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Europe since 1970

Terms

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Helsinki Agreements
1975 agreements that all major states agreed upon that recognized the Soviet sphere of influence and the importance human rights
Yeltsin
first President of Russia; saved Gorbachev in a attempted hardliner coup
Tony Blair
British Labour Prime Minister, 1997 to 2007; staunch American Ally on war against terrorism
Thatcher
British Prime Minister that increased the British political, military, and economic strength
Existentialism
philosophy that focused on meaninglessness of the age; developed from the disillusionment of the two world wars, and relied on materialism and determinism
Ayatollah Khomeini
Shiite religious leader of Iran, led the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran and ordered the invasion of the US Embassy
Camus and Sartre
two prominent Existentialists
guest workers
immigrant workers who originally welcomed in West Germany as an answer to the labor crisis; in the 1990's they became a source of controversy as they called for equal citizenship, especially after the euphoria of reunificaiton in Germany
Ostpolitik
Willy Brandt's policy of "opening toward the east" that increased relations between West and East Germany in 1972
Kosovo
region of Yugoslavia that had autonomy until Milosovic attempted to crush the Albanian group with ethnic cleansing; 1999 NATO used military strikes against Yugoslavia until the crisis came to an end in 1999
magic realism
Postmodern literary movement in Latin America that combined realistic events with dreamlike or fantastic backgrounds, Garcia's One Hundred Years of Solitude is among the best examples
minimalism
offshoot of serialism, more harmonic than serialism; best example is Philip Glass
IRA
Irish Republican Army that has used terrorism off and on for the past several decades
Bosnia
political chaos occurred between Serbs, Croats, and Bosnian Muslims after its independence; the 1995 Dayton Accords established some type of stability
SDI
Reagan's strategic defense initiative that attempted to create a defensive shield, reducing the threat of MAD; nicknamed "star wars"
Pope John XXIII
reigned as Pope from 1958-1963, sparked a Catholic revival and summoned Vatican II that liberalized (modernized) a number of Catholic practices
Postmodernism
philosophy that rejects absolute truths; allows for relativism. Artistically, a rise of medieval art such as pottery and weaving became important
Gulf War
1990 US led check on Iraqi power when Hussein invaded Kuwait; the first test of the newly created US-Soviet relations
Walesa
Polish Solidarity leader that was arrested in 1981 and became the first President of Poland in 1989; failed to solve the economic issues and lost election by 1991
glasnost
Gorbachev's policy of "openness" that allowed for freedom of the press, Pravda was able to print political controversy
Kohl
Christian Democrat Chancellor of West Germany that witnessed the unification of Germany
Evil Empire
Reagan's nickname for the Soviet Union, illustrated an end to detente
OPEC
Organization of Petropleum Exporting Countries; international cartel that inflates price of oil by limiting supply; Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and UAE are prominent members
the EC
the European Community that was established to increase European Economies, became the EU with the 1992 Treaty of Maastricht
Solidarity
Polish labor movement that called for emancipation from the Warsaw Pact; in 1981 its leaders were imprisoned and the Soviet Union asserted authority
Falklands War
conflict between Britain and Argentina; a military junta claimed ownswership of the British colony sparking an international crisis. The British won the war and the military junta lost authority in Argentina
perestroika
Gorbachev's policy of "restructuring" of economics, allowed for development of Free Enterprise System
the Red Brigades and Mafia
illustration of the Italian chaos where the communist group assassinated key officials and rise of organized crime; the Italian government could not stem the chaos leading to instability
Mikhail Gorbachev
Soviet dictator from 1985 to 1991 whose policies caused the end of the Soviet Union; revisionist historians identify him as the true Cold War Hero, not Reagan
Waiting for Godot
Samuel Beckett's novel that identified the unrealistic; two men wait for an appointment that may or may have not been made; the suspense is not what is going to happen, but what is exactly happening right now
Pierre Trudeau
Canadaian Liberal Prime Minister from 1968 to 1984 (with one short break); he liberalized social laws such as legalizing homosexuality and expanding the right to divorce; attempted to bring stability with the French speaking Canadians by creating Official Languages Act, allowing for bilingualism to be the official policy
Francois Mitterand
Socialist President of France from 1981 to 1995
serialism
dominant Post-War music movement; compositional procedure where an order of succession is set for specific values: pitch, loudness, and units of time.Oliver Messian is identifed as first Serialist
computers
technology that has changed the way Western Civilization operates; led to the internet and ever increasing globalism
Watergate
US political crisis in which Nixon tried to cover up an irrelevant political event; the cover up, along with the Vietnam Crisis, discredited Nixon forcing him to resign
Czech Republic and Slovakia
established as independent states in 1993 because of the ethnic conflicts that could not be resolved during democratic reforms
Slovenia and Croatia
the first two Slavic states that declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991
Honecker
East German dictator from 1971 to 1989 that ruled with an iron fist, secret police and refusal of reforms; in 1989, his economic policies cause a mass East German migration through Hungary to get to West Germany, which caused him to open borders with West Germany
Brezhnev
Soviet Dictator from 1964 to 1982; brought an end to the Dethawing of the Cold War, instituted his doctrine of intervention in Eastern Europe; invaded Afghanistan in 1979
CIS
the political organization that took the place of the Soviet Union in 1991; excluded the old Soviet states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia
Pope John Paul II
the "rock star" Pope who sought a revived relationship with the global youth; transcended politics calling for leaders to work to prevent war
New World Order
from 1989 to 1991, the world believed that earth was progressing into a positive state of affairs with the end of the Cold War, unfortunately this euphoria came to an end with the rise of global terrorism
Green Parties
political organizations throughout Europe that have focused attention on the ecological issues, women's rights, and the need for a greater welfare states
World Trade Center
Once an icon for the global economy in New York, became a target for terrorism in 1993 and 2001; al Queda was solely responsible for the 9-11 attacks
Americanism
the wave of American pop culture that has permeated all aspects of Western Culture; rooted with rock and roll such as Elvis, the music revolution saw a British fad headed by the Beatles
Theater of the Absurd
postwar literary movement that reflected the times (1950's and 60's) of disillusionment with fixed ideological belives in politics or religion; a semse of meaninglessness underscored the movement. Samuel Beckett and Gunter Grass are among key writers
Milosevic
Yugoslavian dictator that used Serbian nationalism to strengthen his position; he was imprisoned for crimes against humanity with his policy of "ethnic cleansing"
supply-side economics
macroecomic movement that called for tax cuts, especially to the industrialists, in hopes to spark new investments in infrastructure; then, with a greater supply being produced, the number of jobs would increase. With more jobs, more money to be spent was created. Ronald Reagan supported this policy in the 1980's
global village
McLuhan's optimistic idea that the world would become barrierless because of the growing technology; the new world would have fewer cultural distinctions
NGO's
groups that work to cultivate a global perspective; focus on social, environmental, and economic issues while not being politically aligned
Thatcherism
Thatcher's economic policy that focused on streamlining the government expenses to strengthen the British Pound; this was done at a social cost
Vaclav Havel
Czech playwright that called for the independence of Czechoslovakia by 1989; became the first President of Czechoslavakia and the first President of the Czech Republic in 1993
Abrastract Expressionism
American artistic movement that reflected the exuberance of the Post-War world; Jackson Pollack's Lavender Mist seems to be best example

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