BY THE MID 20TH CENTURY 2 By the Mid-20th Century Strayer University The superpower status of the United States of America ensures that she is constantly intervening militarily in countries where conflicts occur. In the years gone-by, the US used to launch its own military actions against states that they considered despotic. Nevertheless, the dynamics of international politics nowadays dictate that the United Nations endorses any military interventions. Even with such changes, the US still plays the leading role. The military incursions by the United States are a subject that has always courted controversy whenever it is instigated. In the recent past, the United States has ha military activities in the Libya and Syria alongside its allies, a phenomenon that stirred opposition both abroad and home. However, the interventions are necessary as the objective is normally to try and bring stability in escalating situations. US Interventions in Last Five Years In the year 2010, the Arab world was faced with an unprecedented level of uprising that was christened the Arab Spring. Various countries were the subject of expressions of dissatisfaction by an enraged populace (Haas, 2013). Libya, under Muamar Gaddafi, was the most hit by the uprising. This led to the intervention by the NATO forces, which were led by the United States. The US as has been the case in the past led the airstrikes that finally ousted the incumbent Gaddaffi. Moreover, the United States is currently involved in the complex Syrian conflict. The intervention in Syria was warranted due to a multitude of factors. In a classical play of interventionism, which is the foreign policy that the United States has pursued since World War II, the US started by sending in military personnel to aid the Syrian rebels who were fighting against the dictator Basar Al Assad. Mr. Assad had been accused in using chemical gas against the people of Alepo. According to the International Criminal Court, this is a crime against humanity. Secondly, the threat of the caliphate group known as the Islamic State (ISIS) compelled the US, together with its allies, to start a series of airstrikes against the group in Syria. Factors that Made the US a Superpower The United States is the sole superpower in the world. The status was achieved via a lot of struggle and even bloodshed. However, there are factors that cemented this status for the US. Firstly, the collapse of USSR was fundamental to America’s quest of becoming a world superpower. Secondly, the practice of capitalism. Thirdly, the Central Intelligence Agency and its brilliant strategies also played a key role. US Policing Role Since World War II In the aftermath of the World War II, the US has partaken of policing duties in various situations. The first role involved the conflicts between the Koreas. The first Iraqi war in the 1990s was another situation that the US policed (Herring ...

1. BY THE MID 20TH CENTURY
2
By the Mid-20th Century
Strayer University
The superpower status of the United States of America
ensures that she is constantly intervening militarily in countries
where conflicts occur. In the years gone-by, the US used to
launch its own military actions against states that they
considered despotic. Nevertheless, the dynamics of international
politics nowadays dictate that the United Nations endorses any
military interventions. Even with such changes, the US still
plays the leading role. The military incursions by the United
States are a subject that has always courted controversy
whenever it is instigated. In the recent past, the United States
has ha military activities in the Libya and Syria alongside its
allies, a phenomenon that stirred opposition both abroad and
home. However, the interventions are necessary as the objective
is normally to try and bring stability in escalating situations.
US Interventions in Last Five Years
In the year 2010, the Arab world was faced with an
unprecedented level of uprising that was christened the Arab
Spring. Various countries were the subject of expressions of

2. dissatisfaction by an enraged populace (Haas, 2013). Libya,
under Muamar Gaddafi, was the most hit by the uprising. This
led to the intervention by the NATO forces, which were led by
the United States. The US as has been the case in the past led
the airstrikes that finally ousted the incumbent Gaddaffi.
Moreover, the United States is currently involved in the
complex Syrian conflict. The intervention in Syria was
warranted due to a multitude of factors. In a classical play of
interventionism, which is the foreign policy that the United
States has pursued since World War II, the US started by
sending in military personnel to aid the Syrian rebels who were
fighting against the dictator Basar Al Assad. Mr. Assad had
been accused in using chemical gas against the people of Alepo.
According to the International Criminal Court, this is a crime
against humanity. Secondly, the threat of the caliphate group
known as the Islamic State (ISIS) compelled the US, together
with its allies, to start a series of airstrikes against the group in
Syria.
Factors that Made the US a Superpower
The United States is the sole superpower in the world. The
status was achieved via a lot of struggle and even bloodshed.
However, there are factors that cemented this status for the US.
Firstly, the collapse of USSR was fundamental to America’s
quest of becoming a world superpower. Secondly, the practice
of capitalism. Thirdly, the Central Intelligence Agency and its
brilliant strategies also played a key role.
US Policing Role Since World War II
In the aftermath of the World War II, the US has partaken of
policing duties in various situations. The first role involved the
conflicts between the Koreas. The first Iraqi war in the 1990s
was another situation that the US policed (Herring, 2008).
Further, there is the peacekeeping mission in Serbia. The US
also intervened in Lebanon to quell the Suez Crisis. Finally, the
Dominican Civil Crisis also attracted the attention of the US.
Policies That Influence Interventionism
The first policy is the need to protect civilians during wars as

