World leaders of the early 90s EXPLAINED

[@sharpjet25]

Interesting as someone who grew up in the 2000s, never knew much about any of these people.

[@armageddon845]

My thoughts exactly! Thank you JJ!

[@shawn.the.alien423]

Out of all of them, I have distinct memories of all but maybe two.

[@normanmccollum6082]

Keep learning, young man. Or young woman? Stay sharp. A lot can be learned from history. Personally, I was born when the Soviet Union was still around. Glad it's dissolved. Communism... tends to really not be a good thing. At all. Kids should be taught this more in schools. A hundred million is a big number...

[@ninostudios199]

I agree, thanks JJ.

[@shawn.the.alien423]

@@normanmccollum6082 I think, generally speaking, that extremist governments (or dictatorships) on both ends of the left-right spectrum tend to fail either quickly or if anything within a lifetime. Nazi Germany lasted 12 years while the Soviet Union lasted 69 years, though in the latter's case, they had the benefit of being on the winning side of WWII, and like the US still had vast amounts of intact infrastructure. When you look at western democracies like the US and Canada, they've been around for 246 and 153 years respectively. I think that it has a lot to do with the inherent dynamic of having a multi-party system that close to center in either direction and not having absolute leaders. Biden and Trudeau may be the leaders of the US and Canada, but it's safe to assume that neither will declare themselves king or unquestioned leader, and neither will start murdering huge swaths of their countries population out of anger or disagreement.

[@toguskyre]

I would have also included Francois Mitterand (France), Suharto (Indonesia) and Slobodan Milosevic (Yugoslavia/Serbia) as notable world leaders of the time

[@Skeloperch]

Milosevic seems an odd exclusion. I'd also have included Carlos Salinas de Gortari, Kim Jong-il or his father, Nguyễn Văn Linh, and Narasimha Rao. Mexico, North Korea, Vietnam, and India punch well above their weight class on the world stage. Lee Kuan Yew also seems a very missed opportunity.

[@aidanking4197]

@@Skeloperch in terms of outsized impact, the Bosnian wars are hard to overstate and Milosevic and his Serbian ultranationalist cronies were one of the great accelerants of the conflict. Refugee politics, a post-Cold War cleavage between NATO and Russia, and neoconservative conceptions of humanitarian intervention were heavily influenced by the atrocities, well-intentioned mistakes, messaging, and memory of the breakup of Yugoslavia.

[@UlmDoesAnything]

I know Gorbachev was already added but shouldnt Yeltsin cut it there aswell? Maybe Kim Il Sung could also still make it cuz he didnt drop from his fattiness until 1994

[@lucidexistance1]

And then mustache

[@yeslol9303]

@@aidanking4197 as a Serb we all hate milosevic that man ruined us through his own greed

[@olegshtinov08]

I am from the former Soviet Union. It’s a very thorough description of the Gorbachev’s rule in this video. Also, I love the pronunciation of ‘glasnost’ and ‘perestroika’. You say them really accurate. Brilliant work JJ! Thanks for this material!

[@JJMcCullough]

Those words were pretty commonly used in the west so I feel like a lot of us learned how to pronounce them!

[@Duck-wc9de]

When I was a Young teenager in the late 2000's Portugal, we learn softly about the cold war and about the perestroika. Until then I thougth that the soviet Union ended because the IMF, the EU and the WB (because the economic intervention of those 3 was called "TROIKA", from the greek for "group of 3") It was stupid, but I was just a kid in a country in crisis, hearing "Troika" on TV, 24/7

[@lucidexistance1]

Mustache

[@Vykk_Draygo]

@@Duck-wc9de That's not stupid, that's normal. Kids are trying to make sense of the world with limited information - they are bound to get things wrong. The inference you made wasn't dumb, it was just based on incomplete information.

[@revertrevertz5438]

I feel his description is good, and very western oriented. My experience is most people in the USSR dislike home because he was the one who created the crisis in the first place, hence forcing the collapse of the Union. So to many the guy is seen more as a puppet than an actual reformist.

[@kevinriquelme4691]

If you are reading this JJ, I would like to thank you for this channel. I love the subject matter of all your videos and how unique your editing style is. It isn't a good Saturday for me without an upload from you!

[@cloutfisher7714]

I never know that I have an interest in a topic until JJ makes a video about it

[@JJMcCullough]

Your kind words brightened my day and warmed my heart my friend. Sometimes it’s too easy to focus on the negative, but I want to pause and be grateful that I am lucky enough to have strangers saying words as nice as these to me.

