The Cold War: Crash Course US History #37

Summary

In this Crash Course episode, John Green explores the Cold War era, emphasizing its impact on American society and global politics. He discusses the ideological struggle between the US and the USSR, the policy of containment, the Truman Doctrine, and the Marshall Plan. Green also touches on the arms race, espionage, and the influence of anti-communist sentiment on domestic policies, shaping a new perception of freedom and safety in America.

Takeaways

• 🌍 The Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union from 1945 to 1990, characterized by proxy wars and an arms race rather than direct military conflict.
• ❄️ The term 'Cold War' signifies the lack of direct large-scale warfare between the two superpowers, despite numerous smaller conflicts and a pervasive sense of threat.
• 🔥 The U.S. and the U.S.S.R. engaged in an ideological struggle for global influence, with the U.S. promoting capitalism and the Soviets advocating communism.
• 💡 The policy of 'containment' was central to U.S. strategy, aiming to halt the spread of communism, as outlined by George F. Kennan in his Long Telegram.
• 💸 The Marshall Plan was a significant economic initiative by the U.S. to rebuild post-war Europe, counter the appeal of communism, and create stable markets for American goods.
• 🏰 The division of Germany and the Berlin Crisis highlighted the struggle for control in Europe, with the U.S. and its allies maintaining a presence in West Berlin despite Soviet blockades.
• 💣 The development of nuclear weapons by the Soviet Union escalated the arms race and increased the stakes of the Cold War, leading to a mutual assured destruction (MAD) scenario.
• 🛣️ Domestically, the U.S. invested in education, science, and infrastructure as part of its Cold War strategy, including the creation of the interstate highway system.
• 🔍 The U.S. government's fear of communism within its borders led to loyalty tests, the rise of McCarthyism, and a climate of fear that stifled dissent and critique.
• 🌐 The Cold War reshaped American perceptions of freedom and safety, with the government's role expanding to protect citizens not just from external threats but also from internal ideological subversion.

Q & A

Why is the Cold War referred to as 'Cold'?

The Cold War is called 'Cold' because it supposedly never escalated into actual armed conflict, meaning it wasn't a traditional war.

What were the two superpowers during the Cold War?

The two superpowers during the Cold War were the United States and the Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.).

What was the policy of containment and how did it relate to the spread of communism?

The policy of containment was introduced by George F. Kennan in his Long Telegram, aiming to prevent the spread of communism beyond its existing borders.

What were the goals of the Truman Doctrine as stated in the script?

The goals of the Truman Doctrine were to block further expansion of Soviet power, expose the falsities of Soviet pretensions, induce a retraction of the Kremlin’s control and influence, and foster the seeds of destruction within the Soviet system.

How did the Marshall Plan contribute to the rebuilding of Europe after World War II?

The Marshall Plan provided U.S. aid to combat economic instability in Europe, which helped rebuild Western Europe, allowing it to surpass pre-war production levels and transition towards a U.S. style capitalist society.

What was the significance of the Berlin Airlift during the Cold War?

The Berlin Airlift was an 11-month-long operation to supply West Berlin with necessities after Soviet leader Joseph Stalin cut off road access, demonstrating Western resolve and eventually leading to the lifting of the blockade.

What was the impact of the Cold War on American domestic policy, particularly regarding social policies?

The Cold War influenced American domestic policy by preventing Truman's Fair Deal, which aimed to extend social policies like increasing the minimum wage and national health insurance, due to anti-communist sentiment and fear of 'socialized' programs.

How did the Cold War shape American culture and society?

The Cold War shaped American culture and society by promoting anti-communist sentiment, influencing Hollywood to produce anticommunist movies, supporting artistic expressions of freedom, and even adding 'under God' to the Pledge of Allegiance to signify resistance to communism.

What was the role of espionage in the development of Soviet nuclear weapons?

Espionage played a significant role in the development of Soviet nuclear weapons, with spies like Klaus Fuchs and Julius Rosenberg providing atomic secrets to the Soviets.

