Guide Entry 96.02.08

Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute

The Gulf War and Its Consequences by Antonia Coughlin

Guide Entry to 96.02.08:

As long as there have been civilizations, there have been wars. Whether justified or not they are always a menace to public health. Disease runs rampant, money is diverted from useful research, and care for veterans is never ending. On our shores actual war has seldom been a major territorial problem, as most of our wars have been fought in other locations. Yet we still feel the consequences. Most of our wars have been remote. For example, few people are familiar with the Mexican-American War and the bounty we received at its end. The Vietnam War changed that. With nightly television reports, the American public became aware of the goings on in Asia. That war, however, is not familiar to our students. The war they are most familiar with, thanks to the media, is the Persian Gulf War. America witnessed live action warfare January 16, 1991.

My paper discusses what led to and what happened after the momentous moment that Desert Shield erupted into Desert Storm.

The paper is broken down into three sections. The first section is entitled What Led To and What Happened During Desert Storm. There will be three days devoted to the historical background of the war. The facts are included in the unit.

The second part is called Did the United States Act Correctly in Desert Storm . This section deals with alleged war crimes committed by the United States as presented by an international tribunal spearheaded by Ramsey Clark.

The third part is called The Gulf War Syndrome . There will be three days devoted to a discussion on whether the health problems of some Gulf War veterans were related to the Gulf War or whether they were present before.

The main assignment for students in this unit is a mock trial. The students will put the United States on trial to determine if, after all the facts are presented, the country was justified in going to war

(Recommended for U.S. History 2, grade 11)

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