Chapter 29 - The Search for Order in an Era of Limits, 1973-1980 Flashcards
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
cartel formed by Persian Gulf states and other oil-rich developing countries
energy crisis
period of fuel shortages in the U.S. after the Arab states in the OPEC declared an oil embargo in October 1973
environmentalism
activist movement that began in the 1960s that was concerned with protecting the environment through conservation, pollution control measures, and public awareness campaigns
Silent Spring
book published in 1962 by biologist Rachel Carson that analyzed DDT’s toxic impact on the human and natural food chains, mobilizing environmental activists
Earth Day
annual event honoring the environment that was first celebrated on April 22, 1970
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
federal agency created in 1970 to enforce environmental laws, conduct environmental research, and reduce human health and environmental risks from pollutants
Three Mile Island
nuclear plant near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania where a reactor core came close to meltdown in 1979
stagflation
economic term coined in the 1970s to describe the condition in which inflation and unemployment rise at the same time
deindustrialization
dismantling of manufacturing (especially in automobile, steel, and consumer-goods industries) in the decades after WWII
Rust Belt
the once heavily industrialized regions of the Northeast and Midwest that went into decline after deindustrialization
tax revolt
movement to lower or eliminate taxes
Proposition 13
measure passed overwhelmingly by Californians to roll back property taxes - inspired “tax revolts” across the country
Watergate
1972 break-in at the Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington D.C. by men working for Nixon’s reelection campaign - Nixon tried to cover for them and eventually resigned
War Powers Act (1973)
limited president’s ability to deploy U.S. forces without congressional approval
Freedom of Information Act (1974)
law passed in the wake of the Watergate scandal that gave citizens access to federal records