Hook, Steven W., and John Spanier. American foreign policy since World War II. Cq Press, 2015.This book discusses how economics played a major role in American foreign policy after World War II. Specifically, the authors focus on the Truman Doctrine because of the impact it had on not only America but several countries around the globe such as Greece and Turkey. With President Truman effectively beginning the Cold War between Russia and the United States with the announcement of this plan on March 12, 1947, the restriction of American trading with nations deemed to be sympathetic did have an economic impact on the American economy. Not only did it place restrictions on what countries the United States conducted business with but it also drew the line between the Communists and the Capitalists.
Many decisions regarding Cold War politics were made based on the economics of the situation. Decisions on which countries would receive aid from the United States were influenced by this doctrine, and this would be apparent during the entire course of the Cold War. For example, when Cuba’s government was overthrown by the Communist forces led by Fidel Castro in 1959, the United States was forced to give up major business interests there in lieu of the Truman Doctrine. This is but one example of how the American economy has been affected by government policy.
Additionally, the book also details many historical facts based on economic details based on the American economy. The book carries through the Cold War and other events such as the war in Vietnam which explains U.S. involvement, Kissinger and his work during the Nixon Administration building Sino-American relations and highlights the Reagan Administration and their exploits in different areas of the world. The authors give incredible detail into these important events in U.S. Economic History as well as their impact on global politics. It also gives a fresh insight into the effects of 9/11 on America and the rest of the globe politically as well as economically.
Rich, Bruce. Mortgaging the earth: The World Bank, environmental impoverishment, and the crisis of development. Island Press, 2013.
This book discusses how the global economy has dictated the actions of different countries around the globe, specifically the United States, in different circumstances. Specifically, the Marshall Plan which guaranteed economic aid to Western Europe for rebuilding and preventing the spread of Communism is featured in the book. The impact of the Marshall Plan had far-reaching consequences because of the Soviet Union’s active blocking of countries in Eastern Europe as well as the marked slow recovery of the economies of the countries that were helped by the plan. The author describes this as a monumental shift in economic policy during the Cold War.
Many wars have been dictated by the economy which has also had a hand in determining the winner in these conflicts. The Spanish-American War was used by the author as a starting point for this discussion, and going forward each war to present day has had an impact on the economy. One example of this would be the conflict between the U.S. and Cuba once it was taken over in 1959 by Communist leader Fidel Castro. The island nation had previously been a haven for American businesses, but once the Communists took over that put an end to this economic paradise. Instead, Russia used Cuba as a base to place missiles which is a mere 90 miles from South Florida and resulted in further economic sanctions against the island nation. It was a strategic move against America and had a major impact on business and the economy in general.
Colonialism has also had a hand in global economics. Again, the author refers back to the Spanish-American War and the concept of Manifest Destiny to make his point. The fact of the matter is by expanding into the Pacific as well as other areas of the globe, the United States was improving its own economic position by expanding its territorial interests.
Welsh, Teresa. “Obama, Xi Reach Agreement to End Cyberattacks.” US News and World Report 25 Sept. 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
This news article discusses the recent agreement made between President Obama and China’s Minister to stop cyberattacks between the two countries. There has been a history over the past two decades of China having its best hackers launch attacks against any American computer system that is vulnerable. The reason for these cyberattacks has been to gain information against America for the purpose of gaining superiority in political and economic affairs. China has elevated itself to the point of being a creditor of the United States as well as the leader in the Pacific as far as economic development. However, China is still under Communist rule which is why there is an air of mistrust between the two nations. However, it must also be pointed out that America in retaliation has its own staff of hackers to launch the same type of cyberattacks against China to gain information from them to remain classified as a super power.
These attacks have been detrimental to both nations economically and politically. The author mentions in the news article that these types of cyberattacks are financially devastating and only serve as a tool to undermine the relationship between the two countries. There was one point in time where China and America had positive diplomatic relations and the agreement mentioned in this article states that both President Obama and Chinese President Xi are interested in taking steps to accomplish this. Additionally, the agreement is a step toward economic cooperation between the two countries. By ceasing the cyberattacks against one another, it lays the groundwork for positive relations as well as further economic cooperation between the two countries. Additionally, the political consequences from this agreement described in the article are positive in that it also removes the stigma of China’s political affiliations and allows for a cooperative relationship between the two countries here.