How did the fear of communism influence American attitudes towards freedom and safety during the Cold War?

The fear of communism led to a new definition of freedom where the government was seen as an entity that protected citizens from massive destruction, thus influencing attitudes towards what it means to be free and safe.

Outlines

00:00

🌍 Introduction to the Cold War

John Green introduces the Cold War as a period of tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, marked by proxy wars and ideological conflicts rather than direct military confrontation. He humorously addresses the term 'Cold War' and its implications, highlighting significant events and the overarching theme of the era. The video aims to explore the impact of the Cold War on American self-perception and global politics, including the arms race, espionage, and the ideological struggle between capitalism and communism.

05:01

🏛️ The Marshall Plan and Early Cold War Policies

This section delves into the economic and political strategies of the United States during the early Cold War, focusing on the Marshall Plan. The plan was designed to rebuild post-war Europe and counter the spread of communism by stabilizing economies and promoting capitalism. The discussion also covers the division of Germany, the first Berlin Crisis, and the formation of NATO. The video emphasizes the U.S.'s efforts to contain Soviet influence and the ideological battle that characterized the Cold War.

10:06

🚧 Domestic Impact and the Red Scare

The final paragraph examines the domestic effects of the Cold War on American society and politics. It discusses the Fair Deal, Truman's social policy initiative that faced opposition due to anti-communist sentiments. The paragraph also covers the government's investments in education and infrastructure, driven by national security concerns. The Red Scare and the rise of Joseph McCarthy are highlighted, illustrating the pervasive fear of communism and its impact on American civil liberties and freedom of expression.

Keywords

💡Cold War

The Cold War refers to the period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc, after World War II. It is called 'cold' because it did not involve direct military conflict between the two superpowers; instead, it encompassed a series of proxy wars, espionage, and ideological competition. The video discusses how the Cold War shaped global politics, influenced domestic policies, and heightened fears of nuclear conflict, as seen in the context of the arms race and espionage incidents mentioned.

💡Containment

Containment was a foreign policy adopted by the United States during the Cold War with the aim of stopping the spread of communism. It was first introduced by diplomat George F. Kennan in his Long Telegram. The policy involved a variety of tactics, including economic, political, and military strategies, to prevent the expansion of Soviet influence. The video explains how containment led to U.S. involvement in the Korean and Vietnam Wars and was a fundamental aspect of U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War era.

💡Truman Doctrine

The Truman Doctrine was a policy announced by President Harry S. Truman in 1947 that provided military and economic aid to countries resisting Soviet pressure. It was a direct response to the perceived threat of communism spreading globally. The video highlights the Truman Doctrine as a significant moment in U.S. history, setting the stage for America's role as a global anti-communist force and leading to substantial financial support for Greece and Turkey.

💡Marshall Plan

The Marshall Plan, officially known as the European Recovery Program, was an American initiative to aid Western Europe, in which the United States gave over $12 billion (approximately $100 billion in current dollar value) in economic assistance to help rebuild Western European economies after the end of World War II. The video emphasizes the Marshall Plan's role in stabilizing Europe, preventing the spread of communism, and fostering economic prosperity, which was instrumental in the post-war recovery and the establishment of a capitalist consumer society.

💡NATO

NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is an intergovernmental military alliance between North American and European countries. Established in 1949, it is based on the North Atlantic Treaty that was signed in Washington, D.C. The video mentions NATO as part of the Western response to the Soviet Union's growing influence, highlighting its significance in the military aspect of the Cold War and as a symbol of the Western Bloc's unity against the Eastern Bloc.

💡Berlin Crisis

The Berlin Crisis refers to a series of crises between 1948 and 1961 involving the political and physical division of Berlin, a city located deep within East Germany, and the resulting diplomatic tensions between the Soviet Union and the Western Allies. The video discusses the first Berlin Crisis, where the Soviet Union blocked road access to West Berlin, leading to the Western Allies' Berlin Airlift, which eventually forced the Soviet Union to lift the blockade. This event is a notable example of the Cold War's tensions playing out in a localized but high-stakes situation.

