I'm of the opinion that it ended at some point in 1991, thus 1945-1990 inclusive is the Cold War era.  1991-2000 is sort of the cusp between the Cold War era and the Information/War on Terror/We're All Gonna Die era.  I don't think it ended with the Berlin Wall, that was the beginning of the end.

^Yeah the cold war didnt end when the Berlin Wall came down it was just the beginning of the end as you said.  I think it came to an end when the Soviet Union fell in 1991.

1991.

It 'officially' ended in 1991, but I think it got pretty warm as early as the early 80s when Gorbachev came into power. It was definately coldest during the late 50s with McCarthyism and the witch-hunts, and of course the Cuban Missile Crisis.

It 'officially' ended in 1991, but I think it got pretty warm as early as the early 80s when Gorbachev came into power. It was definately coldest during the late 50s with McCarthyism and the witch-hunts, and of course the Cuban Missile Crisis.


One could also make a good argument for subzero conditions during the years immediately leading up to Gorby. Brezhnev wasn't exactly the friendliest of fellows. I would agree with 1991 as the end of it all, though for a time the political turmoil in Russia (Boris Yeltsin, impatient Communist hardliners) made it unclear whose ideology would rule the nation.

The REALLY peak years of the cold war were roughly 1945-1975. The late '70s and early '80s saw some cooldown, and then it heated up again in the mid-late '80s before the Soviet Union collapsed. But I honestly think it ended sometime between 1989-1991 as a serious issue, even if the Soviet Union was still around.

I say 1991. 


The end of it all started with the fall of the Berlin Wall and it completely ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union.

My have a theory that the 'breakup' was in fact a deception, and that the Russian 'republic' is secretly making WMD's in the depths of Siberia. There is evidence for it if you look in the right places. And then there's North Korea, so in a way, I think the Cold War is far from dead.

Maybe the Cold War ending in 1991 was the impetus for the '90s really taking off in mid-late 1991.

Maybe the Cold War ending in 1991 was the impetus for the '90s really taking off in mid-late 1991.


That and the economic recession.  When Clinton won the election in 1992 and "Cheers" went off the air in 1993 the '80s were 100% gone.

I would draw the '80s/'90s like at September 1991.

We shouldn't get so cozy, there will be a reemergence, and this time I'm not so sure which side will be which  :-\\

We shouldn't get so cozy, there will be a reemergence, and this time I'm not so sure which side will be which   :-\\


I think 1992-2000 was just a break in the Cold War.  This is Cold War II.

That and the economic recession.  When Clinton won the election in 1992 and "Cheers" went off the air in 1993 the '80s were 100% gone.

I would draw the '80s/'90s like at September 1991.


Yeah, I agree, even though elements of '90s culture were noticeably around and getting constantly stronger from mid-1989 on. A "pre/post" period is when new elements of a culture yet to succeed the previous pop cultural period are around, but are still below that of the dying, crippled dominant pop culture. That is like late 1979-early/mid 1982, late 1999-mid 2001, and the previously mentioned one.

Yeah, I agree, even though elements of '90s culture were noticeably around and getting constantly stronger from mid-1989 on. A "pre/post" period is when new elements of a culture yet to succeed the previous pop cultural period are around, but are still below that of the dying, crippled dominant pop culture. That is like late 1979-early/mid 1982, late 1999-mid 2001, and the previously mentioned one.


Oh 1989 and even 1988 were certainly leading up to the '90s, but I don't the "Seattle" '90s really began until late 1991ish.  Before then, it was sort of a period unto itself, not New Wave '80s but certainly not Grunge '90s.  I'd call it the "Love Shack" era, I guess.

Oh 1989 and even 1988 were certainly leading up to the '90s, but I don't the "Seattle" '90s really began until late 1991ish.  Before then, it was sort of a period unto itself, not New Wave '80s but certainly not Grunge '90s.  I'd call it the "Love Shack" era, I guess.