3. was the case in Dominican Republic. The interventions are
influenced by the need to compel the warring parties to sign
treaties that will stop wars. The desire to create democratic
governments through elections also influences interventions
(Spies, 1995). Economic interests as well play a major role in
influencing the USs interventions in various conflicts.
References
Haas, M. (2013). The united states and the Arab spring: Threats
and opportunities in a revolutionary era. New York, NY:
Westview Press.
Herring, G. C. (2008). From colony to superpower: U.s. foreign
relations since 1776. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Spies, K. B. (1995). Isolation Vs. intervention: Is America the
world's police force? New York, NY: Twenty First Century
Books.
With the birthing of a constitutional republic, slavery, the
“Peculiar Institution,” shaped American way of life in many
social, economic, and political ways. Slaves struggled to
maintain their natural human order, while white Americans
staunchly opposed humanization of slaves and strictly enforced
the ideals of chattel slavery.
Two outcomes of each of the following:
1. 3/5ths compromise:
a. Delegates that all slaves of a particular state are to be
counted as three-fifths of a white person. Prior to 1787, slaves
were treated as property, much like animals.
b. Slaves were counted as 3/5ths of a white person when
apportioning Representatives, as well as Presidential electors
and taxes.
c. The south’s representation went from 38% to 45%
representation in the HOR (Laws.com, n.d.)
2. Missouri Compromise of 1820:

4. a. With an equal 11 pro-slavery and 11 anti-slavery states,
tensions rose when Missouri requested to enter the union as a
slave state, threatening the balance of the slave debate within
the union
b. Congress admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as
an anti-slavery state to keep the balance.
c. Congress also passed an amendment that drew an
imaginary line across the former Louisiana Territory,
establishing a boundary between free and slave regions
(History.com, n.d.)
3. Compromise of 1850:
a. California was admitted as a free state, creating Utah and
New Mexico territories with the question of slavery in each to
be determined by popular sovereignty
b. Ended the slave trade in Washington, D.C.
c. Reinforced fugitive slave laws (History.com, n.d.)
4. Kansas-Nebraska Act
a. Allowed settlers of a territory if slavery would be allowed
within its boundaries
b. Overturned the Missouri Compromise of 1820
c. Helped paved the way to the American Civil War
(History.com, n.d.)
5. Dred Scott Decision:
a. Courts ruled that no free or black slave could claim U.S.
citizenship
b. Blacks could not petition the courts for their freedom
c. The decision offended and ruffled abolitionists and
north/south tensions culminated in was three years later
(History.com, n.d.)
Suggest three (3) reasons why slavery was and is incompatible
with our political and economic system.
1. Reluctant slaves, being paid nothing, treated harshly and
inhumanely, and being denied education, were uninterested in
learning new farming techniques. These slaves also depleted
the soil quickly. This caused the south to lose a competitive
advantage in farming to their northern counterparts.

5. 2. Because of the divide on the issue of slavery, the south
was unable to form trading partners, forcing slave owners and
farmers alike to diversify their interests.
3. Overall, and maybe most importantly, treating slaves as
property and debasing them to lower than animals in terms of
respect and treatment, had a great economic impact. One can
wonder what the slaves had contributed to society as a whole if
they were free people and treated equally with whites (W &
K.D., 2013)
List three to five (3-5) driving forces that led to the Civil War.
1. Economic/social differences between the north and south
a. The south was a one crop economy reliant on slave labor
while the north’s diversification into other less labor intensive
crops prompted them to focus on city life as opposed to farming
which dominated the south.
b. Diversification in the north meant people of different races
and cultures relied heavily on working with each other and not
just on one race to do all the work.
2. Slave/Non-Slave State conflict
a. Missouri Compromise of 1820
b. Compromise of 1850
i. Fugitive Slave Act
c. Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
i. “Bleeding Kansas”
1. Pro-slavery Missourians began to pour into Kansas to help
force it to be slave. They were called "Border Ruffians."
Problems came to a head in violence at Lawrence, Kansas.
3. Growth of the Abolition Movement
4. Election of Abraham Lincoln
a. Thinking Lincoln was anti-slavery, six states left the union
before he was even elected (Americanhistory.about.com, n.d.)
References
Americanhistory.about.com. (n.d.). What caused the civil war?
Retrieved from

6. http://americanhistory.about.com/od/civilwarmenu/a/cause_civil
_war.htm
History.com. (n.d.). Compromise of 1850 - Facts & Summary -
HISTORY.com. Retrieved from
http://www.history.com/topics/compromise-of-1850
History.com. (n.d.). Dred Scott Case - Black History. Retrieved
from http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/dred-scott-
case
History.com. (n.d.). Kansas-Nebraska Act - Facts & Summary -
HISTORY.com. Retrieved from
http://www.history.com/topics/kansas-nebraska-act
History.com. (n.d.). Missouri Compromise - Facts & Summary -
HISTORY.com. Retrieved from
http://www.history.com/topics/missouri-compromise
Laws.com. (n.d.). Three Fifths Compromise - constitution.
Retrieved from http://constitution.laws.com/three-fifths-
compromise
W, C., & K.D., A. J. (2013, September 27). Economic history:
Did slavery make economic sense? | The Economist. Retrieved
from
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2013/09/econom
ic-history-2