LBJ's Vision: The Great Society

As we will see in a few chapters, President Johnson (LBJ) was a very controversial figure in regards to the Vietnam War. His foreign policies, and his tendency to not tell the whole truth, caused him a lot of problems.

One of the brighter spots in his administration was his determination to help the underprivileged in America. He called his program "The Great Society".

For this week's blog, watch this video. For the comment section, do the following...

1) Create a Top 10 List of the most important things you learned from this video (100 words)

2) Write a paragraph discussing whether or not you thing the federal government should be responsible for "eliminating poverty". (100 words)

Camelot: The Kennedy Mystique

JFK ushered in a whole new era in American politics. He is the youngest president ever elected and with that distinction brought a "glitz and glamour" type atmosphere to the White House.

And then in 1963 he was tragically assassinated while in Dallas, TX.

His age, his family's wealth, his tragic death...all of it has created a shroud of mystique around his life.

For this week's blog, choose ONE of the following topics about JFK's life to look into further. For the comments, write 200 words about what you learned and how it adds to the mystique surrounding the Kennedys.

Choices:
-Kennedy family wealth
-Did the Kennedy's steal the 1960 election away from Nixon?
-What happened to JFK in World War II?
-Conspiracies surrounding his assassination
-People in the Kennedy clan who have died mysteriously/tragically other than JFK

1950s: "The Happy Days"

We will be discussing the impact of decades from now until May. Each decade in the 20th century is known for its political, social and cultural impact.

For this week's blog, independently research the decade of the 1950s.

Choose ONE 1950s political event (presidential, law, Supreme Court case, Cold War related event, Space Race event, war etc.) and ONE 1950s cultural event (movies, music, sports, comic books, tv, radio, books, plays etc.) that interests you.

Write 100 words for each choice. Explain what you learned about the 1950s from the two topics you chose.

We Continue To Spend $$$$: The Marshall Plan

Perhaps one of the greatest contributions America made to the WW2 era was actually after the fighting concluded.

In 1948, three years after the war concluded, President Truman authorized a massive spending bill we've come to know as the Marshall Plan.

For this week's blog, visit these sources to learn more about the Marshall Plan:
Source One

Source Two

Source Three

For the comments section...

1) Write 100 words explaining the key details of the Marshall Plan

2) Write 100 words responding to this prompt..."Did America have a moral obligation to economically 'save' Europe the way they did with the Marshall Plan"?

Korea: America's Forgotten War

Many people skip directly over Korea and move into Vietnam when they think of global conflicts after World War II. In fact, the Korean Conflict (so-called because America never officially declared war on North Korea) is often called the "Forgotten War".

For this week's blog, you are going to watch this video which gives the basic details of the Korean Conflict.

For the comment section, create a Top-10 List of the ten most important facts you learned about this global event.

Then, write a 100 word summary answering this question: If the Korean Conflict is so important to the history of the U.S., why is it a "forgotten" war? 

World War Two: Through Their Own Eyes

Visit this website to find the article you signed up for in class.

For the comments, write 200 words on what you learned from your eyewitness account.

Fighting The War: With Cartoons???

The art of war began to dramatically change in the 20th century. An interesting element to WW2, which people are often unaware, is the role of cartoon propaganda. Characters like Bugs, Daffy and other favorites were placed into "global situations" to get Americans on board with the war effort.

For this week's blog, watch a famously controversial cartoon called "Tokio Jokio".

Also, read this article that describes the role of cartoons as propaganda.


For the comment section...

1) Write 100 words on your observations from the cartoon. Did anything surprise/shock you? Why might Tokio Jokio be considered controversial?

2) Why do you think Warner Brothers and other entertainment companies would spend time, in the early 1940s, creating war propaganda? (100 words)