I always thought of it as the MC Hammer/ME!!! era, it wasn't either the '80s or '90s, but had a ton of formative elements of both. That, or the Saved by the Bell! era.

I always thought of it as the MC Hammer/ME!!! era, it wasn't either the '80s or '90s, but had a ton of formative elements of both. That, or the Saved by the Bell! era.


I think to someone from the time itself it would seem '90s, and to someone afterwards it would seem '80s.

I think to someone from the time itself it would seem '90s, and to someone afterwards it would seem '80s.


They seem like the '80s trying to adapt themselves to an emerging '90s culture that doesn't agree with it.

They seem like the '80s trying to adapt themselves to an emerging '90s culture that doesn't agree with it.


Yeah, I've always thought of them as a time with people still in an '80s mindset seeing the culture change rapidly.  The early '90s seems like as much a turn of the century period as the late '90s do.

imho the Cold War ended when the fear ended. Which to me was earlier than 1989, but I picked 1989 as a sort of symbolic year.

Yeah, I've always thought of them as a time with people still in an '80s mindset seeing the culture change rapidly.  The early '90s seems like as much a turn of the century period as the late '90s do.


Meh, not really. The change to really modern mindsets was gradual and started in the late '60s but ended c. 1990. It was more of a period when boomer culture was fading, actually, IMO, so the cultural changes were pretty huge. Like the big cultural shift when the boomers became big c. 1964.

Meh, not really. The change to really modern mindsets was gradual and started in the late '60s but ended c. 1990. It was more of a period when boomer culture was fading, actually, IMO, so the cultural changes were pretty huge. Like the big cultural shift when the boomers became big c. 1964.


True.  During the 1980s, people had pretty much a modern mindset, but there was still a little sexism and political correctness was only starting to show up.  The 1970s were still pretty old-fashioned in some ways, but I'd say the '70s mindset is more like a '90s mindset than a '00s mindset.

I would say the totally modern mindset occurred by 1990ish, but I would say the '70s and '80s were close enough too.  1992 is about when reverse sexism, reverse racism, PC, etc. started happening I'd say.  For instance, when people say hating on hip hop, etc. is racist towards African Americans, or that woman are better than men.

True.  During the 1980s, people had pretty much a modern mindset, but there was still a little sexism and political correctness was only starting to show up.  The 1970s were still pretty old-fashioned in some ways, but I'd say the '70s mindset is more like a '90s mindset than a '00s mindset.

I would say the totally modern mindset occurred by 1990ish, but I would say the '70s and '80s were close enough too.  1992 is about when reverse sexism, reverse racism, PC, etc. started happening I'd say.  For instance, when people say hating on hip hop, etc. is racist towards African Americans, or that woman are better than men.


Not true at all!

Radical feminism ("feminazism") was a '70s thing...like wearing no makeup, thinking all heterosexual sex is rape. When my mom was in college in the mid '70s, the hip thing for a woman to do was proclaim her superiority over men in every way. So was the black power movement and phobia towards seeming racist toward black people, and the beginning of affirmative action policies. People were just talking about it more in the '90s. There was a revival of this in the '90s from a little in between period, but it was a delayed backlash from the white males. Now PC has ruined all the progress made in the '70s and '80s by making people not realize how horrible racism is and reducing it to being anti-PC.

Not true at all!

Radical feminism ("feminazism") was a '70s thing...like wearing no makeup, thinking all heterosexual sex is rape. When my mom was in college in the mid '70s, the hip thing for a woman to do was proclaim her superiority over men in every way.



::)  sheesh  As one who was there, I can say unequivocally that you are overstating this.

I do agree that the 70's were still somewhat old fashioned because the depression era kids(born somewhere in the silent/GI generation cusp) still had a large influence on society as they were not all that old. I remember in the 70's my grandmother still had furniture and radio's from the 50's!

Early 90s, when the change happen to Soviet Union, when it's leader Mikhail Gorbachev's reformed the programs of perestroika and glasnost.