AP US project.docx - New Paltz Middle School



Table of ContentsOverviewThirty terms from the decade“Fortunate Son” by Creedence ClearwaterAnalysis of “Fortunate Son” “I Have a Dream”“I Have a Dream” analysisEconomic Opportunity Act of 1964Analysis of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964JFK’s address at Rice University Analysis of JFK’s Address at Rice University Cuban Missile Crisis SpeechCuban Missile Crisis Speech analysisThe Other America by Michael Harrington Analysis of the The Other AmericaCivil Rights Civil rights analysisExcerpt from: Radio and Television Report to the American People on the State of the National Economy. August 13, 1962AnalysisFarewell Address (Military-Industrial Complex Speech) - Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961 AnalysisMultiple choice quizOverview:The election of 1960 was between the catholic and innovative Kennedy and the experienced Vice President Richard Nixon. The debate was the first of its kind, it was televised and this gave the young Kennedy an advantage. Kennedy appeared tanned and rested while Nixon looked sick and tired. Kennedy himself admitted, “It was the TV more than anything else that turned the tide.” Kennedy won the election by a slim margin, and became the first Catholic president ever. JFK’s “New Frontier” was innovative and he challenged Americans to “Ask not what your country can do for you-ask what you can do for your country.” Kennedy wanted to help the economy grow and expand the welfare state. Kennedy was successful in securing funding for the exploration of space. NASA was created in order to compete with the Soviets and be part of the Space Race. The USSR had taken the lead by launching Sputnik and the first manned flights, Kennedy proposed that the United States commit itself to landing a man on the moon. The Bay of Pigs fiasco occurred on April 17, 1961 under Kennedy and it was when the US attempted to overthrow Castro’s radical and increasingly communist rule. After the fiasco, photographs revealed that the USSR had placed missiles in Cuba. The US wanted to remove these missiles and imposed a naval “quarantine” of Cuba to prevent Soviet ships from bringing additional missiles. During Kennedy’s presidency the civil rights movement had begun to escalate. After the James Meredith incident, Kennedy sent federal troops to guarantee James Meredith’s right to attend the university. JFK was assassinated on November 22, 1963, by Lee Harvey Oswald. His vice president Lyndon Baines Johnson took over the presidency and bills to reduce taxes and ensure civil rights became his priorities. His goal was to have a “Great Society”, he wanted to ensure that everyone shared the promise of the American life. His Great Society included the war on poverty, aid to elementary schools, and Medicare and Medicaid. the great society flourished at first due to healthy economic growth. unfortunately the Great Society had many critics and received opposition, one of the biggest problem of the great society was the Vietnam war. the economy was not able to handle the war and the Great Society programs and led to inflation getting out of hand. Two very important acts that pushed the civil rights movement forward were the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. through the demonstrations of thousands of African Americans and the Black activists, such as Martin Luther King Jr., the NAACP the civil rights of every american were secured. Martin Luther King Jr. became the spokesperson for the civil rights movement, and he gave his famous speech “I Have a Dream” in 1963 which spread his philosophy of nonviolence and raised awareness for the civil rights movement. The US’s containment policy led them to become involved in the conflict in Vietnam. The USSR supported the North and Ho Chi Minh while the US supported the south. The US slowly involved itself more and more until the point that Johnson was afraid to bring the troops back home because he did not want to lose American prestige and power. Many people saw the war as unwinnable and students became central to the anti war protest. Activists campaigned against the draft, attacked ROTC units on campus, and sought to discredit firms that produced the tools of war. Americans saw the horrors of war, they saw images of burning huts and wounded soldiers. the counter culture came with all of this social and political upheaval. Hallucinogenic drugs became popular, two of the most famous drugs were LSD and marijuana. The “pill” allowed for more sexual freedom and changed sexual norms. Music also underwent changes along with the new culture. Rock festivals became popular throughout the decade, one of the most popular one being the Woodstock Festival.Theses:The 1960s was a decade of social upheaval because many social norms were challengedAlthough not economically driven, the Cold War, Johnson’s, and Kennedy’s ambitious programs left lasting impacts.Foreign and Domestic Policy were based on the tensions created by the Cold War30 Term List:JFK- youngest man ever elected and he became a symbol of the early 1960’s. He came from an Irish catholic family. He viewed himself as “tough minded” and “hard nosed” challenged the american people.Vietnam war- was a cold war conflict. The US supported the south while the soviet union supported the north (Viet Cong)LBJ- His goal was the “Great Society.” Civil rights were his first priority, tried to continue the expansion of the welfare state and declared a war on povertyMartin Luther King Jr- civil rights leader. Believed in nonviolence and gave the famous “I Have a Dream Speech.” Was assassinated in 1968 Sit ins- became a way of protest during the civil rights movement. The most notable one was in Greensboro north CarolinaCivil rights act of 1964- outlawed racial discrimination in public accommodationsMalcolm X- went against MLK’s philosophy of nonviolence- believed blacks had to help themselvesCuban missile crisis- USSR placed missiles in cuba. US wanted to remove these missiles , imposed a “quarantine” of cubaGreat society- LBJ’s goal. Wanted everyone to share the promise of American life. His goal was a little too optimistic and failed.New Frontier- Under kennedy’s presidency. Wanted to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade. He continued to pass legislature that expanded the welfare state.Anti war movement- was mostly led by the youth, specifically the college students, they were against the draft and the vietnam warBay of pigs invasion- wanted to invade cuba with trained operatives to lead an uprising against castro who was radical and leaning towards communism.Gay rights movement- In 1962, a gay rights march was held in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, which is recognized as the beginning of the gay rights movement. The group was really after political influence and social acceptance.Student activism- between January 1 and june 15 1968 hundreds of thousands of students staged 221 major demonstrations. Space race- became a race between the US and the USSR to put a man on the moon and explore spaceFord Mustang- Introduced April 17, 1964, it was responsible for creating the “pony car” class of automobiles where cars have short rear decks and long hoods.Woodstock festival- was a 3 day concert in 1969 . Became an icon of the 1960’s hippie countercultureSummer of love- social phenomenon that occurred in the summer of 1967 when about 100,000 people came together on the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, initiating a major cultural and political shift.“I have a dream” speech- a speech delivered by Martin Luther king jr., it became one of the most famous civil rights speech in history. Elvis Presley- Recognized as the father of Rock n’ Roll. Extremely popular even in modern times. Although much of his music was recorded in the 1950’s, the acting career of Elvis Presley took off in the 1960’sThe Beatles- British band that were extremely influential in their time and continue in popularity even today. They embodied the ideals shared by the era's cultural revolutions.Rolling Stones- An English rock band formed in 1962 including 4 members. They were part of the “british invasion” of bands between 1964-1965 and were part of the rebellious counterculture present throughout the 1960’s.Richard Nixon- ran for election in 1960 against JFK and lost, was elected in 1968Walt Disney- A very influential icon in the scope of entertainment. In the 1960’s, Disney empire was huge and they produced several hit movies in the early 60’s. Pus, plans for the new, innovative theme park to be called Disney World were developed in the 1960’s.Chief Justice Earl Warren- led the sympathetic supreme court to set precedents that favored civil rights.Birth control- allowed for more sexual freedom and changed sexual norms.James Meredith- was denied acceptance into an university on the basis of race. Kennedy had to send federal troops to protect his right to attend the university.Muhammed Ali- famous boxer, he resisted the draftGovernor Ross Barnett- did not allow James Meredith to attend Jackson state university. Sparked a riot where tear gas was used and hundreds were hurt and two men were killed.George C. Wallace- opposed integration. Became famous for declaring “Segregation now! Segregation tomorrow! Segregation forever!”Fortunate Son - Creedence Clearwater RevivalSome folks are born made to wave the flag,Ooh, they're red, white and blue.And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord,It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son.It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no,Yeah!Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,Lord, don't they help themselves, oh.But when the taxman comes to the door,Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes,It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no.It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no.Some folks inherit star spangled eyes,Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord,And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh,It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son.It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one.It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no,It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no,“Fortunate Son” AnalysisThis song was written by Creedence Clearwater Revival and was released on their album Willy and the Poor Boys in 1969. It was also released as a single along with “Down on the Corner.” The two songs together reached number 3 on the United States charts in December of 1969, proving its immense popularity.The song is really a protest of the United States’ involvement in Vietnam. The first verse describes the achieved status of some kind of politician, possibly even the presidency because “Hail to the Chief” is typically associated with the president. These people are “born to wave the flag” and show their support for the American war effort, but will easily avoid the draft because of their political status. They will “point the cannon at you” meaning these are people who involve the country in war, but will make the average people fight it. Rich man’s war, poor man’s fight.The second verse describes people who are fortunate enough to be born into wealth with a “silver spoon in hand.” And they “help themselves” probably by exploiting the lower class workers. But when the “taxman” comes to the door, probably drafting people, these higher class people will donate to charity and make themselves look really good, and probably also not be drafted as they are doing such beneficial things for society.The third, and final verse of “Fortunate Son” is about a military soldier who got drafted and was sent “down to war.” There was nothing he could do to get out the draft as he was not as fortunate. And when the people ask their government how much they have to give, the officials only response is more. The people are already being drafted and forced to die for their country, but the government still wants more. This statement reveals the true greed within the government and how they place themselves so highly above the average citizen. There is definitely significance to this song. This was really the first time Americans in general openly protested the involvement in war. Previously people were mostly pro-war, but the main reason the United States entered Vietnam was to try and stop communism from spreading and they were losing. People were drafted, sent to Vietnam against their will, and most likely died fighting for a cause they didn’t really care for. At this point it was unheard of for the people to demonstrate against war, and even more uncommon for a song to protest war. Creedence Clearwater Revival does an excellent job of encapsulating the feelings of the American working class. Not only is the song anti-war, but it’s also about class struggle. The popularity of the song alone proves this point. It was number three on the American charts so it was definitely a general consensus that war was wrong.Creedence certainly was not the only band to protest war, but they give a very good example of how the public felt and their issues with Vietnam. “I Have a Dream”I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.As we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied, as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating "For Whites Only". We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.I have a dream today.I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.I have a dream today.I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"“I Have a Dream” analysis:The speech was delivered on August 28, 1963 and it was the culmination of a march in Washington D.C. Martin Luther king had become the spokesperson of the civil rights movement. He led demonstrations in Birmingham Alabama. These demonstrations were non-violent because of Martin Luther King Jr.’s belief in nonviolence, but the response from the city officials were not. 2,200 blacks were arrested and Police Commissioner Eugene Bull used high pressure fire hoses, electric cattle prods and trained police dogs to force the demonstrations to come to an end. Kennedy was sickened by the images that came from birmingham and he began to act more boldly. he began to send congress stronger civil rights bills and he sent federal troops to defend James Meredith’s right to attend a university. Polls showed that 63 percent of the nation supported his stand on the civil rights issue. This led to the massive march in Washington D.C. that was arranged by several black activists, more than 200,000 people showed up. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his speech in front to the Lincoln Memorial, the president who issued the Emancipation proclamation and set the slave free in the South. As he referenced this in his opening paragraph, he proclaimed “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free” this statement was emphasized by the fact that he stood in front of the memorial of the man who supposedly set them free. This was the reason he decided to give his speech there, he wanted to show how badly things were before the civil war and that not much had changed since then. He says that they have come to cash in a check but “ America has given the Negro people a bad check” because they have not kept the promises they made in the constitution about the freedom and equality of every man. While Martin Luther King was speaking, a gospel singer, Mahalla Jackson told him to tell everyone about his dream. The line “I have a dream” went down in history as one of the most famous lines and speeches after this. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream was that “one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.” Every time he said “I have a dream” thousands of blacks and whites roared together.His dream of equality was not just for blacks and whites, but also for “Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics” basically everyone. I have a dream was only one of his refrains that he used. He also used “let freedom ring” and at the end of his speech he alluded to an old gospel and said “Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.” The speech brought a lot of attention to the civil rights movement and went down in history. his speech was reprinted and people listened to it on the radio and saw it on television. This allowed for his message of nonviolence and equality to be spread across the nation. The quick passage of the civil rights act of 1964, can be attributed to this speech and the march, among other factors. This document represents the social upheaval due to the civil rights movement.Economic Opportunity Act: Economic opportunity Act of 1964 analysis:The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 was part of Lyndon Baines Johnson’s “war on poverty” which was a goal of his Great Society. The goal of this act was to help the poor by helping get out of their condition. another goal of the act was to improve education with the help of the federal government.This plan was intended to prepare more citizens for successfully competing in an expanding economy. President Johnson believed in an opportunity based approach to the poverty problem in America. Poverty victims should have a chance for a better future through improved skills, better training, and hard work. This law focused on the more traditional idea of equipping people for the task and helping them to overcome conditions of poverty through their own hard work. The law combined some new programs with existing programs of service by professionals, like VISTA, Job Corps, and Head Start, with a different approach called community action programs. the government created a state/federal partnership with concentration on the most fundamental of educational skills for adults who had not completed the secondary education. A part of this legislation was called adult basic education, and was aimed at increasing adult literacy. Most of the programs were conducted by the states with funding by grants from the Office of Economic Opportunity. Grant amounts were based upon the number of people who were eighteen and above that did not finish more than five grades of school. There were no federal funds for teacher training in connection with these programs.Special features of the program tried to increase employability of young men and women in the 16-21 age group. The goal was to help every person function at the highest level of their ability. Basic education, vocational training, and work study programs were major parts to help reach these goals. Community Action Agencies (CAA) followed a format that included community evaluations of needs and strengths, detailed plans and strategies to reduce poverty, involvement on behalf of low-income people, and formation of partnerships with other organizations in the community. Specific areas that were targeted were job training, health care, housing, or economic development.The Economic Opportunity Act had good intentions. Sargent Shriver was a good choice to head up the Office of Economic Opportunity, and he was diligent in pursuit of the goals of the program. Despite some success for some programs, there was never enough funding for them.. The escalation of the war in Vietnam further reduced funds that might have been available. Early in the presidency of Richard Nixon, funding was stopped for the community control movement. Frustration soon replaced early optimism and this movement never regained the support