HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE
BOMB (AND THE ARMS RACE, AND THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM)
ACTUALLY,YOU SHOULD JUST CALL THESE NOTES “THE ARMS RACE.” SORRY.
THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM
NATO AND THE WARSAW PACT
For “The North Atlantic Treaty” (p. 58) or “The Warsaw Pact” (p.
59):
1. What kinds of countries are signing this pact?
2. What do these countries say their purpose is?
3. What are these countries promising to each other?
THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM
NATO
The Warsaw Pact
 Formed 1949
 Formed 1955
 Alliance of capitalist,
 Alliance of communist
democratic countries
 “An attack on one of us is an
attack on all of us”
countries
 “An attack on one of us is an
attack on all of us”
IN YOUR NOTEBOOK
 Do you think the alliance system made the world more or less
safe?
 Why?
THE ARMS RACE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
 Highly explosive devices
developed during WWII
 US dropped first nuclear
weapons on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in August 1945
 USSR tested first nuclear
weapon on August 29, 1949
THE ARMS RACE
 Date: roughly 1945-1990
 Definition: competition between the US
and the USSR to develop greater military
capacity
 Significance
 Required huge military expenses
 Made the world more dangerous… or
did it?
SOME NEW WEAPONS
THERMONUCLEAR
(HYDROGEN) BOMBS
INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILES (ICBMS)
TSAR BOMBA
NUCLEAR SUBMARINES
CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS
THE SPACE RACE
CIVIL DEFENSE
 Civil defense shelters
 Preparedness efforts
 Education efforts – Bert the
Turtle
SO WHY AREN’T WE ALL DEAD?
 Key concept of the Cold War: mutual assured destruction
(MAD)
 Principles of MAD:
 Each side maintains enough offensive capacity to annihilate
the other side
 Huge arms stockpiles are a deterrent – they discourage
offensive attacks