Should the US have fought the Cold War?

Answer 1

Well, that's kind of an oxy-moron "fight a cold war" Cold war means that there was no actual fighting. Due to our strategic deterrent (nuclear missles) and arms race we had "mutually assured destruction". So as long as we both new we would ALL be blown to bits simultaneaously, there was no war. (although there were undisclosed conflicts especially with submarines-look up the USS Scorpion)

Answer 2

Most casualties were in covert proxie wars fought by client states against insurgent groups.Reliable statistics are hard to come by, but there were indeed many casualties in the "Cold War".

Should we have fought it ? In a word Yes. On balance the Soviets were by far the more corrupt and evil regime. The millions that died in the Gulags would attest to that. Facing this menace with the kind of restraint, cunning and fortitude that we demonstrated enabled us to protect the world from the kind of horror that would surely have visited it should 1)the Soviets had a free hand and/or 2)the destruction of a world wide conflict involving nuclear weapons had been unleashed.

The judement of history will bear this out.

Answer 3

Was there a choice?

Stalin wanted it all. He managed to subjugate most of Eastern Europe before the US, finally woke up. (Britain and France were on to the game, but too weak to try anything unilaterally.)

The Cold War was not started consciously, it sort of grew on both sides.

Consider if the US had gone back to an anti-war, isolationist stance. Stalin would have been able to expand his span of control, country by country, with little or no opposition, save the diminishing whimpers from the remaining free nations in the UN.

Gradually, the US influence would have waned. Russian influence would have replaced it. There would be a point where Russian military and economic power would be greater than that of the US. At that point -- would someone like Stalin have hesitated?

wsulliva

Answer 4

Not sure what you mean by this. The two greatest combatants of the cold war were America and Russia. As well as espionage, East and West thought wars by proxy (usually supplying arms and military advisors). Why do you think the Middle East got so many arms shipments (Super Powers keeping the locals sweet in order to ensure that oil flowed). You could also look at Vietnam, Afganistan and a whole hoste of coupes and suport for rebel groups around the world.

East and West went to war, we just didn't do it in our own back yard.

Luck

Answer 5

What were the other options? Learn Russian or engage in a nuclear exchange? Given the options it was the only thing we could have done.

Don't forget the USSR took many countries by force and held them with tanks in the streets. Many many people died, at the Berlin Wall alone, trying to escape Communism. If we had not engaged in the Cold War and in fact won it, we would be speaking Russian today.

Answer 6

Yes, there's alot less casualties and destruction in a Cold War than a Hot War, especially with nuclear weapons on hand.

Answer 7

Yes. The Soviet Union was a totalitarian government that was bent on Empire. When the Cold War started it's leader was Joesph Stalin a man who rivalled Hitler in murdering innocent people. Add to that the fact that atom bombs make consquences of being unprepared deadly.

Answer 8

Right now we are having war with
winter cold

Answer 9

Of course. Who wants to have another system imposed upon them when the system they have is working well? Every one would have had to start over in their lives, unless they were killed by the Godless Communists.

Answer 10

well actually no because wars aren't
happy