that it had in the beginning. This document was chosen because it shows how Johnson tried to expand the welfare state and kind of shows the economic effect that the Vietnam war had on his goal.John F. KennedyAddress at Rice University in the Space EffortSeptember 12, 1962:President Pitzer, Mr. Vice President, Governor, Congressman Thomas, Senator Wiley, and Congressman Miller, Mr. Webb. Mr. Bell, scientists, distinguished guests, and ladies and gentlemen:I appreciate your president having made me an honorary visiting professor, and I will assure you that my first lecture will be very brief. I am delighted to be here and I'm particularly delighted to be here on this occasion.We meet at a college noted for knowledge, in a city noted for progress, in a State noted for strength, and we stand in need of all three, for we meet in an hour of change and challenge, in a decade of hope and fear, in an age of both knowledge and ignorance. The greater our knowledge increases, the greater our ignorance unfolds.Despite the striking fact that most of the scientists that the world has ever known are alive and working today, despite the fact that this Nation's own scientific manpower is doubling every 12 years in a rate of growth more than three times that of our population as a whole, despite that, the vast stretches of the unknown and the unanswered and the unfinished still far out-strip our collective comprehension.No man can fully grasp how far and how fast we have come, but condense, if you will, the 50,000 years of man's recorded history in a time span of but a half century. Stated in these terms, we know very little about the first 40 years, except at the end of them advanced man had learned to use the skins of animals to cover them. Then about to years ago, under this standard, man emerged from his caves to construct other kinds of shelter. Only 5 years ago man learned to write and use a cart with wheels. Christianity began less than 2 years ago. The printing press came this year, and then less than 2 months ago, during this whole 50-year span of human history, the steam engine provided a new source of power.Newton explored the meaning of gravity. Last month electric lights and telephones and automobiles and airplanes became available. Only last week did we develop penicillin and television and nuclear power, and now if America's new spacecraft succeeds in reaching Venus, we will have literally reached the stars before midnight tonight.This is a breathtaking pace, and such a pace cannot help but create new ills as it dispels old, new ignorance, new problems, new dangers. Surely the opening vistas of space promise high costs and hardships, as well as high reward.So it is not surprising that some would have us stay where we are a little longer to rest, to wait. But this city of Houston, this State of Texas, this country of the United States was not built by those who waited and rested and wished to look behind them. This country was conquered by those who moved forward-and so will space.William Bradford, speaking in 1630 of the founding of the Plymouth Bay Colony, said that all great and honorable actions are accompanied with great difficulties, and both must be enterprised and overcome with answerable courage.If this capsule history of our progress teaches us anything, it is that man, in his quest for knowledge and progress, is determined and cannot be deterred. The exploration of space will go ahead, whether we join in it or not, and it is one of the great adventures of all time, and no nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space.Those who came before us made certain that this country rode the first waves of the industrial revolutions, the first waves of modern invention, and the first wave of nuclear power, and this generation does not intend to founder in the backwash of the coming age of space. We mean to be a part of it-we mean to lead it. For the eyes of the world now look into space, to the moon and to the planets beyond, and we have vowed that we shall not see it governed by a hostile flag of conquest, but by a banner of freedom and peace. We have vowed that we shall not see space filled with weapons of mass destruction, but with instruments of knowledge and understanding.Yet the vows of this Nation can only be fulfilled if we in this Nation are first, and, therefore, we intend to be first. In short, our leadership in science and in industry, our hopes for peace and security, our obligations to ourselves as well as others, all require us to make this effort, to solve these mysteries, to solve them for the good of all men, and to become the world's leading space-faring nation.We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to he won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people. For space science, like nuclear science and all technology, has no conscience of its own. Whether it will become a force for good or ill depends on man, and only if the United States occupies a position of pre-eminence can we help decide whether this new ocean will be a sea of peace or a new terrifying theater of war. I do not say that we should or will go unprotected against the hostile misuse of space any more than we go unprotected against the hostile use of land or sea, but I do say that space can he explored and mastered without feeding the fires of war, without repeating the mistakes that man has made in extending his writ around this globe of ours.There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet. Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation may never come again. But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain. Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.It is for these reasons that I regard the decision last year to shift our efforts in space from low to high gear as among the most important decisions that will be made during my incumbency in the Office of the Presidency.In the last 24 hours we have seen facilities now being created for the greatest and most complex exploration in man's history. We have felt the ground shake and the air shattered by the testing of a Saturn C-1 booster rocket, many times as powerful as the Atlas which launched John Glenn, generating power equivalent to 10,000 automobiles with their accelerators on the floor. We have seen the site where five F-1 rocket engines, each one as powerful as all eight engines of the Saturn combined, will be clustered together to make the advanced Saturn missile, assembled in a new building to be built at Cape Canaveral as tall as a 48-story structure, as wide as a city block, and as long as two lengths of this field.Within these last 19 months at least 45 satellites have circled the earth. Some 40 of them were "made in the United States of America" and they were far more sophisticated and supplied far more knowledge to the people of the world than those of the Soviet Union.The Mariner spacecraft now on its way to Venus is the most intricate instrument in the history of space science. The accuracy of that shot is comparable to firing a missile from Cape Canaveral and dropping it in this stadium between the 40-yard lines.Transit satellites are helping our ships at sea to steer a safer course. Tiros satellites have given us unprecedented warnings of hurricanes and storms, and will do the same for forest fires and icebergs.We have had our failures, but so have others, even if they do not admit them. And they may be less public.To be sure, we are behind, and will be behind for some time in manned flight. But we do not intend to stay behind, and in this decade we shall make up and move ahead.The growth of our science and education will be enriched by new knowledge of our universe and environment, by new techniques of learning and mapping and observation, by new tools and computers for industry, medicine, the home as well as the school. Technical institutions, such as Rice, will reap the harvest of these gains.And finally, the space effort itself, while still in its infancy, has already created a great number of new companies, and tens of thousands of new jobs. Space and related industries arc generating new demands in investment and skilled personnel, and this city and this State, and this region, will share greatly in this growth. What was once the furthest outpost on the old frontier of the West will be the furthest outpost on the new frontier of science and space. Houston, your City of Houston, with its Manned Spacecraft Center, will become the heart of a large scientific and engineering community. During the next 5 years the National Aeronautics and Space Administration expects to double the number of scientists and engineers in this area, to increase its outlays for salaries and expenses to $60 million a year; to invest some $200 million in plant and laboratory facilities; and to direct or contract for new space efforts over $1 billion from this Center in this City.To be sure, all this costs us all a good deal of money. This year's space budget is three times what it was in January 1961, and it is greater than the space budget of the previous 8 years combined. That budget now stands at $5,400 million a year-a staggering sum, though somewhat less than we pay for cigarettes and cigars every year. Space expenditures will soon rise some more from 40 cents per person per week to more than 50 cents a week for every man, woman, and child in the United States, for we have given this program a high national priority even though I realize that this is in some measure an act of faith and vision, for we do not now know what benefits await us. But if I were to say, my fellow citizens, that we shall send to the moon, 240,000 miles away from the control station in Houston, a giant rocket more than 300 feet tall, the length of this football field, made