Chapter 30-3 By Mikey St.Onge

America’s Controversial Politics George W. Bush and Al Gore were the presidential candidates in the most controversial and closest vote ever. As the votes were counted up, it became clear that whoever won Florida would win the election. However the votes continued to be counted and it only caused fights between the candidates. The Supreme Court ruled to stop the recounts. The original tally,instead of the latest, where decided official and Bush won the presidency, even though he lost the popular vote. (Interesting fact, Al Gore had to announce that George W Bush won the presidency)

Terrorism The 9/11 attacks were when terrorists part of Al-Qaeda extremist groups hijacked planes and attacked important areas of the United States, which were the Pentagon, the Twin Towers, and possibly the White House. The 9/11 attacks showed the United States that they were vulnerable to attacks and gave them something to improve on. About 3,000 people were killed. Ever since the attacks, security at airports has only been increasing. The United States then responded.

Wars against Al-qaeda After 9/11 the United States and other countries, called a coalition, invaded Afghanistan and successfully stopped the terrorist network there. After a quick and successful campaign in Afghanistan, Bush moved to Iraq, claiming that they were supporting Al-qaeda. When they refused to cooperate with authorities, they were quickly defeated in Even with the United States’ continued military success, they continued to occupy the country. This is because many insurgents, or rebels continued to harass and attack the new government.

Technology Technology in the 20 th and 21 st century has changed the way the world runs. Beginning in 1969, people have been becoming more and more connected. The economy has been effectively transformed by computers, as virtually all businesses rely heavily on them Around 207,000,000 people own cell phones, just in In 2003, 60 percent of households have personal computers.

Pro’s and Con’s of America ProCon Participate in free trade agreement. Technological innovation. Huge growing national debt. Competition with cheap labor. Maintain many natural resources. Dependence on foreign countries for many materials, including cars. Over 860 military installations in 46 countries. World’s largest military. (The US spends five times as much as 2 nd place. Nuclear weapons in unfriendly nations. Terrorists to the US everywhere. Ongoing war in Iraq. Free public education. Acknowledged world leader. Attractive to immigrants. Aging baby boom population Increasing health care costs. Many illegal immigrants.