History Questions - Assignment Example

& Number: History Questions (American Politics) 28 November (estimated word count – 294) Pres. Dwight Eisenhowers farewellspeech warned about the dangers of new wars which could adversely affect the American economy. In particular, he warned about the new military-industrial complex which advocated diplomatic crises in order to justify a huge or big military budget which in turn will undermine American prosperity (Pavelec 95). John Kennedys rhetoric and actions worsened the Cold War because he had warned about other countries not to test the military might of the United States.

Instead of trying to be conciliatory, his actions did not encourage mutual trust between the U. S. and Soviet Union. A rapprochement would have worked better by using confidence-building measures like better communications but instead he started new proxy wars in Laos and Vietnam (Freedman 285). An optimism engendered by liberalism produced a backlash in terms of conservative anger in the form of McCarthyism in which there was a massive witch hunt of the suspected communists and their supposed sympathizers.

People saw the excesses of liberalism and had wanted to go back to conservative values like family relationships. People thought America was infiltrated by communists everywhere: in government, academe and Hollywood. The culture wars produced the so-called “generation gap” between the youth and the older generations, especially their parents and elders (ONeill 5). Focal point in society where the youth were molded shifted from the high schools to colleges and universities. The country was engulfed in the youth repudiating their status and value systems while an older generation saw these trends as a threat to their lives.

A few critics of the counter-culture resorted to using censorship and other controls to re-impose cherished values and social norms. Music became a medium for political messages (jazz, rap, slam poetry,); politicians now faced feminism. Works CitedFreedman, Lawrence. Kennedys Wars: Berlin, Cuba, Laos and Vietnam. New York, NY, USA: Oxford University Press US, 2000. Print. ONeill, William L. Dawning of the Counter Culture: The 1960s. Venice, CA, USA: Now and Then Reader, LLC. 2011. E-book.Pavelec, Sterling Michael.

The Military-Industrial Complex and American Society. Santa Barbara, CA, USA: ABC-CLIO, 2010. Print.