of new metal alloys, some of which have not yet been invented, capable of standing heat and stresses several times more than have ever been experienced, fitted together with a precision better than the finest watch, carrying all the equipment needed for propulsion, guidance, control, communications, food and survival, on an untried mission, to an unknown celestial body, and then return it safely to earth, reentering the atmosphere at speeds of over 25,000 miles per hour, causing heat about half that of the temperature of the sun almost as hot as it is here today-and do all this, and do it right, and do it first before this decade is out, then we must be bold.I'm the one who is doing all the work, so we just want you to stay cool for a minute. [Laughter]However, I think we're going to do it, and I think that we must pay what needs to be paid. I don't think we ought to waste any money, but I think we ought to do the job. And this will be done in the decade of the sixties. It may be done while some of you are still here at school at this college and university. It will be done during the terms of office of some of the people who sit here on this platform. But it will be done. And it will be done before the end of this decade.I am delighted that this university is playing a part in putting a man on the moon as part of a great national effort of the United States of America.Many years ago the great British explorer George Mallory, who was to die on Mount Everest, was asked why did he want to climb it. He said, "Because it is there."Well, space is there, and we're going to climb it, and the moon and the planets are there, and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And, therefore, as we set sail we ask God's blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked.Thank youKennedy Address analysis:The space race was a competition between Soviet Union and the United States of America to explore the last frontier. It was a political and scientific battle between these two superpowers and the Soviets had taken the lead by launching the first satellite Sputnik into space. This speech began America’s drive to win the race. JFK starts out by condensing the last 50,000 years of human into fifty years. He then goes on to say man is determined and that the exploration of space will go on even if the US does not join, “ and no nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space.” In this statement JFK assured the American people that they are a leader amongst other nations and connects to the ever present concept that America in a “city upon a hill” for others to look up to. He convinces the American population to join the space race by telling them that it is their duty to join in order to maintain their superiority. “Within these last 19 months at least 45 satellites have circled the earth. Some 40 of them were "made in the United States of America" and they were far more sophisticated and supplied far more knowledge to the people of the world than those of the Soviet Union.The Mariner spacecraft now on its way to Venus is the most intricate instrument in the history of space science. The accuracy of that shot is comparable to firing a missile from Cape Canaveral and dropping it in this stadium between the 40-yard lines.” Throughout the entire speech Kennedy compares the soviet union to the US and says to the American people how much better their technology is than the Soviet Union’s technology. Kennedy was an innovative president that had challenged the American people before by telling them to ask themselves what they could do for their country. He continues this and says “We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.” With this statement he gave he challenged Americans once again because he challenges them to put a man in the moon by the end of the decade.This document has a political and social impact in history. The political aspect was that it challenged the people of the US to beat the Soviet Union and be a leader of other nations. The Space race became another aspect of the cold war and way for americans to try and beat the USSR. The social aspect was that it united the people against a common enemy in a way that was nonviolent and helped space exploration and science move forward. This speech is a highlight of the decade because it brought about new technology and scientific discoveries that helped further technological advancements of the future. It also shows how committed JFK was to “winning” the cold war. He used the space race to show the American people how they could be superior and be the leading power of the world.Cuban Missile Crisis Speech: Good evening, my fellow citizens:This Government, as promised, has maintained the closest surveillance of the Soviet military buildup on the island of Cuba. Within the past week, unmistakable evidence has established the fact that a series of offensive missile sites is now in preparation on that imprisoned island. The purpose of these bases can be none other than to provide a nuclear strike capability against the Western Hemisphere.Upon receiving the first preliminary hard information of this nature last Tuesday morning at 9 A.M., I directed that our surveillance be stepped up. And having now confirmed and completed our evaluation of the evidence and our decision on a course of action, this Government feels obliged to report this new crisis to you in fullest detail.The characteristics of these new missile sites indicate two distinct types of installations. Several of them include medium range ballistic missiles, capable of carrying a nuclear warhead for a distance of more than 1,000nautical miles. Each of these missiles, in short, is capable of striking Washington, D. C., the Panama Canal, Cape Canaveral, Mexico City, or any other city in the southeastern part of the United States, in Central America, or in the Caribbean area.Additional sites not yet completed appear to be designed for intermediate range ballistic missiles -- capable of traveling more than twice as far -- and thus capable of striking most of the major cities in the Western Hemisphere, ranging as far north as Hudson Bay, Canada, and as far south as Lima, Peru. In addition, jet bombers, capable of carrying nuclear weapons, are now being uncrated and assembled in Cuba, while the necessary air bases are being prepared.This urgent transformation of Cuba into an important strategic base -- by the presence of these large, long-range, and clearly offensive weapons of sudden mass destruction -- constitutes an explicit threat to the peace and security of all the Americas, in flagrant and deliberate defiance of the Rio Pact of 1947, the traditions of this nation and hemisphere, the joint resolution of the 87th Congress, the Charter of the United Nations, and my own public warnings to the Soviets on September 4 and 13. This action also contradicts the repeated assurances of Soviet spokesmen, both publicly and privately delivered, that the arms buildup in Cuba would retain its original defensive character, and that the Soviet Union had no need or desire to station strategic missiles. on the territory of any other nation.The size of this undertaking makes clear that it has been planned for some months. Yet, only last month, after I had made clear the distinction between any introduction of ground-to-ground missiles and the existence of defensive anti-aircraft missiles, the Soviet Government publicly stated on September 11 that, and I quote, "the armaments and military equipment sent to Cuba are designed exclusively for defensive purposes," that there is, and I quote the Soviet Government, "there is no need for the Soviet Government to shift its weapons for a retaliatory blow to any other country, for instance Cuba," and that, and I quote their government, "the Soviet Union has so powerful rockets to carry these nuclear warheads that there is no need to search for sites for them beyond the boundaries of the Soviet Union."That statement was false.Only last Thursday, as evidence of this rapid offensive buildup was already in my hand, Soviet Foreign Minister Gromyko told me in my office that he was instructed to make it clear once again, as he said his government had already done, that Soviet assistance to Cuba, and I quote, "pursued solely the purpose of contributing to the defense capabilities of Cuba," that, and I quote him, "training by Soviet specialists of Cuban nationals in handling defensive armaments was by no means offensive, and if it were otherwise," Mr. Gromyko went on, "the Soviet Government would never become involved in rendering such assistance."That statement also was false.Neither the United States of America nor the world community of nations can tolerate deliberate deception and offensive threats on the part of any nation, large or small. We no longer live in a world where only the actual firing of weapons represents a sufficient challenge to a nation's security to constitute maximum peril. Nuclear weapons are so destructive and ballistic missiles are so swift, that any substantially increased possibility of their use or any sudden change in their deployment may well be regarded as a definite threat to peace.For many years, both the Soviet Union and the United States, recognizing this fact, have deployed strategic nuclear weapons with great care, never upsetting the precarious status quo which insured that these weapons would not be used in the absence of some vital challenge. Our own strategic missiles have never been transferred to the territory of any other nation under a cloak of secrecy and deception; and our history -- unlike that of the Soviets since the end of World War II -- demonstrates that we have no desire to dominate or conquer any other nation or impose our system upon its