💡Espionage

Espionage is the act of spying or using spies to obtain secret or confidential information. During the Cold War, espionage was a critical aspect of the intelligence war between the United States and the Soviet Union. The video references notable spies like Klaus Fuchs and Julius Rosenberg, who provided atomic secrets to the Soviets, illustrating the high stakes and the lengths nations went to gain an advantage over their rivals.

💡Joseph McCarthy

Joseph McCarthy was a U.S. Senator known for his aggressive anti-communist rhetoric and his role in the Red Scare of the early 1950s. He claimed to have a list of communists working in the U.S. government, though he never provided concrete evidence. The video discusses McCarthy's influence during the Red Scare, a period of intense fear of communism within the United States, which led to a widespread suspicion of disloyalty and a crackdown on alleged communists.

💡Red Scare

The Red Scare refers to the fear and hysteria in the United States about the perceived threat of communism during the Cold War. It led to a widespread suspicion of communist infiltration in American institutions and society. The video connects the Red Scare to the broader theme of fear and the government's response to perceived internal threats, including the loyalty review system and the persecution of individuals accused of communist affiliations.

💡Loyalty Review System

The Loyalty Review System was a program established by President Truman in 1947 to screen government employees for potential disloyalty. It was part of a broader effort to identify and remove communists or communist sympathizers from government positions. The video mentions this system as an example of the government's response to the perceived threat of communism within the United States, reflecting the Cold War's impact on domestic policies and civil liberties.

💡NSC-68

NSC-68, or National Security Council Report 68, was a top-secret document adopted by President Truman in 1950. It called for a significant increase in military and economic aid to counter the Soviet Union. The video highlights NSC-68 as a reflection of the U.S. government's perspective on the Cold War as an epic struggle between freedom and tyranny, leading to a political consensus on the need for a substantial military build-up and foreign policy interventions.

Highlights

The Cold War is termed 'Cold' because it never escalated into direct armed conflict.

Despite its name, the Cold War involved numerous proxy wars, including those in Korea and Afghanistan.

The Cold War era is generally considered to have lasted from 1945 to 1990.

The United States and the USSR emerged as the world's two superpowers after World War II.

The U.S. implemented a policy of containment to prevent the spread of communism.

The Truman Doctrine pledged support for nations resisting communist threats.

The Marshall Plan was an economic initiative to rebuild post-war Europe and counteract communism.

The creation of NATO in 1949 was a response to the Soviet Union's growing military power.

The first Berlin Crisis in 1948 led to the Berlin Airlift and the eventual construction of the Berlin Wall.

NSC-68 was a National Security Council report that framed the Cold War as a struggle between freedom and tyranny.

The Cold War influenced American domestic policy, including the resistance to socialized medicine.

The U.S. government invested in education and scientific research as part of its Cold War strategy.

Espionage played a significant role in the Soviet Union's rapid development of nuclear weapons.

The Red Scare and the rise of Joseph McCarthy led to an intense fear of communism within the U.S.

The Cold War redefined American concepts of freedom and safety, with a focus on protection from external threats.

Crash Course is funded by viewers' support through Subbable.com, emphasizing the importance of community in educational content creation.

Transcripts

Hi I’m John Green; this is Crash Course U.S. history and today we’re gonna talk

about the Cold War. The Cold War is called “Cold” because

it supposedly never heated up into actual armed conflict, which means, you know, that

it wasn’t a war. Mr. Green, Mr. Green, but if the War on Christmas

is a war and the War on Drugs is a war… You’re not going to hear me say this often

in your life, Me from the Past, but that was a good point. At least the Cold War was not

an attempt to make war on a noun, which almost never works, because nouns are so resilient.

