| Line 20: |
Line 20: |
| | Many would say “culture” is what drives history. In other words, what is considered “cool” to people. What is considered to be fun, enjoyable, fashionable, acceptable, etc. The movies we watch, the books we read, the activities we pursue, the styles, the festivals, the communication, etc. | | Many would say “culture” is what drives history. In other words, what is considered “cool” to people. What is considered to be fun, enjoyable, fashionable, acceptable, etc. The movies we watch, the books we read, the activities we pursue, the styles, the festivals, the communication, etc. |
| | | | |
| − | == Pre-Reagan == | + | == Review == |
| | + | |
| | + | |
| | + | == ... And What Else Happened? == |
| | + | |
| | + | In the 1960s, these hard-to-categorize events occurred: |
| | + | |
| | + | * In 1960, Arab nations formed "OPEC" to control the production and sale of oil to the world. OPEC stands for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. This monopoly has caused shortages and driven up the price of oil, particularly in the early 1970s when OPEC retaliated against the United States. |
| | + | |
| | + | * In 1960, liberal students formed the "Students for a Democratic Society" (SDS) in Port Huron, Michigan, saying that they are "looking uncomfortably to the world we inherit." It became the foundation for radical groups later in the 1960s, which became increasingly aggressive and violent in their protest activities. In the spring of 1968, it arranged for 1 million students to skip class. But the public hardly noticed. However, an SDS chapter at Columbia University did succeed with a "sit in" that forced the school to temporarily shut down. |
| | + | |
| | + | * In 1961, President Kennedy started two programs to help alleviate poverty in foreign countries. One was the Alliance for Progress, which consisted of foreign aid to Latin America. The other was the Peace Corps, which sent volunteers to foreign countries to teach farming and build schools. |
| | + | |
| | + | * In 1962, Michael Harrington wrote a book entitled "The Other America," which exposed poverty by 1 out of every 4, especially in Appalachia, in the South, and in city ghettos. |
| | + | |
| | + | * Student movements expanded in 1964 with the "Free Speech Movement," which began at the ultra-liberal University of California at Berkeley and began to protest a number of perceived injustices. |
| | + | |
| | + | In 1970, the Nixon Administration founded the Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA") ostensibly to conserve natural resources and reduce pollution. The EPA quickly banned DDT on unproven environmental grounds (as incited by the since-discredited book the "Silent Spring," by Rachel Carson). This ban on DDT, which continues to this day, has resulted in the avoidable deaths of millions of Africans from malaria; DDT easily eliminates malaria. |
| | + | |
| | + | == The 1970s == |
| | | | |
| | Furman v. Georgia "1972: invalidates death penalties, requires high standards and guidelines before imposing the death penalty" | | Furman v. Georgia "1972: invalidates death penalties, requires high standards and guidelines before imposing the death penalty" |