people. Nevertheless, American citizens have become adjusted to living daily on the bull's-eye of Soviet missiles located inside the U.S.S.R. or in submarines.In that sense, missiles in Cuba add to an already clear and present danger -- although it should be noted the nations of Latin America have never previously been subjected to a potential nuclear threat. But this secret, swift, extraordinary buildup of Communist missiles -- in an area well known to have a special and historical relationship to the United States and the nations of the Western Hemisphere, in violation of Soviet assurances, and in defiance of American and hemispheric policy -- this sudden, clandestine decision to station strategic weapons for the first time outside of Soviet soil -- is a deliberately provocative and unjustified change in the status quo which cannot be accepted by this country, if our courage and our commitments are ever to be trusted again by either friend or foe.The 1930's taught us a clear lesson: aggressive conduct, if allowed to go unchecked and unchallenged, ultimately leads to war. This nation is opposed to war. We are also true to our word. Our unswerving objective, therefore, must be to prevent the use of these missiles against this or any other country, and to secure their withdrawal or elimination from the Western Hemisphere.Our policy has been one of patience and restraint, as befits a peaceful and powerful nation which leads a worldwide alliance. We have been determined not to be diverted from our central concerns by mere irritants and fanatics. But now further action is required, and it is under way; and these actions may only be the beginning. We will not prematurely or unnecessarily risk the costs of worldwide nuclear war in which even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth; but neither will we shrink from that risk at any time it must be faced.Acting, therefore, in the defense of our own security and of the entire Western Hemisphere, and under the authority entrusted to me by the Constitution as endorsed by the Resolution of the Congress, I have directed that the following initial steps be taken immediately:First: To halt this offensive build-up a strict quarantine on all offensive military equipment under shipment to Cuba is being initiated. All ships of any kind bound for Cuba from whatever nation or port will, if found to contain cargoes of offensive weapons, be turned back. This quarantine will be extended, if needed, to other types of cargo and carriers. We are not at this time, however, denying the necessities of life as the Soviets attempted to do in their Berlin blockade of 1948.Second: I have directed the continued and increased close surveillance of Cuba and its military buildup. The foreign ministers of the OAS [Organization of American States], in their communiqué' of October 6, rejected secrecy on such matters in this hemisphere. Should these offensive military preparations continue, thus increasing the threat to the hemisphere, further action will be justified. I have directed the Armed Forces to prepare for any eventualities; and I trust that in the interest of both the Cuban people and the Soviet technicians at the sites, the hazards to all concerned of continuing this threat will be recognized.Third: It shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union.Fourth: As a necessary military precaution, I have reinforced our base at Guantanamo, evacuated today the dependents of our personnel there, and ordered additional military units to be on a standby alert basis.Fifth: We are calling tonight for an immediate meeting of the Organ[ization] of Consultation under the Organization of American States, to consider this threat to hemispheric security and to invoke articles 6 and 8 of the Rio Treaty in support of all necessary action. The United Nations Charter allows for regional security arrangements, and the nations of this hemisphere decided long ago against the military presence of outside powers. Our other allies around the world have also been alerted.Sixth: Under the Charter of the United Nations, we are asking tonight that an emergency meeting of the Security Council be convoked without delay to take action against this latest Soviet threat to world peace. Our resolution will call for the prompt dismantling and withdrawal of all offensive weapons in Cuba, under the supervision of U.N. observers, before the quarantine can be lifted.Seventh and finally: I call upon Chairman Khrushchev to halt and eliminate this clandestine, reckless, and provocative threat to world peace and to stable relations between our two nations. I call upon him further to abandon this course of world domination, and to join in an historic effort to end the perilous arms race and to transform the history of man. He has an opportunity now to move the world back from the abyss of destruction by returning to his government's own words that it had no need to station missiles outside its own territory, and withdrawing these weapons from Cuba by refraining from any action which will widen or deepen the present crisis, and then by participating in a search for peaceful and permanent solutions.This nation is prepared to present its case against the Soviet threat to peace, and our own proposals for a peaceful world, at any time and in any forum -- in the OAS, in the United Nations, or in any other meeting that could be useful -- without limiting our freedom of action. We have in the past made strenuous efforts to limit the spread of nuclear weapons. We have proposed the elimination of all arms and military bases in a fair and effective disarmament treaty. We are prepared to discuss new proposals for the removal of tensions on both sides, including the possibilities of a genuinely independent Cuba, free to determine its own destiny. We have no wish to war with the Soviet Union -- for we are a peaceful people who desire to live in peace with all other peoples.But it is difficult to settle or even discuss these problems in an atmosphere of intimidation. That is why this latest Soviet threat -- or any other threat which is made either independently or in response to our actions this week-- must and will be met with determination. Any hostile move anywhere in the world against the safety and freedom of peoples to whom we are committed, including in particular the brave people of West Berlin, will be met by whatever action is needed.Finally, I want to say a few words to the captive people of Cuba, to whom this speech is being directly carried by special radio facilities. I speak to you as a friend, as one who knows of your deep attachment to your fatherland, as one who shares your aspirations for liberty and justice for all. And I have watched and the American people have watched with deep sorrow how your nationalist revolution was betrayed -- and how your fatherland fell under foreign domination. Now your leaders are no longer Cuban leaders inspired by Cuban ideals. They are puppets and agents of an international conspiracy which has turned Cuba against your friends and neighbors in the Americas, and turned it into the first Latin American country to become a target for nuclear war -- the first Latin American country to have these weapons on its soil.These new weapons are not in your interest. They contribute nothing to your peace and well-being. They can only undermine it. But this country has no wish to cause you to suffer or to impose any system upon you. We know that your lives and land are being used as pawns by those who deny your freedom. Many times in the past, the Cuban people have risen to throw out tyrants who destroyed their liberty. And I have no doubt that most Cubans today look forward to the time when they will be truly free -- free from foreign domination, free to choose their own leaders, free to select their own system, free to own their own land, free to speak and write and worship without fear or degradation. And then shall Cuba be welcomed back to the society of free nations and to the associations of this hemisphere.My fellow citizens, let no one doubt that this is a difficult and dangerous effort on which we have set out. No one can foresee precisely what course it will take or what costs or casualties will be incurred. Many months of sacrifice and self-discipline lie ahead -- months in which both our patience and our will will be tested, months in which many threats and denunciations will keep us aware of our dangers. But the greatest danger of all would be to do nothing.The path we have chosen for the present is full of hazards, as all paths are; but it is the one most consistent with our character and courage as a nation and our commitments around the world. The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender or submission.Our goal is not the victory of might, but the vindication of right; not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere, and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved.Thank you and good night.Kennedy Cuban Missile Crisis Speech Analysis:At noon White House Press Secretary Pierre Salinger requested airtime for the President to address the nation, revealing for the first time the crisis. Due to this, President Kennedy formally established the Executive Committee with National Security Action Memorandum to combat the crisis. One hour later, the President addressed the full Cabinet – this was the first time some of the cabinet members learned of the crisis, revealing the At 5:00 p.m., he met for an hour and a half with seventeen congressional leaders from both parties and both houses. This meeting was led by President Kennedy and Secretary Rusk and quickly became contentious as many congressional leaders called for a stronger response, voiced an opposition to the blockade, and demanded fuller