[@lucidexistance1]

Mustache

[@joelbeaudoin2761]

@@lucidexistance1 pretty mustache

[@Braydonut]

jj’s so damn cool

[@JJMcCullough]

RIP Gorby, your death has made this video out of date only a few weeks after it was released.

[@Nolant.]

Rip

[@Nolant.]

He in the Great Pizza Hut in the sky now

[@RQBtv]

I was just about to comment about this, RIP Gorby!!!

[@kartiksadat]

RIP

[@vertigo747]

@@Nolant. Rip Gorby

[@schrodingersmoose]

I can’t tell if setting Nelson Mandela’s death date to 2003 was a cheeky joke regarding the Mandela effect or if it was a typo. I’m going to assume the former because that’s pretty funny

[@alf1306]

i domt think itd be a typo bc 0 and 1 r on two different sides of the keyboard

[@schrodingersmoose]

@@alf1306 I didn't even think of that, you're right. Even more reason for me to enjoy it as a Mandela Effect joke

[@MisterTipp]

What are you talking about? Mendellah was the one who died in prison, right?

[@simonster-9094]

@@alf1306 Unless he was using the number keypad on the side of the computer, which 1 is right above 0.

[@alf1306]

@@simonster-9094 if you mean above as in directly above, i cant imagine still as its very hard to make a typo with a letter underneath rather than one beside

[@Ritzer168]

For Australia specifically, Bob Hawke would be one that changed a fair bit for Australians. He bought in Medicare, had one of the longest standing left governments which spanned him and Paul Keating and basically set up the country to have sustained growth well past his tenure. He also held the world record in drinking a "yard" of beer in the fastest time (of course).

[@mike04574]

The trudeau of australia. Most famous australian Pm. But the majority of his rule was in the 80s tho

[@saintofkildas]

The labour leader we need today

[@penciledink9970]

Man I was sad when Hawke or Keating didn’t appear

[@gimmertyfrog755]

Bob Hawke wasn't really a 90s politician, nearly at all, Howard and Keating would make much more sense on this list

[@thebristolbruiser]

The most thoroughly anti-Tasmanian PM in history. Held us up in a kangaroo court and subjected us to a future of foreign domination and mere subsistence on foreign tourism. By killing our energy sector and our most prominent industries he doomed us to become a land where wealthy mainlanders come to “invest” in property while our own population cannot afford the most basic necessities. If I ever go to the mainland I will piss on Bob Hawke’s grave.

[@ghejnuni]

I came back to this video to see Gorbachev's bit. May he rest in peace.

[@ZagrebBundist]

Rest in piss more like.

[@antonellogiannuzzi6609]

I would have added Giulio Andreotti, who was prime minister of Italy 3 different times between the 70's and the early 90's for the grand total of 7 different administrations, and similarly to the Japanese pm he was in many different positions, most famously minister of defence and foreign affairs, and was generally seen as the ruling guy. He was nicknamed Divo Giulio from Latin Divus Iulius, "Divine Julius", an ephitet of Julius Caesar after his posthumous deification).Generally a controversial figure as he was attributed in a lot of Italian controversies, raging from Mafia, Free Masons, a potential far right coup d'etat, Gladio and so on. One of his more famous quotes is "Aside from the Punic Wars, they attribute to me everything"

[@eriksvitek145]

I love the video, really great, but I think Vaclav Havel, president of Czechoslovakia and Czech Republic was also a very important 90s leader. He over saw the very important velvet divorce of Czech Republic and Slovakia. The velvet revolution was important for the transformation of Europe, and could be seen as the way that all countries should break up, not through civil war.

[@JJMcCullough]

I agree

[@eriksvitek145]

With that being said, I think this sort of video about important events in Europe over the past 500 years would be really cool. Much of European history has had a significant impact on world history, from Christopher Columbus, to the ottomans and 30 years war to modern events such as WW1, WW2 and the Cold War

[@sarkaneumannova6073]

Just a little correction! Velvet revolution was the 1989 peaceful revolution when we transformed from dictatorship to democracy. The 1993 separation was peaceful as well, but the term doesn’t belong to it.

[@shinyagumon7015]

The Concept of Core Knowledge really fits your content well. Good Job on that. Being born in 1999 I obviously don't know a lot about 90s politics, but as an East German I was always surrounded by people who aren't as fond of Helmut Kohl as most West Germans. Mainly because the rapid economic growth he was promising didn't really happen, which of course had many factors to it but obviously blaming Kohl is easier. I even remember when he died and a local city refused to rename a street in his honour for this reason.

[@lucidexistance1]

A mustache killed my mom.....

