Examples Of American Isolationism
Oct 14, 2014
American Isolationism
Throughout the Great Depression, Isolationist sentiment reigned across America as a strenuous focus on the domestic economy and disillusionment left over from WWI fed opposition to foreign entanglements. It was within this context that a series of threats to world peace arose, as Japan, Italy and Germany all belligerently sought to expand their influence and territory at the expense of nearby peoples. Yet, even as these aggressors represented an increasing threat to Western Civilization the American public remained strongly isolationist.
Adolph Hitler
Adolph Hitler gained power in Germany by exploiting the psychological injuries inflicted on Germans by WWI. Tapping into an ugly strain of anti-Semitism …show more content…
Even so, it wasn’t until December of 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, that the U.S. entered the war. as a result, all the nation’s activities- farming, manufacturing, mining, trade, labor, investment, communications, even education and cultural undertakings-were geared toward the war effort.
WWII, PT 2
In the first few months after the U.S. entered the war, the outlook for victory was bleak. Nevertheless, with the successful D-Day Invasion of France, the U.S. helped turn the tide against Nazi Germany in Europe. And, in the Pacific, the U.S. forced Japan to surrender after the dropping of two atomic bombs. Ultimately, WWII witnessed more death, cost more money, damaged more property, affected more people, and caused more far-reaching changes than any other war in history.
America’s Post-War Destiny
By using the atomic bomb to defeat Japan, the US virtually guaranteed a postwar arms race with the Soviet Union. In fact, in the post-war world, Americans imagined themselves as the global agent of freedom in lethal combat everywhere with a single, terrifying antagonist- communism. In other words, many Americans believed that the time had some for the US to mobilize and direct the forces of good vs. evil- and imagined destiny that lingers to this …show more content…
The main sources of conflict were the political and territorial fate of Eastern Europe, the control of nuclear weapons, and post-war economic assistance. In sum, the US committed itself to providing aid to countries resisting communist aggression.
Containment
America’s containment strategy was designed to limit the expansion of soviet influence, bolster national security, and defend democracy and capitalism. Thus, US policymakers used American military and economic power around the world to strengthen weak and unstable nations that might fall prey to communism. As one historian has argued, the us found in its attempt to contain the Soviet Union, “the perfect ideology for its own peculiar kind of empire: the imperialism of anti-imperialism.”
McCarthyism
Not only did the Cold War shape US foreign policy it also had a profound effect on domestic affairs as foreign events, espionage scandals, and politics created an anti-Communist hysteria. The most vigorous anti-Communist warrior was Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, a Republican from Wisconsin who-among other things- claimed there were hundreds of Communists in the federal govt. Eventually condemned for his conduct, McCarthy represented the worst domestic excess of the Cold
American Isolationism
Throughout the Great Depression, Isolationist sentiment reigned across America as a strenuous focus on the domestic economy and disillusionment left over from WWI fed opposition to foreign entanglements. It was within this context that a series of threats to world peace arose, as Japan, Italy and Germany all belligerently sought to expand their influence and territory at the expense of nearby peoples. Yet, even as these aggressors represented an increasing threat to Western Civilization the American public remained strongly isolationist.
Adolph Hitler
Adolph Hitler gained power in Germany by exploiting the psychological injuries inflicted on Germans by WWI. Tapping into an ugly strain of anti-Semitism …show more content…
Even so, it wasn’t until December of 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, that the U.S. entered the war. as a result, all the nation’s activities- farming, manufacturing, mining, trade, labor, investment, communications, even education and cultural undertakings-were geared toward the war effort.
WWII, PT 2
In the first few months after the U.S. entered the war, the outlook for victory was bleak. Nevertheless, with the successful D-Day Invasion of France, the U.S. helped turn the tide against Nazi Germany in Europe. And, in the Pacific, the U.S. forced Japan to surrender after the dropping of two atomic bombs. Ultimately, WWII witnessed more death, cost more money, damaged more property, affected more people, and caused more far-reaching changes than any other war in history.
America’s Post-War Destiny
By using the atomic bomb to defeat Japan, the US virtually guaranteed a postwar arms race with the Soviet Union. In fact, in the post-war world, Americans imagined themselves as the global agent of freedom in lethal combat everywhere with a single, terrifying antagonist- communism. In other words, many Americans believed that the time had some for the US to mobilize and direct the forces of good vs. evil- and imagined destiny that lingers to this …show more content…
The main sources of conflict were the political and territorial fate of Eastern Europe, the control of nuclear weapons, and post-war economic assistance. In sum, the US committed itself to providing aid to countries resisting communist aggression.
Containment
America’s containment strategy was designed to limit the expansion of soviet influence, bolster national security, and defend democracy and capitalism. Thus, US policymakers used American military and economic power around the world to strengthen weak and unstable nations that might fall prey to communism. As one historian has argued, the us found in its attempt to contain the Soviet Union, “the perfect ideology for its own peculiar kind of empire: the imperialism of anti-imperialism.”
McCarthyism
Not only did the Cold War shape US foreign policy it also had a profound effect on domestic affairs as foreign events, espionage scandals, and politics created an anti-Communist hysteria. The most vigorous anti-Communist warrior was Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, a Republican from Wisconsin who-among other things- claimed there were hundreds of Communists in the federal govt. Eventually condemned for his conduct, McCarthy represented the worst domestic excess of the Cold