-
Reagan is known for his economic and foreign policies during the end of the Cold War. Reagan focused on building up the American military as a deterrent to the USSR. Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative sought to protect America from potential nuclear attacks from the USSR. Arguably Reagan's most famous quote, he commanded, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall" in his speech at the Brandenburg gate in 1987. He also pursued Strategic Arms Reduction Talks with the Soviets.
-
On Nov. 4, 1979, Iranian militants invaded the US embassy in Tehran and held US diplomats hostage. Six Americans were able to escape into the city. The CIA developed a plot (code-named "Argo") to sneak 6 hostages who managed to escape from the embassy out of Iran. CIA used forged documents, deep-cover agents, and disguises developed by Hollywood artists to help the 6 Americans safely escape to Zurich. The rest of the hostages would be released during President Reagan's inauguration.
-
President HW Bush assumed office in 1989. Known for his military service as a Navy pilot in World War II, Bush spent summers in Kennebunkport, Maine until he moved to Texas during his adulthood. Bush and his wife, Barbara, had six children, the oldest of whom died of leukemia in 1953 at the age of 3. Some of the Bush family's many ties to Texas include MD Anderson pediatric clinic, which is named after Robin Bush, and the George HW Bush Presidential Library, which is located in College Station.
-
On Nov. 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell, reunifying Germany. Although the fall of the Berlin Wall is generally associated with the fall of communism, the USSR didn't officially dissolve until 1991. However, it's true that the fall of the wall signified the deterioration of communism: East German guards relinquished control over the Wall shortly after 11:00pm on November 9th. Sixty seconds later, thousands of East Berliners symbolically climbed the wall, soon joined by their Western brethren.
-
As the General Secretary of the Communist Party, Gorbachev implemented policies of perestroika and glasnost beginning in 1987. Glasnost lifted the ban on political discussion and loosened censorship, while perestroika involved a restructuring of Soviet life. Market economics were introduced to Russia and capitalist enterprises such as McDonalds were allowed to operate in Russia. Ultimately, these reforms led to the democratization and eventual fall of the USSR in 1991.
-
The Gulf War began when Iraq, under the leadership of dictator Saddam Hussein, invaded Kuwait. The international response was swift and decisive; the UN instated a series of sanctions on Iraq while the US led a ground and air offensive. The US ultimately won the war when the Iraqis retreated from Kuwait on February 28, 1991. Hussein was eventually held trial for war crimes.
-
At the time the highest-casualty school shooting in America, the Columbine school shooting ravaged the nation and set a trend for similar tragedies in the future. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold planted bombs in their high school and brought illegally-acquired guns to kill others. Harris and Klebold attacked Columbine on Hitler's birthday and reportedly asked several hostages whether they believed in God before shooting them when they responded "yes." They killed 12 students and 1 teacher.
-
The 2000 presidential election was highly contested. In the end, George W. Bush beat Al Gore. Countless recounts only showed that Bush won Florida by 527 popular votes and 29 electoral votes. Many Americans were concerned that ballots may have been inaccurately counted due to hanging chads on paper ballots that would have led to the ballot not being counted for the right candidate.
-
On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked 4 airplanes to attack the World Trade Center in NYC, the Pentagon, and an unconfirmed target (speculated to be either the US Capitol Building, the White House, or Camp David). Two planes hit the World Trade Center, causing them to eventually collapse, 1 plane hit the Pentagon, and the other plane went down in a Pennsylvania field thanks to the courageous actions of a few passengers. The attacks sparked a 20-year-long War on Terror.
-
This battle in Afghanistan officially began on October 7, 2001, when the American military began a bombing campaign of Taliban forces. Osama bin Laden eluded American forces when he left Afghanistan in December 2001. He is thought to have escaped on December 16 on horseback to Pakistan.
-
In October 2001, Apple released the iPod for the first time. This prototype was clunky at 6.5 ounces and expensive at $399-499 (depending on how many gigabytes consumers wanted). In September 2005, the iPod nano was released and was only 1.5 ounces. The iPod shuffle was released in September 2006 and started at $79, a significant reduction from the cost of the original iPod. The shuffle eventually came in several colors besides the original silver (e.g., blue, fuchsia, and black).