The Marshall Plan and the Post World War II Era

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World War II was, quite simply, the most deadly and destructive conflict in human history. In fact, E.B. "Sledgehammer" Sledge, a renowned U.S. Marine who fought on the Pacific Front during the war, gave a first account of the atrocities he experienced in his 1981 memoir, “With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa.” He said, "It was so savage. We were savages. We had all become hardened. We were out there, human beings, the most highly developed form of life on earth, fighting each other like wild animals” (Sledge). Why, then, is World War II referred to as "The Good War" and why is it still significant today (Terkel 387)? Regardless of the pulverization, demise, and decimation, the war helped introduce a new world, one in which Hitler's Third Reich in Europe was nonexistent. Such a world was advocated by the peacemakers of the post World War II era. On June 5, 1947. The US Secretary, George Marshall, made public the United States government’s decision to aid in the political and economic restoration of Europe (Marshall).

Little did he know, this twelve-minute speech managed to change the course of history and the fate of a devastated Europe after World War II. This led to the implementation of the Marshall Plan, otherwise known as the “European Recovery Program”, and the Truman Doctrine. Not only did they revolutionize the European economy, but they were able to bring about political change by containing the spread of communism. Both programs also provided a transition into the creation of new political institutions like NATO and the European Community of Steel and Coal. The Second World War likewise denoted the start of the end of world colonialism as patriot developments started to triumph over debilitated pioneer domai...

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