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Chapter 32 Review Joe Puccio
Key Terms
Global warming
Protectionism
Genetic engineering
NASA
Acid rain
People To Identify
Al Gore
Boris Yeltsin
Christa McAuliffe
Mikhail Gorbachev
Michael Ducacus
Deng Xiaoping
Places To Locate
E
A
C
D
B
Reviewing the Facts
In the late 1980s, the Supreme Court made many controversial decisions. One of these decisions was made in 1989. The Supreme Court toughened laws dealing with capital punishment. The Court also decided to permit the execution of 16 and 17-year olds, convicted of murder, as well as mentally retarded criminals. In the 1989 Webster v. Reproductive Health Services case, a 5-4 majority tightened the abortion rights granted by Roe v. Wade, the 1970’s decision that legalized abortion. Another controversial decision made by the Supreme Court was when it ruled in favor of a Texas man who was arrested for burning an American flag as a political protest. The decision stated that flag-burning is protected by the First Amendment right to free expression. Throughout the 1980s, liberal justices William Brennan and Thurgood Marshall were heroes to many Americans who supported the Warren Court decisions of the 1950s and 1960s. To the dismay of supporters, both retired as the new decade opened.
Soon after Bush took office, he unveiled a $6 billion anti-drug program. Americans were spending $100 billion per year on illegal drugs, consuming 60 percent of the world’s supply by 1990. Cocaine was one of the most widespread and dangerous of these drugs, especially in a concentrated form known as crack. Most of the cocaine was produced in South America and was smuggled into the United States. Efforts were made to halt the smuggling, but they failed. The supply of cocaine in the United States tripled in the 1980s, and its street price dropped by half. Part of Bush’s war on drugs involved combating the flow of drugs into the United States. The American government sent military aid to Latin American governments battling rich and powerful drug lords. In addition, some extra money was allocated for drug treatment and education. A devastating health threat that first appeared in the 1980s is AIDS, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. AIDS is caused by a virus, called HIV, that eliminates the body’s ability to fight diseases and infections. Legal issues raised by the AIDS crisis, like those raised by the war on drugs, focus on the rights of the individual versus those of society.
The Savings and Loans crisis, starting in the late 1980s, was a string of bank failures that called for a huge government bailout. The government bailout added to the economic problems caused by the huge federal deficit.
The Savings and Loans crisis was only one of the issues. Continuing economic problems led voters to choose Bill Clinton in the 1922 election. Clinton created a diverse cabinet. In his first term, he called for new taxes to reduce the deficit and proposed a health-care reform legislation.
Fast-moving international changes affect life in the United States. A new immigration policy in the United States opened the door to more newcomers from Latin America and Asia, making the American population even more diverse. Dramatic reforms in the Communist world have led to better relations between the East and West. In China, however, a democratic uprising in 1989 ended in a brutal crackdown. Iraq’s invasion and occupation of Kuwait led to a war in the Persian Gulf in which coalition troops crushed the Iraqi army. Blacks and whites in South Africa seemed to be making progress toward a free and democratic society.
On Christmas Day, 1991, Gorbachev resigned, declaring the Soviet Union had ended. Turmoil in the Soviet Union led to a failed coup and the collapse of communism, followed by the breakup of the country into eleven independent republics. Within Russia, the largest republic, Yeltsin introduced economic reforms he called “shock therapy”. In order to move toward a market economy, Yeltsin removed most price controls. This caused a huge leap in prices. Yeltsin, along with other reformers, hoped the shock therapy would produce long-term economic growth, although it was painful in the short term. He also worked toward the privatization of industry.
While hopes for peaceful change were strong in Eastern Europe, the Middle East was still a hot spot. Iraq and Iran were locked in a bloody war throughout the 1980s. Neither side had won after hostilities ended in 1988. After the war, Iraq’s dictator, Saddam Hussein, moved to enlarge his power in the Arab world. Hussein criticized the United States, along with rich Arab leaders, who cooperated to keep oil prices down. He claimed that these agreements kept many Arabs in poverty. In particular, he charged low oil prices made it difficult for Iraq to pay off loans it had received from its neighbor, Kuwait. Kuwait, a small oil-rich nation, had helped fund Iraq’s war with Iran, with whom both countries see as a rival. Hussein’s criticisms added to ongoing tensions between Iraq and Kuwait over a border dispute. Hussein ordered Iraqi troops to invade Kuwait on August 2, 1990. Quickly gaining control, the Iraqis pillaged Kuwait and transported some of its cast wealth into Baghdad. Hussein then positioned troops along Kuwait’s border with Saudi Arabia, a staunch ally of the United States.
The United States entered the 1990s as the world’s most dynamic economy. Its position in relation to other nations had significantly declined however. There was also a serious trade imbalance that had developed in recent years as imports exceeded exports. Japan’s economic strength was what worried Americans the most. More and more viewed the island nation as a disloyal ally that used high tariffs and other means to block American imports. One example was automobiles. In January of 1992, President Bush led a trade mission to Japan that included the chief executives of America’s biggest three autoworkers. They demanded greater access to the Japanese market, yet they came away almost empty-handed. This is what led to protectionism. Protectionism is many governmental policies that protect domestic business against foreign competition.
The burning of fossils fuels harmed the environment in multiple ways. The first is global warming. Global warming is an increase in Earth’s temperature. This may not sound like much, but it could result in the destruction of thousands of species and could melt enough ice to flood many of the world’s low-lying nations. The burning of fossil fuels also produces acid rain. Like its name implies, this is rain that is poisoned by acids, including sulfuric acid. This rain has destroyed many lakes in Canada and in the eastern United States. Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) is also produced by the burning of fossil fuels. This is a pollutant that contributes to the greenhouse effect. When released into the atmosphere, it not only adds to global warming, but it destroys the ozone layer.
On January 28, 1986, seven Americans died due to the contraction of one of the gaskets and the ignition of the liquid fuel tank on the launch of the Challenger. The accident made many people wonder whether space travel was simply too dangerous for humans. In a stirring address to the nation, President Reagan saluted the bravery of the Challenger crew. He also appointed a commission to investigate the disaster. Its report was shocking. NASA had ignored safety warnings in order to keep its launch schedule. The Voyager 2 mission, along with the revival of the space shuttle program, had sparked renewed enthusiasm for space exploration.
Critical Thinking Skills
Factors that tend to make campaigns negative are social issues and scandals as well as personal backgrounds tend to be focused on in the elections. Mudslinging campaigns are found too often in American presidential campaigns.
They didn’t believe that any communist countries would return to non-communism regimes because most communist leaders were afraid of relinquishing power.
They wouldn’t have to invest as much money in defense because the arms race would be over. Also, disarmament would occur which would drastically change the military’s use of taxpayers’ money.