involvement. The information operation to present the United States’ case to itself and the world had begun. In rapid succession, the President briefed the leadership of the country while his Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, and the United States Information Agency all proclaimed the clear case: the Soviet Union supplied offensive nuclear weapons to Cuba, the United States viewed that as a threat, the weapons must go, and the United States was acting to effect that course of events.That afternoon, the President briefed the leadership of the country of his choice to implement a blockade of Cuba in order to encourage the Soviets to remove their missiles from bases installed in Cuba. Four hours later, at 7:00 p.m. President Kennedy addressed the nation. One hour before, Ambassador Kohler delivered his message to Chairman Khrushchev announcing the blockade and informing the Chairman of the impending speech. The U.S. had effectively communicated its actions to the world in one afternoon. Given the technology of the time, this was an unprecedented move and showed clear control over a critical instrument of international power: information. There was an applicable maxim at work: the story that gets out first is the one that is best believed. Kennedy’s speech outlined the recent false statements regarding the deployment of offensive weapons to Cuba, proposed that in the nuclear age threats and deception represent “maximum peril,” and stated that the American response to this threat is one of restraint but one representing only one of the options available to the President. Further, President Kennedy outlined seven steps: Impose a quarantine on all offensive military equipment, continue and increase surveillance of Cuba, regard any nuclear launch from Cuba as an attack by the Soviet Union, reinforce the base at Guantanamo, call for a meeting of the OAS, call for a meeting of the UNSC, and call upon Khrushchev to withdraw weapons from Cuba.In the Soviet Union Chairman Khrushchev received word that the President was going to address the American public. This, along with the earlier intelligence report of military forces building in the southeastern United States, served as his most clear sign that a serious crisis could be building. The Other America analysisIn 1962, Michael Harrington published The Other America, a shocking expose of poverty and greed throughout the United States. It was a haunting tour of deprivation in an affluent society. The slim, 186-page volume became a best-seller and became required reading for social scientists, elected officials, college students, members of study groups sponsored by churches and synagogues, reporters and intellectuals, the new wave of community organizers and the student activists who traveled to the South to join the civil rights crusade. Thoroughly researched, the book chronicled the plight of “the unskilled workers, the migrant farm workers, the aged, the minorities, and all of the others who live in the economic underworld of American life.” It was the first of its kind, a straight connection to the poverty in America. It revealed problems in the country that many people didn’t care to think about. The book had an immediate impact to most Americans. More than 70,000 people bought the first edition, including President John F. Kennedy. Described as shocking but necessary reading, the book drew a curious and telling response. After all, poverty was hardly new. Many of the people and regions so powerfully described by Harrington were not recently impoverished. For the tenant farmers of the rural South, the isolated occupants of Appalachia, and struggling immigrants of northeastern ghettoes, poverty was not a new condition. Harrington wrote that the poor were invisible to most Americans because they lived in rural isolation or in urban slums. Once they become aware of the situation, Americans should be ashamed to live in a rich society with so many poor people. What was new was the degree of affluence that surrounded these pockets of poverty; what was new was the extent and type of material comfort enjoyed by most Americans. Real, desperate poverty, set against this backdrop, represented a disturbing challenge to Americans’ sense of their nation. It brought the problems of the country straight to those who could make the biggest difference. "The fate of the poor," he concluded, "hangs upon the decision of the better-off. If this anger and shame are not forthcoming, someone can write a book about the other America a generation from now and it will be the same or worse." The Other America and the reception to it were, therefore, somewhat optimistic. They were grounded in the belief that poverty need not exist, that it was not part of the natural order, and that societies and their governments could take steps to eliminate it. During the 1930s, Franklin Roosevelt had created a new expectation for the American government—it should aggressively intervene in the economy to redress its periodic downswings. During the 1960s, politicians would be able to carry this logic to the next step—they would declare war on poverty and embrace a moral and political responsibility for driving it almost completely from the American society.Civil Rights AnalysisDuring the 1960s, people across America rose up to demand reform. In cities around the United States they demanded desegregation, unrestricted free speech, and withdrawal from the war in Vietnam. Highly idealistic and inspired by periodic successes, they believed they were creating a “New America.” During the 1960’s, young Americans on and off campuses challenged conventional lifestyles and institutions that were in place. They protested the materialism, consumerism, and mania for success that drove American society. They urged people to explore alternative patterns of work and domesticity. They challenged traditions surrounding sex and marriage. And they argued that all paths to deeper fulfillment could be justified.In 1961, John Kennedy coupled his presidential oath of office with an announcement that the torch of American idealism had been passed to a new generation. He called on Americans to join in a self-sacrificial campaign to explore a new frontier. Together they would fight “tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.”They would send American ambassadors of goodwill around the world and attempt to resolve persistent problems. In 1963, Lyndon Johnson assumed the presidency and immediately set about expanding Kennedy’s vision of social and economic perfection. He vowed to win the war against poverty and build a “Great Society” that elevated the poor, cared for the elderly, and offered educational opportunities to all. Johnson would push through Congress one of the most ambitious and extensive legislative agendas in history. Medicare, Medicaid, VISTA, Head Start, federal college scholarships, and the Office of Economic Opportunity all were created under his leadership. Johnson, the United States Congress, and the 43 million voters that gave Johnson an enormous mandate in 1964 believed that they were creating the new America.Of course, not every American marched to the same vision of “progress.” In many places, north and south, segregation was defended. Citizens and politicians questioned the wisdom of expanding government services, arguing that they were costly and might develop a culture of governmental dependency. The new lifestyles advocated and lived by members of the counterculture were condemned as immoral and anarchistic. Student protesters were labeled self-indulgent children without the experience to make sober judgments. Yet student protesters still contributed to the end of the war in Vietnam, they did advance civil rights, and they did transform the culture of American colleges. Many of the values of the counterculture did work their way into the mainstream. America’s workplace is now more diverse and flexible, our sexual ethics have changed, and environmentalism has become a widely embraced set of values. Many of the programs created under Kennedy and Johnson are now accepted fixtures within the nation’s web of social services. Poverty has been reduced, America’s elderly are better cared for, and educational opportunities are far greater. And in 1969, the United States landed a man on the moon.The 1960s remain a controversial decade. Critics argue that the era created the welfare state, bred a culture of immorality and self-indulgence, and bequeathed to America’s taxpayers an enormous burden. Its defenders, on the other hand, argue that the decade left America’s political and social institutions more just, and its culture more healthy.Excerpt from: Radio and Television Report to the American People on the State of the National Economy. August 13, 1962The single most important fiscal weapon available to strengthen the national economy is the Federal tax policy. The right kind of tax cut at the right time is the most effective measure that this Government could take to spur our economy forward. For the facts of the matter are that our present tax system is a drag on economic recovery and economic growth, biting heavily into the purchasing power of every taxpayer and every consumer. During the last 15 months, for example, of the current expansion in our economy, Federal purchases have added $7 billion to the economy, but Federal taxes have siphoned out $12 billion. It is estimated that at full employment our Federal tax system, if all of our people were working and all of our factories were working full time, that our present budget tax system would bring in a $7- or $8-billion surplus, far too heavy for the purposes of curbing inflation and far too heavy to encourage investment and enterprise and risk-taking which make jobs and