Did America Cause The Cold War?

Essay: To what extent did America cause the Cold War?

The Cold War happened to be a period of time, stretching from around 1945-1991, characterized by Soviet-American tension. This tension was based off of a variety of conflicts; most of these conflicts being based off of economic clash and expansionism, along with territorial greed. Although it is argued by post-revisionists that the Cold War was inevitable due to the obvious economic differences and desire for ultimate power, the U.S. was mostly responsible for the Cold War because of its belligerent desire for the world to be without communism, and its overbearing attempts to spread its capitalism and vessels for trade across Europe. The U.S.’s belligerent desire for the world to be

capitalism” was based off of greed and expansionism that favored its own enforcement of capitalism rather than the concept of social equality (Nye). The Marshall Aid, whilst it was deemed problematic by the Soviets, it was also deemed slightly problematic by level-two revisionists alike. The Marshall Aid may have been dubbed as a generous act to Americans, yet it was evident that there was another motive behind it. “According to level two revisionists, the Marshall Plan of aid to Europe was simply a way to expand the American economy. The Soviets were correct to reject it as a threat” (Nye). This basically connects what most already know about capitalism to the probable motivations of Truman: self-benefit. The reason why America had made alliances and broke bread with foreign countries was not only due to its fear of the spread of communism, but also because of desires to expand and create capital for itself. The interest of money was placed over the interests of people. “Charles E. Wilson, the president of General Electric Corporation, was so happy about the wartime situation that he suggested a continuing alliance between business and the military for "a permanent war economy" (Zinn). This statement by Wilson seems to express the secret desires of the American people. War is generally known to benefit the economy as more and more money goes to the production of weaponry. “The biggest gains were in corporate profits, which rose from $6.4 billion in 1940 to $10.8 billion in 1944. But enough went to workers and farmers to make them feel the system was doing well for them” (Zinn). This statement shows how capitalism and control go hand in hand. Other than the fact that it is blatantly shown that America had benefitted greatly from the mere start of the war, it was said that enough money went to blue-collar workers… in order to keep them