And to be fair, the Cold War did involve quite a lot of actual war, from Korea to Afghanistan,

as the world’s two superpowers, the United States and the U.S.S.R., sought ideological

and strategic influence throughout the world. So perhaps it’s best to think of the Cold

War as an era, lasting roughly from 1945 to 1990.

Discussions of the Cold War tend to center on international and political history and

those are very important, which is why we’ve talked about them in the past. This, however,

is United States history, so let us heroically gaze--as Americans so often do--at our own

navel. (Libertage.)

Stan, why did you turn the globe to the Green Parts of Not-America? I mean, I guess to be

fair, we were a little bit obsessed with this guy.

So, the Cold War gave us great spy novels, independence movements, an arms race, cool

movies like Dr. Strangelove and War Games, one of the most evil mustaches in history.

But it also gave us a growing awareness that the greatest existential threat to human beings

is ourselves. It changed the way we imagine the world and humanity’s role in it.

In his Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, William Faulkner famously said, “Our tragedy today

is a general and universal physical fear so long sustained by now that we can even bear

it. There are no longer problems of the spirit. There is only the question: When will I be

blown up?” So, today we’re gonna look at how that came

to be the dominant question of human existence, and whether we can ever get past it.

intro So after WWII the U.S. and the USSR were the

only two nations with any power left. The United States was a lot stronger – we had

atomic weapons, for starters, and also the Soviets had lost 20 million people in the

war and they were led by a sociopathic mustachioed Joseph Stalin.

But the U.S. still had worries: we needed a strong, free-market-oriented Europe (and

to a lesser extent Asia) so that all the goods we were making could find happy homes.

The Soviets, meanwhile, were concerned with something more immediate, a powerful Germany

invading them. Again. Germany--and please do not take this personally, Germans--was

very, very slow to learn the central lesson of world history: Do not invade Russia. Unless

you’re the Mongols. (Mongoltage.)

So at the end of World War II, the USSR “encouraged” the creation of pro-communist governments

in Bulgaria, Romania, and Poland--which was a relatively easy thing to encourage, because

those nations were occupied by Soviet troops. The idea for the Soviets was to create a communist

buffer between them and Germany, but to the U.S. it looked like communism might just keep

expanding, and that would be really bad for us, because who would buy all of our sweet,

sweet industrial goods? So America responded with the policy of containment,

as introduced in diplomat George F. Kennan’s famous Long Telegram. Communism could stay

where it was, but it would not be allowed to spread.

And ultimately this is why we fought very real wars in both Korea and Vietnam.

As a government report from 1950 put it the goals of containment were:

1. Block further expansion of Soviet power 2. Expose the falsities of soviet pretensions

3. Induce a retraction of the Kremlin’s control and influence, and

4. In general, foster the seeds of destruction within the Soviet system.

Harry Truman, who as you’ll recall, became President in 1945 after Franklin Delano Prez

4 Life Roosevelt died, was a big fan of containment, and the first real test of it came in Greece

and Turkey in 1947. This was a very strategically valuable region

because it was near the Middle East, and I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but

the United States has been just, like, a smidge interested in the Middle East the last several

decades because of oil glorious oil. Right, so Truman announced the so-called Truman

Doctrine, because you know why not name a doctrine after yourself, in which he pledged

to support “freedom-loving peoples” against communist threats, which is all fine and good.

But who will protect us against “peoples,” the pluralization of an already plural noun?

Anyway, we eventually sent $400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey, and we were off

to the Cold War races. The Truman Doctrine created the language through

which Americans would view the world with America as free and communists as tyrannical.

According to our old friend Eric Foner, “The speech set a precedent for American assistance

to anticommunist regimes throughout the world, no matter how undemocratic, and for the creation

of a set of global military alliances directed against the Soviet Union.”[1]

It also led to the creation of a new security apparatus – the National Security Council,

the Central Intelligence Agency, the Atomic Energy Commission, all of which were somewhat

immune from government oversight and definitely not democratically elected.

And the containment policy and the Truman Doctrine also laid the foundations for a military

build-up – an arms race – which would become a key feature of the Cold War.

