1945 to Present. Cold Wars, Old and New: Turning Points. What Should Be Done?

The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union was a central organizing principle for both countries from the mid-1940s (after the end of WWII) until the USSR collapsed in 1990. It was a bipolar world, full of proxy wars, a competition or race to introduce new weapons technology, to conquer space, over …

2010s: Presidents Romney and Hillary; Different Supreme Court Decisions; Trump Runs As Democrat; Russian Cyber-warfare Thwarted

Context of 2010-2010: Obama-nation. John Green of Crash Course US History "covers the end of George W. Bush's administration presidency of Barack Obama (so far). Some people would say, "It's too soon to try to interpret the historical importance of such recent events!" To those people we answer, "You're right." Nonetheless, it's worthwhile to take …

2000s: President Gore, No 9/11, No Iraq War, No Obama

Context of the 2000s: Terrorism, War and Bush 43. John Green or Crash Course US History "teaches you about the tumultuous 2000's in the United States of America, mainly the 2000's that coincide with the presidency of George W Bush. From the controversial election in 2000, to the events of 9/11 and Bush's prosecution of …

1990s What Ifs: Cold War Doesn’t End; Clinton Out; Israeli-Palestinian Peace

What if the Cold War Did Not End? What If White South Africans Negotiated With Mandela in 1960 Instead of 1990? What If…No Gulf War to Liberate Kuwait in 1991? Why Bill Clinton Won in 1992, and How He Might Have Lost 1992-1998: What If Clinton Sex Scandals Hit All At Once? How & Why George H.W. Bush Lost in …

1980s Could Have Turned Out Much Better, From Progressive Perspective

As I examined in the 1970s section, Ronald Reagan almost won the Republican nomination for president in 1976. If he had done so, and gone on to win the presidency in 1976, he would have been perceived, like Jimmy Carter, the '76 winner, as an unsuccessful president. Running for president in 1980 with rampant inflation …

1960s What Ifs, Excluding the Vietnam War

I have identified the following turning points of the 1960s, excluding the Vietnam War, which I made a separate post because of its complexity. The 1960s were a very fateful decade in American history. Many baby-boomers had regrets about the decisions that shaped the country then, and helped to make America what it is today. …

1940s-1970s: Wars in Korea and Vietnam. What Ifs

Two of the greatest international tragedies of the 20th-century post-World War II were the Vietnam War and Cambodian genocide. The US, France and China played roles in these tragedies that are still being debated today. These were complex struggles; many volumes have been written.  The "What If's" remain. What If's also remain about the Korean …

1950s What Ifs: Seven Turning Points

If South Korea Were Heavily Armed, Would North Invade? What If One Side Won? The Nuking of Korea? If Truman Did Not Fire MacArthur, Or He Did Not Obey and Rallied Military Support, Could America Have Succumbed to Military Dictatorship? How Republican Conservatives, To Their Shagrin, Launched the Kennedy Dynasty in 1952 Without Cold War, US Rationale for Interventions …

1940s: More Than A Dozen What Ifs, Not Including World War II Chaos

Even without considering the massive destruction and utter chaos of World War II, the 1940s were filled with dramatic slender threads that have shaped the modern world. I've separated out World War What Ifs into a separate category and still, I've managed to pinpoint 15 events in the 1940s that had enormous long-term consequences. United …

1970s: What If US Political Leaders Weren’t Caught, Avoided Corruption, Near Misses?

These "what if's" from the 1970s mainly concern the fate of leading U.S. politicians -- Edward Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan -- and connected to them, long-term policy and cultural consequences on health care, economics, taxes, income inequality, abortion, and myriad other areas they worked on during long careers. I intentionally …