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Guess Who’s Back? (Back, Back)…Back Again? Shady’s Back…. Mix tapes from 1999-2003 and Chapter 36 Notes. DMX!. That of course would stand for Dirty MarXists ! (What? You actually thought I could make an accurate acronym with an X? DMX didn’t use xylophones…)
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Guess Who’s Back? (Back, Back)…Back Again? Shady’s Back… Mix tapes from 1999-2003 and Chapter 36 Notes
DMX! • That of course would stand for Dirty MarXists! (What? You actually thought I could make an accurate acronym with an X? DMX didn’t use xylophones…) • In the World History classes, I like to explain the Cold War as a constant battle of good vs. evil…and which side is which depends on one’s perspective • However, we live in AMURICA! so we will be focusing on things from the U.S. perspective…and there’s little more AMURICAN! than hating on some Commies…
Earth Angel, Earth Angel…Please Be MIII-INE… • From a faithful time in my college life , comes our faithful, fearless leader • Harry Truman emerges as president after death befalls Theodore Roosevelt in 1945 • Truman makes the decision to drop the Atomic Bomb, shocking the world • More relevant, however, was his reaction to the Soviet Union moving forward • The United States immediately entered into a policy of containment; the goal was to stop the spread of communism across the globe by any means necessary • Containment played into the establishment of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) as a proxy for a Western alliance system against the “evils” of communism
Earth Angel, Earth Angel…Please Be MIII-INE… • Throughout the late ‘40s and early ‘50s Truman would trumpet the U.S. as a willing helper to people needing aid, including the Soviets through the Marshall Plan (April ’48) • However, he initially played hardball with the Soviets, abruptly terminating a vital lend-lease aid to the battered USSR • In 1945, the U.S. turned down Moscow’s $6 billion reconstruction loan • Then in 1946, the U.S. approved a $3.75 billion reconstruction loan for Britain • Later in 1948, the U.S. approved the Marshall Plan—giving aid to any country who wanted it, including the U.S.S.R… • …but how likely was it that the Soviets + allies would accept it after the previous 3 years? It was a classic political move made to make the U.S. look better in the eyes of the world
It’s the End of the World as We Know It… • This song made the CD because 107.9 FM played this song their entire last weekend as a protest to being bought out (it didn’t work) • However, it’s appropriate here because the Cold War truly was the end of the world as the world knew it • Countries were forced to side with either the U.S. or U.S.S.R., even if they weren’t perfectly democratic or communist • Much of the division was seen through the German Occupation Zones: one for each of Britain, France, U.S., and U.S.S.R. and a division of the capital city of Berlin into 4 separate zones as well • The Soviets drew reparations payments from the Germans, while the Allies focused more on rebuilding their zones—feeling the world needed a strong world economy more than a strong punishment
A Semi-Charmed Life • The most well-known Third Eye Blind song accompanies the Soviet Union, because they had what they wanted—leadership in the world…but slowly destroyed themselves trying to hold onto it • The authoritarian communist regime they were professing was not sustainable • Initially, though, they made great strides, getting Eastern European regimes to turn to Communism • It was almost as if the Communist World was one large protectorate to the Russian (and to a lesser extent, Chinese) regimes • Stalin played politics by stating that there would be friendly governments along the Soviet western border, especially in Poland • This allowed the Soviets to protect itself while being the world’s leading communist country • Americans didn’t believe the Soviet “Defensive” message
Yea, I’m Out of Song Titles • The emergence of the U.S. and Russia was because of the destruction of Europe over the previous 3 decades (1914-1945) • The Cold War (a war without violence) overshadowed everything in world politics • The Allies did join together to eliminate any semblance of remaining Nazism from power through occupying Germany and the Nuremberg Trials • At the trials (1945-1946), former Nazi officers were accused of committing crimes against the laws of war and humanity and plotting aggression contrary to solemn treaty pledges • 12 were executed; 7 sentenced to long jail terms; 1 committed suicide