But it wasn’t all about the military, at least at first. Like, the Marshall Plan was

first introduced at Harvard’s Commencement address in June 1947 by, get this, George

Marshall, in what turned out to be, like, the second most important commencement address

in all of American history. Yes, yes, Stan, okay. It was a great speech, thank you for

noticing. Alright, let’s go to the Thought Bubble.

The Marshall Plan was a response to economic chaos in Europe brought on by a particularly

harsh winter that strengthened support for communism in France and Italy.

The plan sought to use US Aid to combat the economic instability that provided fertile

fields for communism. As Marshall said “ our policy is not directed against any country

or doctrine, but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos.” [2] Basically it

was a New Deal for Europe, and it worked; Western Europe was rebuilt so that by 1950

production levels in industry had eclipsed pre-war levels and Europe was on its way to

becoming a U.S. style-capitalist-mass-consumer society. Which it still is, kind of.

Japan, although not technically part of the Marshall Plan, was also rebuilt. General Douglas

MacArthur was basically the dictator there, forcing Japan to adopt a new constitution,

giving women the vote, and pledging that Japan would foreswear war, in exchange for which

the United States effectively became Japan’s defense force. This allowed Japan to spend

its money on other things, like industry, which worked out really well for them.

Meanwhile Germany was experiencing the first Berlin crisis. At the end of the war, Germany

was divided into East and West, and even though the capital, Berlin, was entirely in the east,

it was also divided into east and west. This meant that West Berlin was dependent on shipments

of goods from West Germany through East Germany. And then, in 1948, Stalin cut off the roads

to West Berlin. So, the Americans responded with an 11-month-long airlift of supplies

that eventually led to Stalin lifting the blockade in 1948 and building the Berlin Wall,

which stood until 1991, when Kool Aid Guy--no, wait, wait, wait, wait, that wasn’t when

the Berlin Wall was built. That was in 1961. I just wanted to give Thought Bubble the opportunity

to make that joke. Thanks, Thought Bubble. So right, the Wall

wasn’t built until 1961, but 1949 did see Germany officially split into two nations,

and also the Soviets detonated their first atomic bomb, and NATO was established, AND

the Chinese Revolution ended in communist victory.

So, by the end of 1950, the contours of the Cold War had been established, West versus

East, Capitalist Freedom versus Communist totalitarianism.

At least from where I’m sitting. Although now apparently I’m going to change where

I’m sitting because it’s time for the Mystery Document. The rules here are simple.

I guess the author of the Mystery Document and about 55% of the time I get shocked by

the shock pen. “We must organize and enlist the energies

and resources of the free world in a positive program for peace which will frustrate the

Kremlin design for world domination by creating a situation in the free world to which the

Kremlin will be compelled to adjust. Without such a cooperative effort, led by the United

States, we will have to make gradual withdrawals under pressure until we discover one day that

we have sacrificed positions of vital interest. It is imperative that this trend be reversed

by a much more rapid and concerted build-up of the actual strength of both the United

States and the other nations of the free world.” I mean all I can say about it is that it sounds

American and, like, it was written in, like, 1951 and it seems kind of like a policy paper

or something really boring so I...I mean... Yeah, I’m just going to have to take the

shock. AH! National Security Council report NSC-68? Are

you kidding me, Stan? Not-not 64? Or 81? 68? This is ridiculous! I call injustice.

Anyway, as the apparently wildly famous NSC-68 shows, the U.S. government cast the Cold War

as a rather epic struggle between freedom and tyranny, and that led to remarkable political

consensus--both democrats and republicans supported most aspects of cold war policy,

especially the military build-up part. Now, of course, there were some critics, like

Walter Lippmann who worried that casting foreign policy in such stark ideological terms would

result in the U.S. getting on the wrong side of many conflicts, especially as former colonies

sought to remove the bonds of empire and become independent nations. But yeah, no, nothing

like that ever happened. Yeah, I mean, it’s not like that happened

in Iran or Nicaragua or Argentina or Brazil or Guatemala or Stan are you really going

to make me list all of them? Fine. Or Haiti or Paraguay or the Philippines or Chile or

Iraq or Indonesia or Zaire or, I’m sorry, THERE WERE A LOT OF THEM, OKAY?

