When we talk about the Cold War, two questions always come up: when did it start? And when did it end? Although the latter point is more difficult to pin down, there is a clear starting point for the Cold War. Most of the arguments for the beginning are actually post-WWII events and nothing more. As the Cold War progressed, there was plenty of blame, but it started with President Truman. Fearing that the United States would fall back into the Depression, President Truman used the post-World War II fallout to justify the Soviets as enemies and in turn spark the Cold War. Looking at the progression of events and Truman's actions, it could not be clearer that he manipulated his citizens into waging a war that would last for many years. The end of World War II certainly left more questions unanswered than questions resolved. , but the two key questions for the United States were: what happens now with Europe? And what do we do with our war-dependent economy? From 1945 until the very early 1950s, the world saw many changes due to the destruction left behind. As World War II unfolds, many events occur during this five-year period, and many of them are referred to as the start of the Cold War, depending on sources. The biggest problem with most theories is the denial that World War II had to have post-war events to truly end. For a war of this magnitude to truly end, it takes time to sort out the details. Some claim that the Yalta Conference started the Cold War, which is false. Since the Big Three were the rulers of the world at this point, there was going to be tension but they remained allies nonetheless. Europe was decimated and, of course, these three were supposed to rebuild it. The Soviet Union and the United States...... middle of paper ......nistration. “Truman Library Student Activity: Berlin.” The Truman Library. http://trumanlibrary.org/teacher/berlin.htm.Taylor, Jr., Dr. Quintard. “US History: Timeline: Cold War.” Washington State University. http://faculty.washington.edu/qtaylor/a_us_history/cold_war_timeline.htm.Theoharis, Athan. “The Truman Presidency: Trials and Errors.” » The Wisconsin History Magazine, Vol.55, No. 1 (1971). http://www.jstor.org/stable/4634671.Vandercook, Wm. F.. “Making the Best from the Worst: The 1956 Report on the “Human Effects of Nuclear Weapons.”” International Security Vol. 11, no. 1 (summer 1986), pp. 184-195, http://www.jstor.org/stable/2538880 Wang, Jessica. “Scientists and the Public Problem in Cold War America, 1945-1960.” Osiris 2nd Series, Vol. 17, Science and civil society (2002), pp. 323-357, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3655276