The Cold War lasted from the end of World War II in 1945 until 1991, when Soviet-influenced communism collapsed. The casualties and losses of the Vietnam and Korean Wars, the two major wars fought indirectly between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, would appear as a disaster for the two world superpowers. But in reality, that wasn't the case. The Cold War brought the United States into a period of extreme consumption, particularly in the nuclear arms race, to improve technologies that helped further evolve the power and influence that could be used with the American technology. Over time, these technologies could be integrated more into our daily lives in the form of microchips that can be used in devices such as phones and radio. This period also encouraged people all over the United States to spend money in the United States so that the United States could increase revenue for its government. Because the United States was critical of the Soviet Union and its form of communism, it had to show how well it treated its own people so as not to be seen as hypocrites. For this reason, Jim Crow laws allowing "equal" segregation between whites and blacks were overturned and abandoned, thus giving more rights to African Americans. The nuclear arms race and the Cold War had positive economic, technological, and social effects for the United States. The Cold War was started due to several causes, these causes stemmed from the competition between the United States and the Soviet Union during World War II. First, President Truman of the United States at the time had a personal dislike for Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union during World War II. The Soviet Union wanted to spread communism throughout the world, while the... middle of paper ......et-cons/ (accessed April 16, 2014). Oracle ThinkQuest, "An Overview of the Crisis" , Cuban Missile Crisis: Summary, Oracle ThinkQuest, library.thinkquest.org/11046/days/(accessed January 26, 2014). PBS Online, “Timeline,” Race For The Superbomb, PBS Online, www.pbs.org/wgbh/ amex/timeline/indextxt.html (accessed January 9, 2014). Pillai Prabhakar, “Causes and Effects of the Cold War,” Buzzle, www.buzzle.com/articles/causes-and-effects-of-the-cold- war.html (accessed April 1, 2014).Плакаты времен СССР | Blog by Анапа.инфо, “Плакаты времен СССР”, http://www.anapa.info/blogs/post_2793/ (accessed May 1, 2014). The Cold War Museum, “1950s,” Sputnik, The Cold War Museum, www.coldwar.org/articles/50s/Sputnik.asp (accessed February 3, 2014). The Cold War Museum, “1960s,” The U-2 Incident, Gary Roberson, www.coldwar.org/articles/60s/U2_incident.asp (accessed February 4. 2014).