[@blin483]

JJ firstly, you’re the man. Secondly, please keep making ‘core knowledge’ videos because literally everything you create is so fascinating. This type of content still feels completely brand new, and I reckon you can do this for another year or two before it starts becoming stale. Love from the UK ❤️

[@JJMcCullough]

Thanks so much my friend ❤️

[@GarisonC]

Kim Young-sam of South Korea would be an excellent addition to the list. Many westerners forget that during the 1980’s South Korea was consistently violating civil-rights. It’s easy to overlook because their northern neighbor is so much worse and we have a “at least they’re not that bad” mentality. Kim marked the change to the corruption, granting amnesty to 41,000 political prisoners in March 1993 just after taking office. While his son later tarnished that reputation by being in a corruption scandal, Kim changed the landscape and ushered in the “6th Republic.”

[@mike04574]

And the fact that South Korean was and has been growing since the 60s even despite the civil right violations

[@syrialak101]

@@mike04574 I doubt private investors were willing to put their money in a country as unstable as Cold War South Korea.

[@caiawlodarski5339]

Was he related to the Kims of North Korea ? Because that would be an amusing factoid.

[@marcello7781]

@@caiawlodarski5339 I like to imagine that way but I doubt for the simple fact that Kim is such a popular last name among Koreans, like Rossi for Italians and Rodriguez for Latin Americans.

[@lucidexistance1]

But... mustache.....

[@TheAmericanPrometheus]

For some reason, whenever I think of 90's era world leaders, Yeltsin is the first one that comes to mind.

[@literallyme2071]

To me it’s all these “Third Way” politicians, like Bill Clinton, Tony Blair or Gerhard Schröder (the latter two became leaders in the late 1990s though)

[@TheAmericanPrometheus]

@@literallyme2071 that's true. I imagine after nearly 5 decades of bitter ideological warfare, people were desperate for some unassuming, pragmatic centrism, hence the emergence of the third way politicians of the 90's.

[@literallyme2071]

@@TheAmericanPrometheus kinda wish we’d have that today… both Europeans and Americans seem to be more divided than ever

[@TheAmericanPrometheus]

@@literallyme2071 would it be too reductive to think of the Cold War as being something akin to a wider culture war on a global scale? if not, maybe it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to predict that the culture war occurring in America and Europe will end in the same way - with one side seemingly winning, only to give way to pragmatic centrism soon after.

[@literallyme2071]

@@TheAmericanPrometheus could be. I just want for both sides to talk to each other more.

[@enzolabre6295]

Just dropping by to say that all your latest videos have been a joy to watch! CORE KNOWLEDGE about the world is always very interesting to watch , especially with your scripts, delivery and editing. Thanks for the amazing content throughout these years, 1Million subs is getting closer and closer every week. Big Hugs!

[@JJMcCullough]

Thanks so much!!

[@lucidexistance1]

Stache.....

[@adamsfusion]

The framing you used for images was really evocative of the 90's computers themselves, even down to the weird grainy-ness you'd see on a system with limited colors. I appreciate all those little details.

[@matthewbrotman2907]

Windows 3.1 FTW

[@Texan_Ranger]

Sadly, now Gorby isn't with us anymore. RIP

[@pigpentaboo]

Some other good additions to this list would be: - Kim Young-sam. President of South Korea/ROK from 1993 - 1998. He was the first civilian President in over 3 decades, and he helped get rid of a lot of the corruption from the dictatorships of Park Chung-hee (1961 - 1979) and Chun Doo-hwan (1980 - 1988). - Lech Walesa. President of Poland from 1990 - 1995. He was the first President of Poland in the post-communist period, and he was one of the most important people in the world in the 1980s and 1990s. Walesa was the head of Solidarity, an anti-communist group and, later, a political party. - Suharto (Soeharto). President of Indonesia from 1968 - 1998. He was a very corrupt dictator and kleptocrat (not unlike Marcos of the Philippines), and it is estimated that he stole over $10 billion from his country. - Erich Honecker. Head of the Socialist Unity Party of East Germany/GDR, and dictator of the country from 1971 - 1989. He was the man responsible for the brutalities of the Berlin Wall in the 1970s and 1980s, and he was one of the last hardline 'Stalinist' leaders of Eastern Europe that lasted into the 1980s. He was forced out of power shortly before the Berlin Wall fell in October - November 1989. - Mobutu Sese Seko. President of the Congo/DRC from 1965 - 1997. As dictator, he had thousands of his own people executed and killed, and the rampant corruption of his government affected tens of millions. A kleptocrat, he stole around $5 billion. He was forced from power after the First Congo War.

