Essay Assignment -
Choose two of four questions. Answer each question in, AT LEAST, two paragraphs PER question.
1. Explain the U.S. annexation of the Hawaiian Islands. Why did the U.S. want the islands? Could the annexation have been prevented? How?
2. President Truman was given the choice of using the atom bomb to end the war with Japan during World War II. By doing so, Japanese civilians would most certainly die. If he did not use the bomb, U.S. soldiers would die. Whatever he chose to do, people would die. Death totals for U.S. soldiers started at 250,000 and went UP. 500,000 Purple Hearts were made in advance of the fight. If you had been President Truman, what would you have done?
3. The U.S. entered World War II after the Japanese Imperial Navy bombed the naval base at Pearl Harbor. Had that not happened, would the U.S. have joined the war? Could it have been won without U.S. help?
4. Explain what happened during the Red Scare in the U.S. during the 1950's. Why did it happen? Who was Joseph McCarthy?