Answer the following in a well-developed, thoughtful essay that references a minimum of three primary documents:
How/Why is/are World Wars 1 and/or 2 important today? How do they impact and/or inform our world today? hint: think about alliances, democracies around the world, cultures, international institutions, nuclear (and other) technologies, etc.
Planes with guns, tanks, and bolt-action rifles were built to help in the 1st World War. Those weapons have evolved into fighter planes and bio weapons. International peace groups and new laws were made after the events in the 2nd World War. New theories came about and governments changed after these wars. World War 1 and World War II are important today because the events that occurred during the war influenced the technological advances we’ve reached and the decisions we’ve made within our government and internationally.
In the First World War, new weapons were built. The first machine guns and bolt-action rifles were made and used. Blimps began dropping bombs out onto enemies, and, although not as successful as planned, tanks were bought and sold with a pretty penny in hopes they would help win the war. Torpedoes were made to take out ships close by , and now torpedoes can go for miles surfacing the water or going through the depths of the ocean to hit a ship. Wireless communication also started. First used only for communication with commanders and the ones in charge, wireless communication is used by 2/3 of the world’s population, young and old. These weapons, today, have been made more efficient and effective, and are used by almost every army.
During the Second World War, atomic and gaseous weapons became a big factor. Hitler had killed thousands, millions, of people in concentration camps, based on their features, race, and disabilities, using Zyklon B. Zyklon B is a deadly gas that came in white solid pellets. After this, America bombed Hiroshima with ‘Little Boy’, and bombed Nagasaki with another nuclear bomb called ‘Fat Man’ shortly after. This left cities lifeless, and anything/ anyone still alive were left to suffer by radiation.
The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were tactics to end the 2nd World War and was effective in doing just that. But it had killed nearly 250,000 people within the first 6 days. More countries learned to build the nuclear bombs in the 1960’s, and continued to make them for security purposes. Since the frightening arms race in the 1960’s, and the Rational Choice Theory, countries have now realized after ‘nuking’ a country they would ‘nuke’ back and both countries would then lose. Starting from 1963, there have been treaties signed concerning the decrease of nuclear weapons and the cease of production. Today, Obama is working with Russia to cut down the number of nuclear weapons held by a country.
Because Japan and Germany lost the war, Hitler was dead, and the Japanese emperor was ordered to resign, a new government was set in place, democratic. Now, with that democratic government, Germany has been more successful than ever, as well as Japan. They are a thriving country that’s wealthy and blooming.
The 1st and 2nd World Wars have impacted our world today in a major way. New discoveries in theories, weapons, and decisions have been made. New governments and international interactions are present. Some countries are doing better than they’ve ever done before. The discovery in chemical weapons and each countries determination to win a war (even to the point of killing whole innocent towns)has taken a toll on the decisions made about having a war.
Resources:
Rational Choice Theory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rational_choice_theory_(criminology)
Nuclear Weapon Treaties.
http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/timeline/treaties.html
Gas Chambers.
http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/resource/document/DocAusc2.htm
Obama Nuclear.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/08/obama-prague-russia-nuclear-arms-deal-medvedev_n_529726.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/06/world/06arms.html
Atomic Bombings.
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/index.htm
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