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Cold War Was Born In Essay

During the period of transition, defense spending needed to be maintained in order to avoid returning to depression. The Cold War provided a means for this. The intense rhetoric provided justification to the American people, but the combination of high defense spending and the rhetoric only further inflamed the U.S.S.R. Inflammation also stemmed from several short-term incidents that occurred in the post-war years. The Soviet Union, for example, attempted a blockade of West Berlin, which ultimately failed. The establishment of the People's Republic of China and the start of the Korean War exacerbated Communist-Capitalist tensions further.

The length and depth of the conflict, however, could have been ameliorated. Stalin's paranoia at the time made distrust of the West inevitable - he did not trust anybody in Russia, either. For the U.S.' part, a return to isolationism was not a viable option, and the extension of influence into Europe was key to avoiding a return to war, having just fought World Wars in successive generations. The rhetoric and military buildup made the Cold War worse than it needed to be, as was the involvement in the various anti-Communist campaigns such as the Korea War, but there was too much cause of distrust to have avoided it altogether.

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