But these interventions were viewed as necessary to prevent the spread of communism, which

was genuinely terrifying to people and it’s important to understand that.

Like, national security agencies pushed Hollywood to produce anticommunist movies like “The

Red Menace,” which scared people. And the CIA funded magazines, news broadcasts, concerts,

art exhibitions, that gave examples of American freedom. It even supported painters like Jackson

Pollack and the Museum of Modern Art in New York because American expressionism was the

vanguard of artistic freedom and the exact opposite of Soviet socialist realism.

I mean, have you seen Soviet paintings? Look at the hearty ankles on these socialist comrade

peasants. Also because the Soviets were atheists, at

least in theory, Congress in 1954 added the words “under God” to the pledge of allegiance

as a sign of America’s resistance to communism. The Cold War also shaped domestic policy--anti-communist

sentiment, for instance, prevented Truman from extending the social policies of the

New Deal. The program that he dubbed the Fair Deal would

have increased the minimum wage, extended national health insurance and increased public

housing, Social Security and aid to education. But the American Medical Association lobbied

against Truman’s plan for national health insurance by calling it “socialized” medicine,

and Congress was in no mood to pay money for socialized anything.

That problem goes away. But the government did make some domestic

investments as a result of the Cold War--in the name of national security the government

spent money on education, research in science, technology like computers, and transportation

infrastructure. In fact we largely have the Cold War to thank for our marvelous interstate

highway system, although part of the reason Congress approved it was to set up speedy

evacuation routes in the event of nuclear war.

And, speaking of nuclear war, it’s worth noting that a big part of the reason the Soviets

were able to develop nuclear weapons so quickly was thanks to espionage, like for instance

by physicist and spy Klaus Fuchs. I think I’m pronouncing that right.

Fuchs worked on the Manhattan Project and leaked information to the Soviets and then

later helped the Chinese to build their first bomb. Julius Rosenberg also gave atomic secrets

to the Soviets, and was eventually executed--as was his less-clearly-guilty wife, Ethel.

And it’s important to remember all that when thinking about the United States’s

obsessive fear that there were communists in our midst. This began in 1947 with Truman’s

Loyalty Review System, which required government employees to prove their patriotism when accused

of disloyalty. How do you prove your loyalty? Rat out your

co-workers as communists. No seriously though, that program never found any communists.

This all culminated of course with the Red Scare and the rise of Wisconsin senator Joseph

McCarthy, an inveterate liar who became enormously powerful after announcing in February 1950

that he had a list of 205 communists who worked in the state department

In fact, he had no such thing, and McCarthy never identified a single disloyal American,

but the fear of communism continued. In 1951’s Dennis v. United States, the Supreme Court

upheld the notion that being a communist leader itself was a crime.

In this climate of fear, any criticism of the government and its policies or the U.S.

in general was seen as disloyalty. There was only one question--when will I be blown up--and

it encouraged loyalty, because only the government could prevent the spread of communism and

keep us from being blown up. We’ve talked a lot about different ways

that Americans have imagined freedom this year, but this was a new definition of freedom--the

government exists in part to keep us free from massive destruction.

So, the Cold War changed America profoundly: The U.S. has remained a leader on the world

stage and continued to build a large, powerful, and expensive national state. But it also

changed the way we imagine what it means to be free, and what it means to be safe. Thanks

for watching. I’ll see you next week. Crash Course is created by all of these nice

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Thanks to them. If you value Crash Course, please check out our Subbable. There are great

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forget to be awesome...Wait, wait, wait, Stan, is that music copyrighted?

All right! It's not! Woo! That saved us a thousand dollars.