Chapter 29 Text Assignment Book Answers

This year we have talked about old vs. new change when discussing liberals and conservatives. Using Lesson 1, describe the difference between the beliefs of modern conservatives & liberals.

*Conservatives are associated with right-leaning movements and are characterized by the firm belief that progress should be controlled and, in some instances, impeded in order to preserve traditional values.* Conservatives are often part of the dominant group: why would they want to change things when they benefit from the current social/political/economic order? *Liberals are left-leaning, open to progress and highly reliant on the government to solve problems.* Originally, liberals were mainly part of minority groups striving for social changes, whereas today they may also be part of dominant groups. Liberals want to change existing structures and believe that strictly sticking to the tradition (and to traditional values) only slows the society down and impedes progress and development. In the United States, Democrats are considered the liberal party.

What caused the Iran-Contra scandal?

*President Reagan had approved the sale of arms to Iran*, but the congressional investigation concluded that he had had no direct knowledge about the diversion of the money to the contras.

Identify the factors that caused a rise in conservatism in the post-World War II era.

*The Cold War helped revive support for conservative ideas.* First, the *struggle against communism* revived the *debate about the role of the government in the economy.* Some Americans believed that liberal economic ideas were slowly leading the United States toward communism and set out to stop this trend.

What economic changes occurred during President George H.W. Bush's term of office?

*The recession that began in 1990 was partly caused by the end of the Cold War.* As the Soviet threat faded, the nation cut back on military spending. Soldiers and defense industry workers were laid off. Other companies also began downsizing, or laying off workers to become more efficient. The nation's high level of debt made the recession worse. *The huge deficit forced the government to borrow money to pay for its programs*, keeping money from being available to businesses. The government *also had to pay interest on its debt, using money that might otherwise have helped fund programs or boost the economy.* Many savings and loan institutions had collapsed, making the deficit worse. After President Reagan allowed them to be deregulated, many had made risky or even dishonest investments. When these investments failed, depositors collected from federal programs that insured deposits. The cost to the public may have reached $500 billion.

How was it applied in

Afghanistan Perhaps the most visible example of the Reagan Doctrine was in Afghanistan. In 1979 Soviet troops had invaded Afghanistan. *Reagan sent hundreds of millions of dollars in covert military aid to Afghan guerrillas who were fighting the Soviets.* As casualties mounted, the war strained the Soviet economy, and in 1988 the Soviets decided to withdraw. Nicaragua Reagan was also concerned about Soviet influence in Nicaragua. Rebels known as the Sandinistas had overthrown a pro-American dictator in Nicaragua in 1979, set up a socialist government, and accepted Cuban and Soviet aid. *The Reagan administration responded by secretly arming an anti-Sandinista guerrilla force known as the contras.* When Congress learned of this policy, it banned further aid to the contras. Grenada In Grenada, radical Marxists overthrew the left-wing government in 1983. *Reagan sent in troops, who quickly defeated the Grenadian and Cuban soldiers, and a new anti-Communist government was put in place.*

Why did the U.S. intervene in Panama and the Persian Gulf?

In 1978 the United States had agreed to give Panama control over the Panama Canal by the year 2000. Because of the canal's importance, American officials wanted to make sure Panama's government was both stable and pro-United States. But by 1989, *Panama's dictator, General Manuel Noriega, was aiding drug traffickers and harassing American military personnel defending the canal.* In December 1989, Bush ordered U.S. troops to invade Panama. The troops seized Noriega, who was sent to the United States to stand trial on drug charges. The troops then helped the Panamanians hold elections and organize a new government. In August 1990, *Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein sent his army to invade oil-rich Kuwait.* U.S. officials feared that the invasion might be only the first step and that Iraq's ultimate goal was to capture Saudi Arabia and its vast oil reserves. President Bush persuaded other United Nations member countries from Europe, the Middle East, and Canada to join a coalition to stop Iraq. The United Nations set a deadline for Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait, after which the coalition would use force to remove them. Congress voted to authorize the use of force if Iraq did not withdraw.

Describe the new activism of the 1980s.

In an effort to reduce teen drug use, some *schools began searching student bags and lockers for drugs.* In 1984 one teen who had been arrested for selling drugs challenged the school's right to search her purse without a warrant. In 1985 the Supreme Court case *New Jersey v. T.L.O. upheld the school's right to search without a warrant if it had probable cause.* Similarly, the 1995 case of Vernonia School District v. Acton held that *random drug tests do not violate students' Fourth Amendment rights.* Abuse of alcohol was also a serious concern. In 1980 *Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) was founded to try to stop underage drinking and drunk driving in general*, and "[t]o aid the victims of crimes performed by individuals driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, to aid the families of such victims and to increase public awareness of the problem of drinking and drugged driving." In 1984 Congress cut highway funds to any state that did not raise the legal drinking age to 21. *Many musicians and entertainers in the 1980s began using their celebrity to raise awareness about social issues.* To help starving people in Ethiopia, Irish rocker Bob Geldof organized musicians in England to present "Band-Aid" concerts in 1984. In the next year, the event grew into "Live Aid." People in some 100 countries watched benefit concerts televised from London, Philadelphia, and Sydney, Australia. The organization's theme song, "We Are the World," was a best seller. In the same year, country singer Willie Nelson organized "Farm Aid" to help American farmers who were going through hard times. Musicians also publicized efforts to end the segregated apartheid social system in South Africa. In the late 1980s, the *United States and other nations were attempting to end apartheid in South Africa by imposing economic sanctions against the country.* *Older Americans became very vocal in the political arena, opposing cuts in Social Security or Medicare.* Because they tend to vote in large numbers, senior citizens are an influential interest group. Their major lobbying organization is AARP (which originally stood for the American Association of Retired Persons).

What was the economy like in the 1980s? Who prospered?

Many of the *new moneymakers were young, ambitious, and hardworking.* They were *nicknamed yuppies*, short for "young urban professionals." The strong economic growth of the 1980s *mostly benefited middle- and upper-class Americans.*

Describe President Reagan's economic policies.

Reagan adopted *supply-side economics.* He encouraged the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates high and asked Congress to pass a massive *25 percent tax cut.* Critics called his approach *Reaganomics or "trickle-down economics."* They believed Reagan's policy would help corporations and wealthy Americans, but little wealth would "trickle down" to middle-class or poor Americans.

What is the Reagan Doctrine?

Reagan believed that the *United States should support guerrilla groups who were fighting to overthrow Communist or pro-Soviet governments.* This policy became known as the Reagan Doctrine.

Identify changes in media and technology in the 1980s.

Technology also transformed how people accessed entertainment. Until the 1980s, most people listened to music on large stereo systems that played records in their homes and relied on the car radio when they were driving. The new *Sony Walkman made music portable, marking the beginning of a new way for people to access music.* In the 1990s, portable compact disc (CD) players replaced the Walkman, and in the early 2000s, digital audio players, such as the iPod and MP3 players, advanced the technology even further. *Videocassette recorders (VCRs) allowed people to tape television shows or watch taped films whenever they wished.* By the early 2000s, digital video disk (DVD) recorders began replacing VCRs. Technology also brought about a new form of entertainment—the video game. Early video games grew out of military computer technology. The first video arcade game was a game called Pong, released in 1972. Home video games developed quickly. *In the early 1980s, sales reached about $3 billion with the popularity of games such as Pac-Man and Space Invaders.* By the mid-1980s, *home video games competed with arcade games in graphics and speed.* Video games have continued to grow in popularity to the present day.