Assignment
Carefully read and analyze the following documents: NSC-68 which was disseminated in April 1950 by the United States National Security Council and the Patriot Actwhich Congress passed after the terrorist attacks in September 2001.
Based on these two documents, and what you have learned in your HIST 1302 class, consider these questions:
1. What is the exact challenge the United States faces, according to the primary document?
2. What were the ideological, political, and economic differences between the United States and the Soviet Union?
3. What were the major security concerns for the United States?
4. What strategies did the United States government believe would best protect the country's values and national security?
5. How did the United States government intend to enlist the assistance of its citizens to ensure political, economic, and cultural security?
6. Explain the relationship between post-war Soviet espionage and the emergence of internal security and loyalty programs under Truman and Eisenhower.
7. The government often infringes on civil liberties in order to protect national security, is this constitutionally sound? Why or why not?
Having considered these questions, write an essay of at least 800 words that:
1. Makes a specific argument that can be supported with the specific historical evidence of these two primary documents, as well as lecture notes and the textbook assigned to your class;
2. Analyzes the historical significance of these two primary documents;
3. Analyzes the nature of the Cold War in the 1950s;
4. Evaluates the similarities and differences between NSC-68 and the Patriot Act;
5. Is written in standard English, with all sources and quotes properly cited using MLA format;
6. Is written in your own words, not copied and pasted from other sources or web sites.