Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev

Mikhail was the man credited with helping end the Cold War was born into a peasant family on March 2, 1931, near Stavropol. He joined the Communist Party in 1952 and completed a law degree at Moscow University the following year. He came to the attention of Politburo members Mikhail Suslov and Yuri Andropov, who got him elected to the Central Committee in 1971 and arranged foreign trips for their rising star. In 1978 he was back in Moscow, and the next year he was chosen as a candidate member of the Politburo. Gorbachev lost the political initiative. This now belonged to the leaders of the various Soviet republics, in particular the president of Russia, Boris Yeltsin. At the end of the year, Gorbachev was forced to resign as president of a Soviet Union no longer in existence. Since that time, he has been blamed by many Russians for their current political and economic predicament. In the West, he remains the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize winner who helped end the Cold War.

The Collapse of Communism

The first factor which contributed to the failure and eventual collapse of
communism was the fact that the Communist party's domination was
illegitimate from the beginning,communism never had popular public support from the start. The second factor is that communism never really had the support of the people there were constant social parties that were opposite communism.

Apartheid and Nelson Mandela

Apartheid was a system of segregation enforced by the National Party(NP)in South African government between 1948 and 1994. South Africa gained self-governance as a dominion within the British Empire and were expanded and formalised into a system of legitimised racism and white nationalism after 1948. Nelson Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist and leader of the African National Congress. He spent 27 years in prison on convictions for crimes that included sabotage committed while he tried to end apartheid. Among opponents of apartheid in South Africa and internationally, he became a symbol of freedom and equality.

African Independence

The story of Africa's independence started after World War two, people wanted change at that time only Egypt, Liberia and Ethiopia were independent. Africa saw the Indian's as a inspiration as the Indian's were in self rule. So Indian independence gave momentum for Africa's independence.Everywhere the mood was hopeful as people were inspired by the vision of a new society free of European control.

The Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a battle between the U.S, the Soviet Union and Cuba during the Cold War. It was noted that the confrontation would of led to a full scale nuclear war. After the Cuban revolution the U.S grew concerned most notably President Kennedy of Fidel Castro and his government. Thinking and knowing that the Soviets had Nuclear weapon President Kennedy assembled the EXCOM(Executive Committee of the National security council) The Excom quickly discussed three courses of military actions. Which were an air attack on the missile, a full military invasion,and a naval blockade of Cuba, which would then be quarantined.

NATO and the Warsaw Pact

NATO is a military alliance that was established by the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty. It was established when the Treaty of Brussels was signed by Belgium,Netherlands,Luxembourg,France. This alliance would then later become the Western European Union.
The Warsaw Pact was an organization of communist states in Central Eastern Europe. This treaty was modeled on the NATO treaty both treaties were similar in that there was a political Consultative Committee, followed by a civilian secretary general, that was the only similarities between the two. Members of the pact pledged that if they were attacked they would help each other.

"The Right Stuff"

The film the right stuff is a film about the space race between the U.S and USSR. The film showed the very competitive nature of both these nations. Both nations wanted to send men into space for space exploration. Not only that but also land on the moon, and send space satellites. It was more of a rivalry between the U.S and the USSR in the Cold War.
In the film it was quite obvious who was leading the victory, the Soviet Union was successful in sending the first man into space while the U.S was experimenting with chimps which made them look weak at what they were doing, Meaning the U.S was scared of what might happen if sending a man into space. they did not want to take that risk.
What I will remember from the film and the Cold War is that it was a rivalry during the Cold War, and that it was one of the most expansive thing that the U.S has done during the time, meaning the money spent on space exploration.

Night and Fog

Night and Fog is a documentary that was made in 1955, the film showed the very setting of the Holocaust to great detail. It is shocking what you will find in the film, at first the film starts with the viewing of the locations of the genocide activities but then shows the very cruel actions of the Nazi's like the tools that they used the way they got rid of the bodies. To me the most shocking part of the film was when the bodies were discovered by the Allied Nation in Germany and then had to be removed by burring them, it was quite painful to see human beings even if they are dead to be treated like trash. In comparison to the film "Schindler's list" I found the film to be too good, what i mean is that it showed me too much of what the Holocaust was. But the film was excellent, it had allot of details that the other film did not. But the documentary in my opinion is not for the feint of heart.

Schindlers List

Schindler's list was a good representation of the holocaust, the movie showed a different point of view. It showed a perspective from a Nazis, who we are told that is good. The movie was very dramatic and had allot of dark humor, from the victims running and trying to hide was quite memorable. The movie had little humor, most of the movie was about the relationship between the Jewish people and the Nazi's. The movie was really gritty and showed the feel of a horrible nightmare reality that was plaguing the Jewish people.
The execution scenes were the most gruesome and memorable it left a painful feeling like watching a horror movie. It really showed the inhuman acts of the Nazi's. In contrast to the documentary it was quite similar in that both movie showed the Nazi's actions were and how they dealt with the Jewish people. The movie was great and showed a different perspective which was a great addition.

The Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was a treaty signed after World War 1. The treaty was signed at the Versailles palace in Paris. The treaty left effect's to Germany's territorial, financial, military and general. In military Germany reduced the number of soldiers 100,000 men; the army was not allowed tanks. She not allowed an air force, she was allowed only 6 capital naval ships and no submarine.
Financially Germany was suffering, from the lost territories; the country could not maintain economicaly. Trades with coal from other countries were a huge loss to Germany economicaly. Germany was also forbidden to unite with Austria to form one superstate, in an atempt to recover from the loss.
The Treaty was not liked by germans, most of the them did not want to sign it but they had to. It's either they sign it or be invaded by the Allies.

Mustafa Kemal

Mustafa Kemal wanted the nation of the Ottoman empire to be secular. Kemal saw that the Ottoman empire was far to strict with the religion aspect. He wanted change in the nation the change would lead to the modernization of what is now known as the country of Turkey.

Mustafa Kemal used the republican regime for the people, Kemal new it would be the people's choices for the best. Kemal made better choices for what was fair for people. He liked the idea of letting women vote, which became one of six principles along with other principles. But besides letting women vote Kemal also wanted peasents to vote, he stated that the true rulers of Turkey were the peasents.
Kemal did not like the class structure he felt that it would not make the community as one and would not get the best out of them. Which he wanted, Kemal wanted every citizen to be equal and fair which make a better productive community.

Film Lesson Gandhi

Gandhi helped India by using public speaking and gaining the trust and minds of Indian's. He wanted India to be a independent country and wanted the inhabitants in India the Sikh's, Hindu's and Mulsim's to be one. Britain made it hard for Indian's, by exploiting Indian's economicaly and making them second hand citizens. He stood up to the injustice's of Britain and took this unfair matter to his own hands and made a movement. He started making speeches that were public which gained attention from both Indian's and Britain. Britain was controlling literaly everything in India like salt mines, cotton and even the Indian people. Gandhi saw where they get their money and power from so he started influencing Indian's to stop buying products from Britain when Indian's themselves can make it. So Indian's took these word's and followed Gandhi and his freedom movement. Gandhi made a oath to himself to not to use violence he said using violence would just cause more violence so he urged his follower's to never follow the violent route. The famous saying came from him which is "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind". Though Indian's refrained from using violence Britain used excesive violence even killing Indian's whenever they would march with Gandhi or just following his movement.