Cuban Missile Crisi Essay, Research Paper

The Cuban Missile Crisis is one of the most tense and scariest periods in our nation’s and the world’s history. The world was literally on the brink of nuclear annihilation. Once again the different ideologies of the United States of America and the Soviet Union had led them to confrontation only this time it could have had much more serious consequences. There are literally thousands of web sites that deal with this issue. The two sites I found the most interesting are 14 Days in October and The Cuban Missile Crisis.

14 Days in October was the most fun and informative site I visited. The homepage for the site is called Operations Center. It has a picture of John F. Kennedy, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro pasted over a picture of Cuba. From this page there are several links that let you explore the crisis in depth. The included links are the Crisis Room, the Briefing Room, the Sit Room, the Major Players, the Recon Room and the Debriefing Room. A brief description of each link is as follows:

The Crisis Room is the main thread through the site. You will find an in-depth account of the crisis and analysis of the Crisis.

The Briefing Room has a ten-minute RealAudio narration and a condensed version of the main path. The creators of the site list this as the link to visit if you only go into one room. After visiting this site you are instructed to visit the debriefing room and to take a quiz to test your knowledge.

The Sit Room contains copies of actual letters exchanged between Khrushchev and Kennedy. It also includes sound clips from an EX-COMM meeting and

Kennedy’s October 22 speech.

The Major Players link takes a look at the main characters involved and the reasons for their involvement. The link includes biographical information on the important decision-makers and how and why they were involved with the crisis.

The Recon Room contains actual reconnaissance photographs that Kennedy and his advisors viewed during the crisis. The site also contains specs and pictures of planes, missile and launch sites.

The Debriefing Room was of particular interest it allows you to ask any questions you may have about the crisis and to post your own thoughts on the crisis. There is a quiz included to test your knowledge on this intense situation.

14 Days in October is a site I recommend to anyone with an interest in the Cuban Missile Crisis or the Cold War in general. Not only is it informative, it is also captivating with the different views provided of the events transpiring during that time. It’s RealAudio playback of events and the quiz at the end to test your knowledge are added bonuses.

Cuban Missile Crisis is another very informative site on the Cold War. Not only does it give the United States, the Soviet Union and Cuba’s side of the story it also takes a look from Turkey and the UN’s perspective. The site includes several links to other sites on the web. One of the included sites is the 14 Days in October mentioned above. Some of the other links with brief descriptions are:

The US Foreign Policy Documents site list links to American foreign policy documents related to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The National Security Archive link is a link to an independent non-governmental research institute and library located at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The Archive collects and publishes declassified documents acquired through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Individuals can investigate the government’s role in events that at one time was classified.

Collective Memories is a link that that individuals use to describe their memories from the Cuban Missile event. These are not administration people but a broad range of individuals from all walks of life. Included in these are the memories of people that were anything from middle school students to military personnel at that time.

Nikita Khrushchev’s memoirs include a scanned copy in Russian of a Khrushchev’s facsimile to Kennedy. It also includes the English translation.

The site includes several other links to events related to the crisis that any student or history buff would find interesting when dealing with the Missile Crisis or with U.S. – Soviet relations during this era and the Cold War in general. I found it particularly interesting to read the thoughts of people from the general public who’s well being was tied to the outcome of this event. I would recommend this site to anyone looking for a source on the Cold War.