The United States Utilized a Policy of Containment During...

George Kennan introduced America’s Policy of Containment in 1947. This policy had a few good points but many more bad points. Kennans depiction of communism as a malignant parasite that had to be contained by all possible measures became the basis of the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, and National Security Act in 1947. In his Inaugural Address of January 20, 1949, Truman made four points about his program for peace and freedom: to support the UN, the European Recovery Program, the collective defense of the North Atlantic, and a â€Å"bold new program† for technical aid to poor nations. Because of his programs, the future of mankind will be assured in a world of justice, harmony and peace. Containment was not just a policy. It was a way†¦show more content†¦But since this would obviously have involved mutual annihilation, the Cold War was established. According to the conventional Western view, the Cold War was a conflict between two superpowers, caused by Soviet aggression, in which the U.S. tried to contain the Soviet Union and protect the world from it. If this view is a doctrine of theology, theres no need to discuss it. If it is intended to shed some light on history, we can easily put it to the test, bearing in mind a very simple point: if you want to understand the Cold War, you should look at the events. If you do so, a very different picture emerges. On the Soviet side, the events of the Cold War were repeated interventions in Eastern Europe: tanks in East Berlin and Budapest and Prague. These interventions took place along the route that was used to attack and virtually destroy Russia three times in this century alone. On the US side, intervention was worldwide, reflecting the status attained by the US as the first truly global power in history. On the domestic front, the Cold War helped the Soviet Union entrench its military-bureaucratic ruling class in power, and it gave the US a way to compel its population to subsidize high-tech industry. It isnt easy to sell all that to the domestic populations. The technique used was the old stand-by-fear of a great enemy. The Cold War provided that too. No matter how outlandish the idea that the Soviet Union and its tentacles wereShow MoreRelatedOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is a n Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesed., Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History Jack Metzgar, Striking Steel: Solidarity Remembered Janis Appier, Policing Women: The Sexual Politics of Law Enforcement and the LAPD Allen Hunter, ed., Rethinking the Cold War Eric Foner, ed., The New American History. Revised and Expanded Edition E SSAYS ON _ T WENTIETH- C ENTURY H ISTORY Edited by Michael Adas for the American Historical Association TEMPLE UNIVERSITY PRESS PHILADELPHIA