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Learn
About America
at the End of the Twentieth Century
The last quarter of the 20th
century was shaped by three fundamental challenges that arose in the
late 1960s and early 1970s. The first was a crisis of political leadership.
Public cynicism toward politicians intensified, political party discipline
declined, and lobbies and special interest groups grew in power.
The second challenge involved wrenching economic transformations. Economic
growth slowed, productivity flagged, inflation soared, family income stagnated,
and major industries faltered in the face of foreign competition.
The third challenge involved growing uncertainty over America's proper role
in the world. A major challenge facing policymakers was how to preserve the
nation's international prestige and influence in the face of mounting public
opposition to direct overseas interventions.
In the late 1970s, many academic authorities suggested that the United States
was in decline, that such societies as Japan and West Germany were growing faster
and were beginning to dominate cutting-edge industries such as consumer electronics
and luxury automobiles. As the 21st century began, the United
States had reasserted its economic, military, and cultural supremacy.
It was the world’s sole superpower. It dominated not only the Internet and computer
software and hardware, but also film and television production. Still, the United
States was also faced by new threats, especially from terrorist organizations.
Ronald
Reagan, Moscow State University, May 31, 1988
http://www.forerunner.com/forerunner/
X0692_Reagans_Speech_in_Mo.html
To
learn more
Maps:
Contemporary
Europe 2001 (249K)
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/europe/europe_ref01.jpg
Maps:
Images:
To
learn more
Timelines:
Click
here for timeline.
Fact sheets and lesson plans:
Fact sheetmaybe
an s2:
Facts
and Figures for the New Century
http://www.usembassy.de/usa/etexts/his/e_factcentury.htm
Recommended
lesson plan:
Looking
Back to Move Forward
Using Primary Sources to Examine Significant 20th Century Events
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/
20000103monday.html?searchpv=learning_lessons
Fact checks:
Test
Your Knowledge About the America at the End of the Twentieth Century
Recommended readings:
David
Halberstam, War in a Time of Peace: Bush, Clinton, and the
Generals.
One of the country's foremost investigative reporters and
authors examines American foreign policy in the post-Cold War
era.
Joe Klein, The Natural: The Misunderstood Presidency of
Bill Clinton.
A prominent journalist evaluates the strengths and weaknesses
of the Clinton presidency.
 Recommended
film{maybe an s} :
Startup.Com
This documentary film, which charts the rise and fall of an Internet
startup company that raised $60 million before going bankrupt,
captures the exciting of the stock market bubble of the late 1990s.
For comprehensive reviews, see:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Startupcom-10000194/
Learn
more:
learn
more film
 Recommended
Web site:
CNN:
The Cold War
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/
To
learn more
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