which make growth. Our tax rates, in short, are so high as to weaken the very essence of the progress of a free society, the incentive for additional return for additional effort. For these reasons, this administration intends to cut taxes in order to build the fundamental strength of our economy, to remove a serious barrier to long-term growth, to increase incentives by routing out inequities and complexities and to prevent the even greater budget deficit that a lagging economy would otherwise surely produce.The worst deficit comes from a recession, and if we can take the proper action in the proper time, this can be the most important step we could take to prevent another recession. That is the right kind of a tax cut both for your family budget and the national budget resulting from a permanent basic reform and reduction in our rate structure, a creative tax cut creating more jobs and income and eventually more revenue. And the right time for that kind of bill, it now appears in the absence of an economic crisis today - and if the job is to be done in a responsible way - is January 1963. Such a bill will be presented to the Congress for action next year. It will include an across the board, top to bottom cut in both corporate and personal income taxes. It will include long-needed tax reform that logic and equity demand. And it will date that cut in taxes to take effect as of the start of next year, January 1963. The billions of dollars this bill will place in the hands of the consumer and our businessmen will have both immediate and permanent benefits to our economy. Every dollar released from taxation that is spent or invested will help create a new job and a new salary. And these new jobs and new salaries can create other jobs and other salaries and more customers and more growth for an expanding American economy. Instead of being permanently saddled with excess plant capacity and the budgetary deficit that is created by this means, our goal must be fuller capacity and full employment and the budgetary surpluses that that kind of employment and capacity can produce.Analysis of Excerpt from: Radio and Television Report to the American People on the State of the National Economy. August 13, 1962When President John F. Kennedy gave this speech in 1962, the highest marginal individual income tax rate was 91% and the highest marginal corporate tax rate was 52%. The president announced his plan to introduce permanent, across-the-board tax cuts for both individuals and corporations which are the tactics of a supply-side economist, which Kennedy was. He argued that both “logic and equity” demanded tax relief for Americans, and that the dollars released from taxation would create new jobs, new salaries, and spur economic growth and an expanding American economy, thereby creating more tax revenues.Kennedy’s supply-side tax cuts were passed, and in 1964, the tax cut bill was passed. At that point, the top personal tax rate was 77%, dropping further to 70% in 1965, which is a 21% decrease from 1962. In 1965, the corporate tax rates were reduced to 22% and 48%, from previous rates of 30% and 52%. The Kennedy tax cuts did help expand the economy, resulting in a 106-month economic expansion during the 1960s, which was the longest expansion in US history until the 120-month expansion from 1991-2001. During that tax-cut-fueled economic expansion in the 1960s, real GDP (gross domestic product) growth averaged 5%, with growth as high as 8.5% in two quarters. US payrolls increased by 32% during the 1960s, the highest growth in jobs by far of any decade during the postwar period. Government tax revenues grew by 65% from 1965 to 1970.Even though President Kennedy’s supply-side approach with across-the-board cuts in tax rates was incredibly successful at generating economic growth and jobs, and increasing both middle-class prosperity and tax revenues, all that is heard today is the post-war prosperity of the 1950s, and a recurring class warfare approach of raising taxes on the wealthy to bring down the deficit and reduce rising income inequality. The success of Kennedy’s income and corporate tax cuts has been replaced by a “liberal vision of powerful unions and high tax rates on the rich.” (according to Larry Kudlow).Even still, the supply-side approach definitely has a lasting impact on society. In fact, twenty years later, Reagan practically copied Kennedy’s supply-side model and the economy actually began moving again. The Democrats of today would, however, very much disagree with Kennedy’s economic policy. The Democrats believe in raising taxes on corporate spending and it will decrease debt. Kennedy’s policy has become known as trickle-down economics, “voodoo economics,” and even Reaganomics which is a big part of the Republican party’s platform.So in the end, Kennedy’s innovative tax reform really changed the way economists and politicians think about where they stand when it comes to dealing with the national economy.Farewell Address (Military-Industrial Complex Speech) - Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961 My fellow Americans:Three days from now, after half a century in the service of our country, I shall lay down the responsibilities of office as, in traditional and solemn ceremony, the authority of the Presidency is vested in my successor.This evening I come to you with a message of leave-taking and farewell, and to share a few final thoughts with you, my countrymen.Like every other citizen, I wish the new President, and all who will labor with him, Godspeed. I pray that the coming years will be blessed with peace and prosperity for all.Our people expect their President and the Congress to find essential agreement on issues of great moment, the wise resolution of which will better shape the future of the Nation.My own relations with the Congress, which began on a remote and tenuous basis when, long ago, a member of the Senate appointed me to West Point, have since ranged to the intimate during the war and immediate post-war period, and, finally, to the mutually interdependent during these past eight years.In this final relationship, the Congress and the Administration have, on most vital issues, cooperated well, to serve the national good rather than mere partisanship, and so have assured that the business of the Nation should go forward. So, my official relationship with the Congress ends in a feeling, on my part, of gratitude that we have been able to do so much together.II.We now stand ten years past the midpoint of a century that has witnessed four major wars among great nations. Three of these involved our own country. Despite these holocausts America is today the strongest, the most influential and most productive nation in the world. Understandably proud of this pre-eminence, we yet realize that America's leadership and prestige depend, not merely upon our unmatched material progress, riches and military strength, but on how we use our power in the interests of world peace and human betterment.III.Throughout America's adventure in free government, our basic purposes have been to keep the peace; to foster progress in human achievement, and to enhance liberty, dignity and integrity among people and among nations. To strive for less would be unworthy of a free and religious people. Any failure traceable to arrogance, or our lack of comprehension or readiness to sacrifice would inflict upon us grievous hurt both at home and abroad.Progress toward these noble goals is persistently threatened by the conflict now engulfing the world. It commands our whole attention, absorbs our very beings. We face a hostile ideology -- global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose, and insidious in method. Unhappily the danger is poses promises to be of indefinite duration. To meet it successfully, there is called for, not so much the emotional and transitory sacrifices of crisis, but rather those which enable us to carry forward steadily, surely, and without complaint the burdens of a prolonged and complex struggle -- with liberty the stake. Only thus shall we remain, despite every provocation, on our charted course toward permanent peace and human betterment.Crises there will continue to be. In meeting them, whether foreign or domestic, great or small, there is a recurring temptation to feel that some spectacular and costly action could become the miraculous solution to all current difficulties. A huge increase in newer elements of our defense; development of unrealistic programs to cure every ill in agriculture; a dramatic expansion in basic and applied research -- these and many other possibilities, each possibly promising in itself, may be suggested as the only way to the road we wish to travel.But each proposal must be weighed in the light of a broader consideration: the need to maintain balance in and among national programs -- balance between the private and the public economy, balance between cost and hoped for advantage -- balance between the clearly necessary and the comfortably desirable; balance between our essential requirements as a nation and the duties imposed by the nation upon the individual; balance between actions of the moment and the national welfare of the future. Good judgment seeks balance and progress; lack of it eventually finds imbalance and frustration.The record of many decades stands as proof that our people and their government have, in the main, understood these truths and have responded to them well, in the face of stress and threat. But threats, new in kind or degree, constantly arise. I mention two only.IV.A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction.Our military organization today bears little relation to that known by any of my predecessors in peacetime, or indeed by the fighting men of World War II or Korea.Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. American makers of plowshares could, with time and as required, make swords as well. But now we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense; we have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. Added to this, three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishment. We annually spend on military security more than the net income of all United States corporations.This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence -- economic, political, even spiritual -- is felt in every city, every State house, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.Akin to, and largely responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture, has been the technological revolution during recent decades.In this revolution, research has become central; it also becomes more formalized, complex, and costly. A steadily increasing share is conducted for, by, or at the direction of, the Federal government.Today, the solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientists in laboratories and testing fields. In the same fashion, the free university, historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery, has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research. Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. For every old blackboard there are now hundreds of new electronic computers.The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever presentand is gravely to be regarded.Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientifictechnological elite.It is the task of statesmanship to mold, to balance, and to integrate these and other forces, new and old, within the principles of our democratic system -- ever aiming toward the supreme goals of our free society.V.Another factor in maintaining balance involves the element of time. As we peer into society's future, we -- you and I, and our government -- must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering, for our own ease and convenience, the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.VI.Down the long lane of the history yet to be written America knows that this world of ours, ever growing smaller, must avoid becoming a community of dreadful fear and hate, and be instead, a proud confederation of mutual trust and respect.Such a confederation must be one of equals. The weakest must come to the conference table with the same confidence as do we, protected as we are by our moral, economic, and military strength. That table, though scarred by many past frustrations, cannot be abandoned for the certain agony of the battlefield.Disarmament, with mutual honor and confidence, is a continuing imperative. Together we must learn how to compose differences, not with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose. Because this need is so sharp and apparent I confess that I lay down my official responsibilities in this field with a definite sense of disappointment. As one who has witnessed the horror and the lingering sadness of war -- as one who knows that another war could utterly destroy this civilization which has been so slowly and painfully built over thousands of years -- I wish I could say tonight that a lasting peace is in sight.Happily, I can say that war has been avoided. Steady progress toward our ultimate goal has been made. But, so much remains to be done. As a private citizen, I shall never cease to do what little I can to help the world advance along that road.VII.So -- in this my last good night to you as your President -- I thank you for the many opportunities you have given me for public service in war and peace. I trust that in that service you find some things worthy; as for the rest of it, I know you will find ways to improve performance in the future.You and I -- my fellow citizens -- need to be strong in our faith that all nations, under God, will reach the goal of peace with justice. May we be ever unswerving in devotion to principle, confident but humble with power, diligent in pursuit of the Nation's great goals.To all the peoples of the world, I once more give expression to America's prayerful and continuing aspiration:We pray that peoples of all faiths, all races, all nations, may have their great human needs satisfied; that those now denied opportunity shall come to enjoy it to the full; that all who yearn for freedom may experience its spiritual blessings; that those who have freedom will understand, also, its heavy responsibilities; that all who are insensitive to the needs of others will learn charity; that the scourges of poverty, disease and ignorance will be made to disappear from the earth, and that, in the goodness of time, all peoples will come to live together in a peace guaranteed by the binding force of mutual respect and love.Analysis of the Farewell Address (Military-Industrial Complex Speech) - Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961 In his farewell address to the nation, President Dwight D. Eisenhower begins by describing the purpose of the American military, which is to protect the foundations of liberty the country was founded on and keep the peace at home. Eisenhower, however, had been concerned about the growing size and cost of the American defense establishment since he became president in 1953. He said that America “annually spend[s] on military security more than the net income of all United States corporations.” In his last presidential address to the American people, he expressed his concerns in terms that actually shocked some of his listeners.He told the American people that they could no longer rely on “emergency improvisation” like it did against Germany and Japan. Post-WWII America needed “to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions” in order to maintain peace and security. He admitted that the Cold War made clear the "imperative need for this development," but he was quite concerned about "the acquisition of unwarranted influence...by the military-industrial complex." He believed that the “potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.” Basically he is telling the public to keep an out for who exactly is in charge. “Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.”Eisenhower's explicit language stunned some of his supporters. They believed that the man who led the country to victory in Europe in World War II and guided the nation through some of the darkest moments of the Cold War would be supportive toward the military-industrial complex that was the backbone of America's defense rather than hearing him warning against it. For most listeners, however, it seemed clear that Eisenhower was merely stating the obvious. World War II and the ensuing Cold War resulted in the development of a large and powerful defense establishment. Necessary though that development might be, Eisenhower warned, this new military-industrial complex could weaken or destroy the very institutions and principles it was designed to protect.Eisenhower certainly is right though. If someone like Hitler or Stalin came to power, they could easily use this huge military for total world domination. Back in the 1960’s this whole feeling was completely new. The attack on Pearl harbor was still very much in some people’s memory and the effects of the atom bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki left the world somewhat fearful of these new military norms. The new industrial military, however, gave some a new sense of security as the US was now 1 of two world superpowers. If Eisenhower hadn’t warned the people of the potential danger though, there is no telling where America might be today because people who experience fear will usually trust anyone or anything that gives them security.Multiple Choice Quiz: THE 1960’sI. Social Document Questions1. What gave Martin Luther King Jr. the ability to spread his ideas about non-violence and equality?a. the automobileb. radio and televisionc. telegramd. newspapers2. “Fortunate Son” was important because itI. Was one of the first to protest warII. Discusses how class played a part in the draftIII. Talks about African-American involvement in Vietnama. I, onlyb. I and II onlyc. II and III onlyd. I, II, and III3. What did people demanding desegregation, unrestricted free speech, and withdrawal from the war in Vietnam believe they were creating?a. “New America”b. “Free America”c. “Liberated America”d. “America Reformed”II. Economic Document Questions4. The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 had aI. Social ImpactII. Political ImpactIII. Economic Impacta. II, onlyb. III, onlyc. I and III onlyd. II and III only5. What did Michael Harrington’s The Other America reveal about society?a. the problems in Vietnamb. corruption in the governmentc. the military-industrial complexd. the amount of poverty in America6. All of the following are true EXCEPTa. Kennedy’s income and corporate tax cuts were unsuccessfulb. supply-side economics are similar to Reaganomicsc. modern day democrats disagree with Kennedy’s economic policyd. tax cuts were passed in 1964III. Political Document Questions7. Whose duty was it to be the leader of the space race (according to Kennedy)?a. the governmentb. foreign countriesc. American peopled. god8. Why was it so important that the US got their story about the Cuban Missile Crisis out first?a. it would be able to sink in longerb. it would be better believedc. it would not be seen if laterd. the intensity of the situation would not be preserved if it was later9. Why was the industrialization of the military absolutely necessary?a. Japan left the American navy uselessb. at the time America was prosperingc. Vietnam ward. Cold War ................
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