[@lucidexistance1]

I eat mustaches like you for lunch

[@stephenpalmer9375]

Yeah, as someone who was in his 20's in the 1990s, Lech Walesa was one of the most reported on leaders from my viewpoint in the UK - although maybe more in the previous decade as a voice of opposition. Erich Honecker of course wouldn't count on this list as he was out of power by 1990 :)

[@pigpentaboo]

@@stephenpalmer9375 Yeah, and I think that it would be a good idea for JJ to do a Core Knowledge World Leaders video for each decade - the 1980s would be very fascinating, as well as the '70s and the '60s. The '40s, well....

[@franciszaldivar337]

I would've also loved to have heard about Carlos Salinas: Mexican president from 1988- 1994, he's mostly known for his attempt at stabilizing the Mexican economy during his term, adopting the reforms from his predecessor, while also aggressively privatizing hundreds of state-run companies.

[@adweetiyamohapatra7326]

Significant but quite underateted Prime Minister of India during early 90s was PV Narshima Rao (1991 - 1996 ). He helped in liberalization and opening of markets in India . Which led to lot of growth . However he was also involved in various corruption cases and his own party didn't highlighted his work and legacy.

[@officialdjinnx4756]

Sonia and Rahul were jealous he was the best Congress PM

[@raghavgupta2399]

Thank you for highlighting the achievement of the Narshimha Rao govt.

[@alexanderfo3886]

6:05 " I would say that Aquino fits into a certain category of world leader that was quite popular in the 1990s: someone promising the dawn of a new age where everything would be better, but many of the deeper problems persisted..." The 1990s in a nutshell. Thank you very much for this video.

[@conradojavier7547]

Also Her Death is THE Only Reason Noynoy was Elected Peesident, screw the Party's Intended Candidate Mar Roxas(Grandson of Manuel Roxas).

[@voltamek]

I would add Alberto Fujimori, democratically elected president, turned dictator, turned democratically elected president again in Peru (reigned 1990-2000). His regime (or democratic government depends on who you ask) shaped an entire generation of Peruvians, ended a decades long internal conflict with multiple paramilitary terrorist groups, but also killed innocent (mainly indigenous) Peruvians in the thousands while doing so. Every Peruvian boomer I've ever met has been traumatized by his presidency or events surrounding it. Some still adore him to this day, some hate him and revile him as a despot, and some don't necessarily like him, but see him as a necessary evil for the time. One of the most interesting political figures in modern history, to me at least.

[@lucidexistance1]

I'm pretty much just hungry for a mustache at this point

[@Hand-in-Shot_Productions]

From this comment, I learned quite a bit more about Fujimori's government! I think I will do some more research into it... unless JJ can do it first! Thanks for the info!

[@voltamek]

@@Hand-in-Shot_Productions I would love a follow up that brings up Fujimori lol, that political era deserves more mainstream western attention

[@MrMuel1205]

I feel like, in terms of overall historical impact, Deng Xiaoping is by a wide margin the most significant of these. His reforms were instrumental in the explosive growth of the Chinese economy and its rise to power. Gorbachev would be the only other figure on this list with that sort of macro-historic impact.

[@captainl-ron4068]

Castro was on the list....Cuba doesn’t swing the same kind of club as China or the Soviet Union but this man is part of the ‘old guard’ generation. A contemporary and direct ally of Stalin and Mao.

[@雷-t3j]

The soviet union was probably still going to break up anyway though, and any intervention probably would have simply turned the process from mostly peaceful breakup to mostly violent breakup.

[@cardenova]

Agreed

[@kathianetoure2216]

your videos were my secret weapon during my exams,they really helped in my essays,love from england

[@beatlesdork1274]

Given that you’re such a huge Simpsons fan, I love that you said “George Bush Jr. and Jeb Bush” just like Homer did. I just wish that you showed the drawings Homer made.

[@lukesmith1818]

"What's the husband's name, Bar?" "I'm not getting involved, George."

[@TheAlexSchmidt]

I heard on TV Tropes that when the Simpsons writers first came up with that joke they weren't sure if there even was a George Bush Jr. although I wouldn't be surprised if that was wrong.

[@juannietoacuna]

I was a bit disappointed not to see Carlos Menem. He wasn't too important internationally but he was president during one of the most interesting and crazy times in Argentina. He also was a very extravagant and controversial person who is pretty interesting to study even if you don't agree with his actions.

[@sushicat999]

Su discurso del cohete a Japon simpre sera iconico jajajaja

[@theprofessionalfence-sitter]

Wait, were Argentinian politics ever not crazy, or is that just the economy?

[@jackyex]

@@theprofessionalfence-sitter no, the economy and the politics were always crazy

[@juannietoacuna]

@@theprofessionalfence-sitter the politics were always crazy, but with Menem it was on another level.

