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America at War
America at War
In this project, we answer four driving questions, all relating to how war impacts those who experience it. 1. What are the costs of War? 2. How does war impact the individual? 3. How does war impact the society? 4. Can war, with all of its destruction, be beneficial?
How did The United States get involved?
How did The United States get involved?
After World War II, the three big superpowers (Britain, the US, and Russia) of the world held the Potsdam Conference. These countries aimed to agree on resolutions for World War II, such as what to do with Germany. Unfortunately, the US and Russia could not agree on just about anything due to their ideological differences. This marks the start of the Cold War (“Milestones: 1945–1952 - Office of the Historian”). Imperial Japan was removed from Korea, and the USSR aimed to occupy the peninsula (MacArthur, Truman). In a hurry, the US gained support from the UN (see UN resolution 83 on the timeline) and occupied South Korea in an attempt to contain communism (Social Security). Unfortunately for Korea, what would have been a civil war, turned into a devastating proxy war that killed millions, destroyed the majority of all Korean infrastructure, isolated North Korea from the world, and has not technically ended to this day (“The Ethics of Bombing Civilians After World War II”).
Domino Theory: the theory that communism will spread throughout the world if more countries "fall" to it. (“Domino theory - Posters and Prints - Pritzker Military Archives”)
What are the costs of war?
What are the costs of war?
The costs of war were the devastation of the economies and infrastructures of North and South Korea and an extensive loss of Life.
The costs of war were the devastation of the economies and infrastructures of North and South Korea and an extensive loss of Life.
The costs of the Korean War were immense, not only for North and South Korea but for all nations involved. The Korean War was majority fought through bombings (“The Ethics of Bombing Civilians After World War II”). The US was focused on completely decimating North Korea, to ensure they were completely defeated. According to the Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, throughout the entirety of the war, the US dropped 635,000 tons of bombs and 32,557 tons of Napalm on North Korea (Armstrong). The enormous amounts of bombs used by both sides completely decimated the infrastructure of North and South Korea, causing massive damage to both their economies (Lee). The Korean War caused an estimated 3 million deaths, which a large part of was civilian deaths (Usmasy). There were more civilian deaths in this compared to others (Umasy). The cost of war is the destruction of both sides with enormous amounts of deaths.
Downtown Seoul after being destroyed by a U.S. bombing operation during the Korean War in 1950. (Gil)
("North")
How does war impact individuals?
How does war impact individuals?
The sheer amount of people injured or killed in war shows how much war can impact the lives of everybody involved.
The sheer amount of people injured or killed in war shows how much war can impact the lives of everybody involved.
War deeply impacts individuals, especially those directly involved in the conflict. During the Korean War, there were a lot of Chinese and USSR soldiers helping the North Koreans, and likewise a lot of British and American troops helping the South Korean soldiers. Although a lot of people went into the war, there were a lot who never made it back, and the ones that did were scarred for life physically and mentally. According to the British Army Museum, there were “nearly 37,000 killed and 92,000” (“Korean War”) just for US soldiers. In addition, more than 80% of Korean War veterans suffer from PTSD (“Post-traumatic”). Looking next at Korea, the sheer amount of destruction caused by the war to infrastructure is insane, though more for the north side than the south. More than 80% of North Korean cities were destroyed, resulting in a lot of people losing their homes and property (Armstrong). These numbers make it evident that war impacts almost every aspect of life for any person involved.
How does war impact society?
How does war impact society?
The Societal changes that were brought about from the Korean war are disproportionally negative when compared to the little positive change it brought.
The Societal changes that were brought about from the Korean war are disproportionally negative when compared to the little positive change it brought.
War can and does impact society in many different ways depending on said war. In the case of the Korean War, society was impacted when the McCarran-Walter Act was passed. (“Office of the Historian”) This act lifted the Asian Exclusion Act and let many of the “Americanese” or Asian Americans born throughout the Korean War immigrate to the US after the war ended. That being said the law wasn't all that helpful to Asians when immigrating as it, rather than totally stopping all Asian immigration. (“Office of the Historian”) Heavily limited it. There were some good parts of it though as the act created a priority system where immigrants with family or special skills are prioritized over other immigrants. Regardless of the pros and cons, many Americans pushed for this change after becoming aware of how the Americans were being treated in Korea. After two years of record-high adoption rates major of which being Asian the need for a revision of the law was clear. (Chung) In 1952 the act was passed and the adoption process for Korean American children was easier than ever. However, war tends to impact society never negatively as because of the bombing runs the United States of America ran during the war; dropping almost 700,000 TONS of bombs in only three years. (Fisher) Devastating North Korea: killing over 20% of the total population, destroying the agricultural production of the nation by 78%, destroying all industrial production by 60%, and the decimation of many North Korean cities. (Young) The lasting effects of the USA’s devastating bombing runs are still felt today in North Korea. North Korea’s rebuilding was extremely slow as the nation was dealing with rampant starvation and a crippling loss of population. With the lack of aid from other nations North Korea was and has been especially slow.
Can war, with all of its destruction, be beneficial?
Can war, with all of its destruction, be beneficial?
War can have benefits, but that does not make the entire war beneficial.
War can have benefits, but that does not make the entire war beneficial.
The Korean War had great benefits, but equally high costs. With the intervention of the US, South Korea was protected from being converted into a dictatorship, but the loss of life and destruction of property was horrific. The Korean War specifically was exceptionally brutal, as the US dropped 635,000 tons of bombs and 32,557 tons of napalm on North Korea ("The Ethics of Bombing Civilians after WWII"), and South Korea had over a million civilian deaths ("Back to the 38th Parallel"). Despite this, there were benefits to this war. Thanks to intervention from the US, South Korea remains a sovereign nation to this day ("Back to the 38th Parallel"). However, WWII is an example of the benefits of war, regardless of the destruction. While the loss of life during World War II was extreme, it served a very important purpose; protecting people, mainly the Jewish, from the horrors and atrocities of the Nazi Regime. In this way, the Korean War is comparable. While South Korea was absolutely devastated by this war, the country still exists to this day, thanks to the efforts of the US and the UN. No war goes without atrocity. Any war fought at any point in human civilization will be brutal and traumatizing. From the brutal acts committed against Native Americans to the chemical weapons used in WWI, war is horrible. And yet, it is necessary. You cannot say war is beneficial without acknowledging the atrocities from it.
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