Daniel Aaron Lazar

How The Beatles Rocked the Kremlin

A note from the filmmaker

Posted in AP Russia, USH: Cold War, World Civ-Cold War in West | No Comments »

The United States and China During the Cold War

Warren Cohen of University of Maryland offers this concise summary of Sino-US policy during the Cold War.

Here is the response sheet

Posted in AP China, USH: Cold War, World Civ-Cold War in East | No Comments »

Iran and the United States in the Cold War

Few outside countries have more at stake in the evolution of Iran’s political situation than the United States, which has been in a state of open enmity with the Islamic Republic for more than three decades. Threats of Iran-backed terrorism, Tehran’s apparent nuclear ambitions, and its evident aim of destabilizing American allies—chiefly Israel—are perpetually high on the list of US concerns in the region. Why is Iran so important to the US? What explains the enduring animosity between the two countries? Answers to these and other questions about the United States’ position in the region today can be found by looking back to the Cold War.

Read more about US Cold War Policy in Iran (4 pages)

Posted in AP Iran, USH: Cold War, World Civ-Cold War in East | No Comments »

1945-1998 Nuclear Explosions

“This piece of work is a bird’s eye view of the history by scaling down a month length of time into one second.  No letter is used for equal messaging to all viewers without language barrier.  The blinking light, sound and the numbers on the world map show when, where and how many experiments each country have conducted.  I created this work for the means of an interface to the people who are yet to know of the extremely grave, but present problem of the world.”

See this display of the history of nuclear explosions.

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Re-Examining The Cold War Arms Race

Journalist David E. Hoffman’s new book The Dead Hand revisits the high stakes maneuvering that took place during the Cold War arms race and details the inner-workings of the Soviet nuclear program.

Hoffman had access to secret Kremlin documents while researching his book, which chronicles the Soviets’ internal deliberations, offers new insight into the roles of Mikhail Gorbachev and President Reagan, and describes the urgent search for nuclear and biological hazards left behind after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Hoffman, a Washington Post contributing editor, spent six years as the paper’s Moscow bureau chief. He is also the author of The Oligarchs: Wealth and Power in the New Russia.

Listen to his interview with Terry Gross (40 minutes)

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Paranoid Style of American Politics

In this essay, originally published in Harper’s in 1964, Pulitzer-Prize winning historian Richard Hofstadter offers an astute thematic analysis of paranoia in American politics. He examines the paranoid reactions to Masons, Catholics, Jesuits, Communists and others. Sadly, perhaps his perceptions are as timely as ever.

Posted in US GOV: Public Opinion: Ideology & Socialization, USH: Cold War, USH: Introductory Materials | No Comments »

Power Point: Stalinist Propaganda

Here is my lecture. It begins with a conceptual analysis of propaganda and then focuses on Stalin’s propaganda campaigns.

Posted in USH: Cold War, USH: The 1950's, World Civ-Age of Anxiety and Totalitarianism, World Civ-Cold War in West | No Comments »

Opposing Perspectives: The Impact of the Collapse of the USSR on the Global Balance of Power

The Breakup of the USSR Makes the US the Leader of the World (Elliot Abrams)

The Breakup of the USSR Signals the End of US World Leadership (Zoltan Grossman)

Write a 1-2 page, single-spaced position paper which adheres to the following:

I. Short Intro with a Thesis (specific, complex and refutable)

II.  Summarize the ideas of the author with whom you do NOT concur and explain why his ideas are disagreeable (clearly demonstrate that you have read and understood this author’s ideas). Do not feel compelled to disagree with this author entirely as there surely is some truth to his argument.

III.  Summarize the ideas of the author with whom you DO concur and explain how his ideas are superior to the other author (clearly demonstrate that you have read and understood this author’s ideas).

IV. Conclude by restating your thesis and exploring the significance thereof.

Please bear in mind that your goal is to illustrate that you have read BOTH documents and that you have thought about them. Be prepared for a healthy debate in class.

Posted in USH: Cold War, USH: Reagan Years, World Civ-Cold War in West, World Civ-Modern Global Dilemmas, World Civ-Post Cold War | No Comments »

Opposing Perspectives on Reagan’s Role in the Dissolution of the USSR

Reagan’s Presidency DID cause the collapse of the USSR (Edwin Meese III)

Reagan’s Presidency did NOT cause the collapse of the USSR (Daniel Deudney and G. John Ikenberry)

Write a 1-2 page, single-spaced position paper which adheres to the following:

I. Short Intro with a Thesis (specific, complex and refutable)

II. Summarize the ideas of the author with whom you do NOT concur and explain why his ideas are disagreeable (clearly demonstrate that you have read and understood this author’s ideas). Do not feel compelled to disagree with this author entirely as there surely is some truth to his argument.

III. Summarize the ideas of the author with whom you DO concur and explain how his ideas are superior to the other author (clearly demonstrate that you have read and understood this author’s ideas).

IV. Conclude by restating your thesis and exploring the significance thereof.

Please bear in mind that your goal is to illustrate that you have read BOTH documents and that you have thought about them. Be prepared for a healthy debate in class.

Posted in USH: Cold War, USH: Reagan Years, World Civ-Cold War in West, World Civ-Post Cold War | No Comments »

Primary Source Readings: Origins of the Cold War

1. A Communist Perspective (Ponomaryov)

2. Patterns of Western European Integration (Puchala)

3. The Truman Doctrine

4. The Marshall Plan

5. The Marshall Plan: An Instrument of Peace? (Sweezy)

Read these five documents and respond to these 15 questions

Here is a lesson plan for the ensuing discussion

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