American History Homework Twelve Answers - Student 33

Mark DeJ American History Homework 12

1\. The main protagonists in the “Cold War” were the United States and the Soviet Union. The “Cold War” lasted from 1945 to 1991.

Correct!

2\. The Korean resulted in over 50,000 American casualties. The United States entered this war out of fear that communism was spreading. In 1950, communists from North Korea invaded South Korea. The country had already been divided along the 38th parallel. General MacArthur led the American troops in South Korea. Perhaps we might have had more of a chance of winning this war had Truman not fired him in April 1951. Unfortunately, in 1953, when the war ended, North Korea and South Korea were still divided at the 38th parallel. Since American intervention had absolutely no affect on resolving the issue, I think this war was a lost cause.

The Vietnam War was probably the one of the biggest mistakes in the history of this country. The reason as to why we entered is unclear. It is said that we entered the war to stop the spread of communism but I believe that President Johnson got the U.S. into the war in order to increase his popularity and to win reelection in 1964, which he did. The Vietnam War was difficult because of the tactics used by Americans compared to those used by the North Vietnamese. The U.S. fought for small key areas and cities while the North Vietnamese fought an all out war for the entire country. In addition, the fact that Vietnam is a jungle put the U.S. soldiers at a great disadvantage. They were not used to fighting in these conditions. After years of fighting and nothing being accomplished, America left South Vietnam. We lost a huge amount of soldiers - 58,000.

Superb analysis. However, I think American intervention did have an affect in preserving South Korea, because otherwise all of Korea would be communist today.

3\. I was most impressed by the case brought by the NAACP known as Brown v. Board of Education. The result of this legal battle was that the Supreme Court ruled that segregation of blacks and whites in public schools was unconstitutional. I think was milestone for African Americans. The “separate but equal” policy that had been upheld to this point makes no sense. To me. This Supreme Court decision helped give blacks a chance for a better education and better lives in general.

Superb answer, will use as a model.

4\. Unfortunately, one of the things President Lyndon Johnson is best known for is getting the United States into the Vietnam War. In 1964, the USS Maddox attacked three Vietnamese P-4 torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. President Johnson twisted this story to make it sound like they attacked the Maddox. Using this, he got Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, enabling us to assist the South Vietnamese in the fight against the Vietcong. He also got more public support for the war.

Excellent.

5\. I think that the Taft-Hartley Act was the best Act to come from the 80th Congress. This Act was passed in spite of President Truman’s veto. This Act helped stop unions from destroying companies and America’s economy. It did so by doing the following:

It excluded supervisory employees from the benefits of the National Labor Relations Act.

It gave employees the right not to join unions in states that supported this right.

It prohibited negotiation of closed-shop agreement between employers and employees and allowed a union-shop agreement between employers and employees only if the state law permitted it.

It required that unions give 60-day notice before going on strike.

It enabled the federal government to prohibit a strike for 80 days if the strike would endanger national health or safety.

Terrific answer!

6\. President Nixon is probably the most controversial presidents ever and is one of the most known because of his resignation over the “Watergate Scandal”. Most people either like Nixon or hate Nixon. There are very few people “in between”. Nixon was extremely intelligent, but did not trust many people. The “Watergate Scandal”, which was a break in at the offices of the Democratic National Committee during the 1972 presidential campaign, overshadowed his presidency. Few people remember the good things that occurred during his presidency; that he ended the war in Vietnam; helped smooth relations with Russia and China; announced an accord with North Vietnam to stop American involvement in Indochina; and Henry Kissinger, Nixon’s Secretary of State negotiated disengagement agreements between Israel and Egypt and Syria.

Superb answer, and good point about Nixon and China.

7\. The name used to describe the people in charge of the building in the picture was the Warren Court. The Warren Court got its name from Chief Justice Earl Warren. The Warren Court was an “activist court” that handed down rulings on very liberal concepts and extended judicial powers into areas where it had previously shown restraint. For example, the Warren Court established a precedent for eminent domain, which is the power of the government to seize private property for government use or to give to a third party for public use.

Very good, but note that eminent domain always existed, and the Warren Court expanded it to allow taking from one private party (e.g., a homeowner) in order to give it to another private party (e.g., a developer to build a shopping center). Previously eminent domain was allowed only to take property to build actual government buildings, like a new City Hall.

H1. What Muhammad Ali said about how his religion, Islam, does not allow him to get involved with “non holy wars” is true. However, I think that “holy war” is subject to interpretation. Osama Bin Laden claims to be fighting a “holy war” against America. Many Islamic extremists would like us all to convert to their religion. That being said, I also believe that Muhammad Ali used his religion as a way to get out of fighting in the Vietnam War.

Superb insights.

H2. What is your view of communism, and the American response to it?

I think communism theoretically sounds good to some people but in reality is quite bad. It is bad because you pretty much give everything up to the government. In a communist society, the government controls the economy. Communism rejects capitalism. There is only one political party – the communist party. Any form of opposition is suppressed. The media is restricted. People do not enjoy religious freedom. There is no way to better yourself. There are not as many options in a communist society as there are in a capitalist society.

I understand that in the 40’s through the 60’s, Americans feared communism, but I think some people were too extreme. This was and is a strong country and I do not think the people would let communism take hold. I do agree that we need to make sure communists do not hold high-level government positions.

Excellent insights again. May use parts of this as a model answer.

H5. General MacArthur was a career Army man. He graduated first in his class from West Point in 1903. He served with distinction during World War I, was the supreme commander of the Allied forces in the Pacific during World War II, and was put in charge of the United Nations forces during the Korean War. Like many homeschoolers, MacArthur had strong beliefs and was willing to take risks. He is famous for the quote, “In war, there is no substitute for victory.” This was proven in 1950 when he devised the plan to divert the North Koreans’ attention to the southeast corner of the peninsula while he had the Marines attempt a colossal amphibious invasion further north at Inchon. Many obstacles stood in the way of this mission being a success. The tide fell 32 feet twice daily. The weather conditions were torrential. However, with MacArthur’s determination, the North Korean army was pushed back, even with help from China and the USSR, and freedom was restored for South Korea. MacArthur wanted to continue the war effort to defeat communism but unfortunately, President Truman fired him in 1951.

Terrific answer, one of the best in the entire class!

Superb homework paper, one of the very best in the class. Perfect 100/100. Congratulations!!!