America’s economic growth after World War II

After World War II America’s economy skyrocketed. Industrial expansion grew with the demand of consumer goods. The government spending stimulated the growth of American economy. During this time the electronics industry boomed. Many businesses started to use the first generation of computers. With this increase of demand, employment rose quickly. However, this also caused problems. During the 1990s many people were living in the sunbelt area due to the influx of jobs with the military bases and plants that got built during the second world war. The population grew with the growth of technology firms and industries in those areas. People who lived in these bigger cities were getting better educated and higher incomes than those who lived in the rural parts of the US. Crime rates, traffic, and higher living cost were the disadvantages of city life. With the modernization of technology, health also increased which increased the average lifespan of people. Computers revolutionized life by making information and communication easily accessible.

Because of 911 (September 11, 2001) Bush went on a rampage against Afghanistan with what he called the War of Terror. George W. Bush used the Pentagon and the CIA with the goal to destroy the Taliban, al Qaeda, and capture Osama bin Laden. He was not able to reach those goals but Bush led the War on Terror abroad and in the United States, trying to protect Americans from any other terrorist attacks. The Department of Homeland Security was created through combining different government services to combat terror threats. The government tightened security at airports. These terrorist attacks made a major change in foreign policy of the United states. They created a new global policy of American preeminence. [765] Bush’s administration started to reject their previous forms of international cooperation, terminating treaties and ending agreements. The United States government came up with a new world policy called the “National Security Strategy of the United States.” [765] In the policy the United States would act as the enforcing peace maker. The policy alluded that the United States would not be afraid to act alone or with allies to enforce peace where ever the United States deemed fit. America would never again let any enemies strike first. America soon asserted its role in Iraq even starting a war between the United States and Iraq.

When Barack Obama, an African American democratic politician, became president, it was very historic. However, when he came into office the economy was not faring well. Many major lenders were on the brink of bankruptcy. Unemployment was rising. Though Obama was able to help the financial sector, the unemployment rates were still rising. The Democrats pushed through an economic stimulus package which stopped the unemployment from rising but did not bring it down. Obama also passed a program that required most Americans to get medical insurance which came with a great backlash from voters. There were plans like Medicaid and Medicare for those who needed financial help to have insurance. In his term he killed Osama Bin Laden, and started withdrawing American troops from the middle east. By 2010 our debt was in the trillions. [770] Obama pushed for “affirmative action policies” to ensure greater participation of minorities. [771] During Obama’s administration gay marriage became legal.

From the 1990s to current times there was a huge advancement in technology. With the advancement in technology, society also modernized. During Bush’s administration problems arose through terrorist attacks in the United States from radical terrorist groups which led to the War on Terror. This caused tension in many U.S. relations as America stepped in as the big brother cop. Obama’s administration tried to bring the troops back but there was still lots of tension with the middle east.