NSC-68 and the Arms Race

1. Study Source 7. According to this source, how serious was the Soviet nuclear threat?      
Source 7 says that the Soviet nuclear threat was extremely serious. According to the source, the Soviets would be able to deal heavy damage to many Americans and make a first strike within only a few years.


2. What measures is Source 7 calling for?     
Source 7 calls for increased air defenses, air warning systems, and a more developed civilian defense program. The source states that if they did not take these measures, the Soviets would have the upper hand in the arms race.


3. How would you describe the tone of Source 7? Use examples of words and phrases in the text to support your answer.     
The tone of source 7 is exaggerated. All the statements regarding crippling America's "superiority in economic potential" and "decisive initial attacks" were followed by a clause that basically said "if we do nothing." This clause added onto almost everything described in the document make it seem like the threat level was heavily exaggerated.


4. Study Source 8. What criticisms are made of Source 7?    
Source 8 says that Source 7 willfully exaggerated the actual threat of Soviet power in the report. It also states that the report completely exaggerated how unprepared America actually was. 


5. Do you think the author of Source 7 wanted to increase tension and the risk of war? If not, what were his motives?     
I think the author of Source 7's motives were to intimidate the Soviet Union so that they wouldn't make an attack. He knew that we were already much more armed than they were, but with this report the defense budget was quadrupled. Hence our arsenal of bombs was much larger than the Soviet Unions, providing for an effective intimidation method.

6. Do the criticisms in Source 8 mean that Source 7 is not a useful historical source? Explain your answer.

No, Source 7 is still very useful as a historical source. It shows evidence of what strategies were taken for the pure purpose of intimidation. It also shows the extent to which the U.S. government was concerned about the U.S.S.R. attacking purely based of the fact that they believed this.