitimized the United Nations as well as brought more military power throughout the world. Korea […]
2) The End of the Vietnam War (1975)
The communist and anti-communist system belief slit Vietnam into South and North. (Sitikoff, 1999).
People perceive that the United States, though projected to be invincible, its pride and self-confidence has now succumbed to defeat. It is the longest and most debilitating war--the only war the United States ever lost. It is the sacrifice for liberty that counts (Sitikoff, 1999)
3) 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba
(April 17, 1961)
This is an abortive invasion of Cuba directed by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and carried out by Cuban exiles. The invasion was intended to spark a rebellion that would topple Fidel Castro, whose communist regime was considered a threat to U.S. interests in the region. The rebellion never materialized, the invasion force was quickly defeated. The result was a huge propaganda victory for Castro and a severe embarrassment for the administration of U.S. President John F. Kennedy. Bay of Pigs (Berry,n.d)
This just to shows that the U.S., one of the superpowers is not spared and is far from perfect. The Bay of Pigs was one of the most important political decisions in the history of the United States. Its effects are still being felt to today, especially in the Cuban communities of the United States. The decisions that were made by the highest offices of our government showed us that the United States. They constructed a plan that wasn't completely thought through and paid a major price -- global embarrassment. They took the chance to destroy the communist threat that was quite close to our shores and, in the process, made the CIA and our government look incompetent (Berry, n.d.).
4) The assassination of Pres. J.F. Kennedy, 35th President of U.S. (Nov. 22, 1963)
Assassinated in Dallas, Texas
The assassination of President John F. Kennedy was one of the most traumatic social episodes and cultural disasters of the last century in the United States. a vision to advance the nation and the world in science. This latter aspect can be seen in his promotion of the space program. The projection of this ideal and the verve and passion with which he directed it, was something that was deeply felt in its loss. This emphasis on human rights, besides being a possible reason for the assassination, was an aspect that was to have a strong bearing on the future of the country.
JFK[…]
5) Evolution of the Internet (1969 to date)
Started as Aparnet in 1969 first real network to run on packet switching technology; followed by the inception of UNIX (1969); Email (1971) and the rest of new powerful features followed (Chapman, 2009).
The power of the internet to transfer and exchange communications and accurate data in any part of the world has changed how the global community operates, introducing new lifestyle as become dependent on electronic gadgets as well as use new features of machines with more powerful technological capacities.
6) Fall of Berlin (1989)
The Berlin Wall was erected on August 13, 1961. Many attempted to escape over the 28 years of the existence of the wall. Gorbachev made his first official visit to West Germany in May 1989. While there, he announced that Moscow would no longer forcefully prevent democratic conversion of its outlying states.
Hungary opened its border with Austria on September 11, 1989. The opening of the borders between East and West Berlin, which also symbolized the end of the Cold War, began on June 13, 1990.
The collapse of Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union had such a far-reaching impact not only on the domestic socio-economic reform in China but also observed in other Eastern Asian states or regions, for example, South Korea and Taiwan. (Lai, H., n.d.)
It was reported that after the unification income per capita in East and West Germany registered a fast increase in their income per capita. (Burcardi and Hassan, 2010)
7) P.M. Lee Kuan Yew and His Contribution to Singapore
(1965-1990)
(Chubb,2007) - Lee Kuan Yew’s lone rule as Prime Minister of the independent Republic of Singapore for a quarter of a century, from 1965 until 1990 proved that not all dictators are extremely bad.
Mr. Lee has made an unparalleled contribution to the development of his country. Under Mr. Lee’s leadership, Singapore became a stable and secure independent country, moved from a state of extreme economic vulnerability to its current position as the region’s most vibrant economy whose people enjoy standards of education, health, and welfare among the highest in the world.

Singapore is classified under NIC (newly industrialized countries) and much of this credit is given to the leadership of Lee Kuan Yew. His leadership style is much admired worldwide and thus, is also much studied by leaders all over the world. Only a few nations under a dictatorship succeed and this is highly due to the benevolence of its leader.
8) People Revolution by Corazon Aquino (1986)
People Revolution by Corazon Aquino, Time noted that Aquino "became a unifying force against the autocratic President Ferdinand Marcos and ran in the 1986 presidential election. The ruling powers declared Marcos the winner, but a series of peaceful demonstrations along with backing from the church finally put Aquino in power. (1986)”
(Abueva, J. 2010).
People Power Revolution was a non-violent and peaceful revolution. It was the first
successful bloodless revolution which is characterized by true people power. This strategy was posted to be emulated by other countries.
9) The September 11 Attack (2001)
On September 11, 2001, the world looked on in horror as terrorists flew hijacked passenger planes into New York Citys mighty twin towers, destroying the iconic buildings and killing more than 2,700 people U.S. Patriot Act[…].
This is called for the passage of the USA Patriot Act in response to Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. It is aimed at providing the tools law enforcement officials need to prevent further terrorist attacks. The post-9/11 period has seen a dramatic expansion of government surveillance. Law enforcement has received extensive funding for this purpose- US Patriot Act […].
Rallying the nations to fight a "war on terrorism" , U.S. allies also heightened their security against terrorist attacks - US Patriot Act […].
10) Beginning of AIDS /HIV (1970)
(Human Immunodeficiency virus)
“The number of people who have developed AIDS in the 1970s, or indeed in the years before remains unknown.
For the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was unknown and transmission was not accompanied by signs or symptoms salient enough to be noticed. While rare, sporadic case reports of AIDS and sero-archaeological studies have documented human infections with HIV prior to 1970, available data suggest that the current pandemic started in the mid- the too late 1970s. By 1980, HIV had spread to at least five continents (North America, South America, Europe, Africa, and Australia). During this period of silence, the spread was unchecked by awareness or any preventive action and approximately 100,000-300,000 persons may have been infected."Jonathan Mann 1 We also do not know for certain where the AIDS virus HIV originated, but it is now generally accepted that the origin of AIDS can be traced back to Africa” (History of Aids, n.d.)
People are warned to practice safe sex. Local government and health policies have been formulated to address these issues. Certain countries have issued health safety policies to include issues addressed to homosexuals, heterosexuals or for individuals preferring different human sexual orientation. For some countries, pointers to safe sex and use of condoms were instituted to check on spreading of HIVs or AIDS.
For me, the most significant event that happened is the start of the evolution of the Internet. The rapid pace of advancement of the Internet world has changed the lifestyle of the global community. Now, communication with one another can be done in a fraction of a second and in any part of the world. The biggest advantage of having the internet is the formidable information made available to you. They say information is power so the more information one has, the more power he can exercise as well as better leverage over and above competitors. The flexibility of the media of the internet has become successful in capturing multifaceted entertainment factor like downloading games, chatting online, etc. And finally, virtual or online virtual services and e-commerce activities are just some of the great advantages of having developed the Internet. Read More