RUSH - Cold War Test

Second Red Scare

Lasted 1945-1954; fear of communists working their way into the government after WWII.

The Rosenbergs

Convicted of espionage (and executed) for their role in passing atomic secrets to the Soviets during and after WWII.

McCarthyism

The act of making accusations of being a communist without proper regard for evidence. Refers to a Senator from Wisconsin who led campaigns against communism.

Joseph McCarthy

Senator from Wisconsin who investigated and blacklisted potential communists. His popularity eventually fell due to his lack of proof and accusations against US military members

NATO

This was the first peacetime alliance in U.S. history. Included France, Britain, and Italy, and an attack on one was an attack on all.

Hydrogen Bomb

A much more powerful bomb developed during the Cold War; the US tested theirs in 1952, while the Soviets tested theirs in 1953.

Korean War

1950-1953; known as "The Forgotten War;" Americans and Soviets divided the country into N/S.

Containment

American Cold War policy of resisting further expansion of communism around the world

Domino Theory

A theory that if one nation comes under Communist control, then neighboring nations will also come under Communist control.

Douglas MacArthur

United States general during World War II and Korean War; forced to resign by Truman in 1951 for openly disagreeing about strategy during the Korean War

Bay of Pigs (1961)

A failed invasion of Cuba involving Cuban exiles living in the US who were trained by the CIA. A huge embarrassment for the US, which drew Castro and the USSR closer together

Nikita Khrushchev

Soviet leader during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Cuban Missile Crisis

The 1962 confrontation between US and the Soviet Union over weapons in Cuba.

Result of Cuban Missile Crisis

Soviets remove missiles from Cuba; US promises to remove missiles from Turkey and not invade Cuba

Ho Chi Minh

Communist leader of North Vietnam during the Vietnam War

Tactics of Viet Cong (VC)

Guerrilla Warfare; Ambushes; Tunnel System; Traps-punji sticks; Blended in w/ the population

Viet Cong (VC)

Members of the communist guerrilla movement in South Vietnam

Ngo Dinh Diem

Leader of South Vietnam from 1955 to 1963; repressive against the Buddhist majority, he was killed in a coup in 1963.

Thich Quang Duc

Buddhist monk who burned himself to death in June 11, 1963 to protest persecution of Buddhists during the Diem administration

Lyndon B. Johnson

President who succeeded Kennedy and got the US more involved in Vietnam; chose not to run again in 1968 due to the war's (and his) unpopularity

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Alleged attack of US ships by North Vietnamese torpedoes outside of Vietnam in August 1964. Prompted the escalation of the War in Vietnam.

Tonkin Gulf Resolution

A resolution adopted by Congress in 1964, giving the president broad powers to wage war in Vietnam

Battle of Ia Drang Valley

First major battle in the Vietnam War; struggle for the US, and eventually leads to more troops getting sent to Vietnam

Measure of success and victory in the Vietnam War

Body count

26th Amendment

Lowered the voting age from 21 to 18

Kent State Massacre

Protest on the invasion of Cambodia where the National Guard was called in and killed 4 unarmed students

Tet Offensive

1968 surprise attacks by the Viet Cong on American bases in South Vietnam. Strategic victory for the US, but huge loss in the media and among Americans back home

My Lai Massacre

1968; American troops brutally massacred innocent women and children in a Vietnamese village, which led to more opposition to the war.

Napalm

Highly flammable chemical dropped from US planes in firebombing attacks during the Vietnam War.

Agent Orange

A herbicide used in the Vietnam War to defoliate forest areas

Credibility gap

American public's growing distrust of statements made by the government during the Vietnam War; different statements from government vs. media reporting on the war

Draft

A system of required military service

Ways people would avoid the draft in Vietnam

Committed crimes to go to jail, fled to Canada, pretended to be gay, got a poor physical on purpose

Draft Deferments

Obtained by many to avoid the military draft

Examples of draft deferments during Vietnam

Being in college, getting married, having a child, being in a state National Guard

Robert F. Kennedy

Former Attorney General and Democratic candidate for President in 1968 until he was assassinated

Roe v. Wade

The 1973 Supreme Court decision holding that a state ban on all abortions was unconstitutional. This was overturned in 2022 by the Dobbs decision.

Watergate Scandal

A break-in at the Democratic National Committee offices in 1972 that eventually led to President Nixon resigning in 1974 to avoid impeachment.

US v. Nixon

Supreme Court ruling that no person, not even the President of the United States, is completely above law; he was ordered to turn over tapes involved with Watergate

Iran Hostage Crisis

The 444 days in which American embassy workers were held captive by Iranian revolutionaries. The crisis ended with the hostage's release the day Ronald Reagan became president.

Trickle Down Economics

An economic policy in which the government attempts to indirectly aid the needy by cutting taxes on businesses and the wealthy in the hope that it will "fall" to people at the lower ends

Reaganomics

Economic policies of Ronald Reagan that included tax cuts, budget cutting, and increased spending on the military.

Ronald Reagan

1981-1989, "Great Communicator" Republican, conservative economic policies.

Richard Nixon

1968 and 1972; Republican; Watergate scandal: became the first and only president to resign

Cuban Missile Crisis

The 1962 confrontation bewteen US and the Soviet Union over Soviet missiles in Cuba. Ended with a naval blockade of Cuba by the United States.

What was the result of the Vietnam War?

The US pulled out, and North Korea (communist) took over the entire nation and united it under communism

What agent was used by American "search and destroy" missions in Vietnam?

Napalm