Political and Social Effects of the Cold War on the US

Introduction

The Cold War, although now over, had a demonstrative effect on United States culture and the political sphere. Indeed, some of those effects are still felt in the United States to this very day. This paper focuses on three political and three social effects that emerged during the height of the Cold War. While the United States ultimately weathered the conflict, some of its consequences were extensive and wholly negative for the country, both then and now.

Political Effects of the Cold War

One significant political effect was the rise of paranoia-like scrutiny during the McCarthyism era. Senator McCarthy operated under the premise that a substantial number of Communists had infiltrated the United States government. Even President Truman participated in this climate, insisting on background checks for all government officials (US History, 2014). Another major political development was the nuclear arms race: both the United States and the Soviet Union raced to construct a hydrogen bomb that would make the atomic bomb of World War II seem modest by comparison. Both countries had developed the bomb by the 1950s (Tennessee For Me, 2014).

Third, and closely related to the arms race, both countries used nuclear weapons and other mass-warfare threats as instruments of deterrence. Conflicts were also waged and threatened through proxies, notably in Cuba and Afghanistan, among others. Taken together, these pressures led to a boom in the construction of storm shelters and the creation and dissemination of emergency preparedness procedures throughout society and the school systems.

Social and Cultural Effects

The building of bomb shelters, noted above as a political consequence, can equally be understood as a societal effect. However, the Cold War's social dimensions extended far beyond civil defense preparations. One notable dimension was the literature and poetry of the era; critics and writers such as Dwight McDonald gave voice to the anxieties of the age. Films such as Rebel Without a Cause and The Wild Ones reflected a restless, questioning youth culture. Other societal responses took the form of labor union activism, the rise of rock and roll music, and the organizing of college student groups.

In broader historical perspective, the Cold War was the longest conflict of the twentieth century. World War I and World War II were certainly more violent and world-altering in some respects, but the Cold War lasted far longer and carried a more immediate, domestic dimension than wars fought mostly or exclusively on foreign soil. While World War II did involve a Japanese attack on Hawaii, the United States mainland was never threatened during the twentieth century as directly as it was during the Cold War (OSU, 2014). The pervasive sense of existential danger shaped everyday American life in ways that more geographically distant conflicts had not.

Cultural responses to this anxiety were wide-ranging. The Cold War's domestic impact prompted Americans to question authority, embrace countercultural expression, and organize collectively—tendencies visible in the music, film, and protest movements of the era. These cultural shifts left a lasting imprint on American society well beyond the conflict itself.

Conclusion

There are some effects of the Cold War that persist, but the new problem seems to be Islamic extremism and the rising influence of Russia under Vladimir Putin. The latter is not quite a new Cold War, but it is certainly a major challenge to reckon with. It remains to be seen how future events will compare and contrast with the Cold War, but the differences are likely to outweigh the similarities. Nevertheless, certain parallels will inevitably exist.