- Film:
- Best Years of Our Lives (1946), 170 Minutes
[VHS 1469, DVD 01123, LD 3152]
- Best Years of Our Lives (1946), 170 Minutes
- Roundtable:
We are aware that the link to the roundtable page has not been working for some students. If the link doesn't work for you, CLICK HERE to access the roundtable in PDF form, we'll have the normal link working again as soon as we can.
- Read:
- Please read and view the Digital Roundtable
- Arthur Schlesinger, The Vital Center,
ENDING WORLD WAR II AND MAKING FRIENDS
Cold War not inevitable
but ideological and geopolitial conditions make it likely
reasons for hope
ultimately, military positions at the end of War shape outcome
Munich Metaphor reinforces fears on Western Allies side
March 1946 Churchill Iron Curtain Speech
March 1947 Truman Doctrine
1947 George Kennan doctrine of "Containment"
Choosing Friends and Keeping Them: The Foundations of the Post-WW II Liberal World Order
Rests on collective security, open markets, and shared sense of purpose among democratic nations
importance of choosing allies with compatible liberal/capitalist political economies
Danger of autarky
Friends are fine, but only institutions ensure that friendships endure
Bretton Woods, 1944
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade: GATT
Intl. Bank for Reconstruction and Development: WORLD BANK
Intl. Monetary System
Intl. Monetary Fund: IMF
European Recovery Act: MARSHALL PLAN 1948
North Atlantic Treaty Organization: NATO 1949
United Nations 1945
These are some of the institutions that made America great.
Will weakening them "make America great again?