Twentieth century in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Twentieth century in America - Essay ExampleIts militarism snared for it various colonies such as Cuba, Mexico, Hawaii, in the Philippines, in Puerto Rico, Guam, and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The main political principle employmentd by previous administrations to justify this expansionism was the so-called Manifest Destiny, that it was inevitable for America to rule the world. Many events comprise the twentieth-century for America, only some(prenominal) of these events admittedly are more impactful than others, in terms of their continuing influence on the course of events for the country even today. Some events were celebratory, victorious or triumphal, but sadly also, some events were traumatic which seared the American citizen consciousness. It takes great discernment for an expert of history and political science to connect or relate the substance of these events to the current happenings all oer the world. However, it is also incumbent on a student of history to detect and realize the subtle reassigns occurring in the country, which if these are viewed over the long term, form a distinct historical pattern. It is the purpose of this brief paper is to discuss some of these events and their perceived impacts. The most significant events are re-examined and a major theme is propounded to explain it. Discussion Some of these big events were the two world wars (First World War, 1914-1919 and the Second World War, 1939-1945), first flight by military man due to the Wright brothers (1903), the rise of free-market capitalism with the advent of big business barons (tycoons) who in turn controlled most of the American economy during the years of the Industrial Revolution such as banking, railways, manufacturing industries, the telegraph, mining, and shipping, the Great Depression (1929-1941) which destroyed a big portion of the nations wealth and its citizens. It was preceded by the stock market crash of October 29, 1929 but one affirmative outcome of i t all was that monetary and fiscal authorities are now better able to control economic crises than before, by lowering interest pass judgment instead of raising the rates which worsened the depression. The Vietnam War (1959-1975) is the only modern war which America had lost but it created a new awareness among Americans active how their country conducts foreign policy. The loss has cast a long shadow over the way America now avoids any long-term involvement in military conflicts, extricating itself from Iraq and soon, from Afghanistan too. Citizens keep questioning the ethics of a preemptive war that has no clear objectives its bitter memories are a constant reminder to how commission creep can drag a war with no hope for a victory. This lead to a growing sense of pacifism and conservatism, how the nation should use soft power in its international relations instead of relaying on regime change by overthrow (Kinzer 552). President Dwight D. Eisenhower became the foremost proponen t of this change to a reliance on diplomacy rather than military power alone, by warning about the ill effects of the growing military-industrial complex which drains cute tax dollars away from important projects like education, health care, and infrastructure (Eisenhower 7). Growing involvement of the federal government in the national economy and in hostelry as well started with Franklin D. Roosevelt in his New Deal programs but which