[@souravghosh1003]

It's so interesting that so many things were happening at the same point of time , like abolishing apartheid on one side and some large scale war on other .

[@kartik5001]

i mean it’s happening right now.

[@lucidexistance1]

But mustache, so be it

[@realhawaii5o]

I would add François Mitterrand of France, José Maria Aznar of Spain, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Ali Khamenei of Iran. If allowed to have more than one per country, also Boris Yeltsin of Russia and Nelson Mandela of South Africa. There were also a couple of leaders that were important in the 90s but really became more important later, such as Portuguese prime minister António Guterres which would go on to become the secretary-general of the United Nations.

[@albertosnchez98]

Aznar was a shit president. The second worst spanish president behind Felipe González.

[@sigmaballsnetwork]

Also Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia

[@lucidexistance1]

I once saved an Apple with a Caterpillar inside it crawled across my lip and holy hell what am I looking at?!

[@andrewfranciscohughes2481]

Yitzak rabin

[@sammynewcomer2611]

Hi J.J., I recently came across the list of minor league baseball teams in the United States, and the mascots are bizarre, ranging from bananas to biscuits to trash pandas. Just wanted to put this on your radar if you didn’t already know. I think it would be a fun video in the future. Keep up the great work!

[@sammynewcomer2611]

I realize this is pretty much the exact opposite of the “core knowledge” philosophy that you outlined in the video, but could be fun nonetheless

[@ungrave5231]

Mascots definitely fit the bill for a JJ video.

[@dannyarcher6370]

What is a trash panda? A raccoon?

[@lucidexistance1]

Notice the mustache)L!

[@popekr1]

@@dannyarcher6370 yes

[@fiercetoast8338]

I would probably add Bob Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991. He's famous here in the land down-under for being one of our country's few 'great leaders'. I remember before the previous election, Bob Hawke was lauded as the person that our new Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese should aspire to be. He contrasted with the western world's era of conservative dominance, being from the left wing Labor party. He's probably most famous for introducing our free healthcare system, Medicare.

[@hammerandpickle7390]

Paul Keating wouldn't be a bad choice either but he was PM more mid 90s. He was a game changer for the Australian economy

[@emmakorhonen]

And he was famous for drinking beer really fast lol

[@luisshorts.]

@@emmakorhonen a true Australian

[@leserpentvert3364]

Maybe Tony Blair would be good to add; I feel like his brand of ‘post-history’, centrist technocrat leader wasn’t really represented in those artworks, since Clinton wasn’t in there either (also there was no UK Prime Minister). Great video, JJ!

[@barneymiller3689]

Tony Blair did not become prime minister until 1997, John Major would have been the better pick

[@j3ojos]

Tony Blair is certainly late-90s. He wasn’t elected leader of the Labour Party until after John Smith’s death in 1994, and didn’t come into power until the 1997 General Election.

[@rivera147]

@@barneymiller3689 Major doesn't embody that 90's post history concept at all though, he's a successor to the Neo-Liberal Neo-Conservative dynamism of the 80's as well as an old guard trying to bring conservatism back to a time before that era. Just because Blair wasn't PM for most of the 90's, he's still emblematic of that era, and the third way movement. Not to mention the fact that he was still present as LOTO and a very public face in John Smith's shadow Cabinet

[@liberalcitydweller]

We Third-Way-ers don’t care if we’re in a mere J.J. video because so many institutions do use our ideas 😎

[@harrypainter7472]

​@@rivera147 Blair's rise in popularity and 1997 win were also emblematic of the whole Cool Britannia and Britpop movements in the 90's as well. Major doesn't fit in with that at all.

[@wbcx4491]

Last year, I was a senior in high school and I had to give a history lesson as part of my final project. I spoke about the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and none of my classmates knew who Gorbachev or the USSR even was.

[@joecarrol2247]

@@lilwerner1518 because its possibly the most important historical event since WW2

[@JJMcCullough]

They need more CORE KNOWLDGE

[@wbcx4491]

@@JJMcCullough Exactly

[@wbcx4491]

@@vapo377 It might not be, but knowledge of recent history is always important when it comes to analyzing current events. i.e. Ukraine.

[@wbcx4491]

@@lilwerner1518 I would argue we need to know more recent history than older or ancient.

[@GuyShōtō]

I'm just loving the return of the Stache by JJ. It's been around for awhile but, I'm just now really admiring it.

[@aniseedus]

P. V. Narsimha Rao, Prime Minister of India from 1991 to 1996. Oversaw India's economic liberalization and end of Licence Raj, which has a major part in propelling India to its current stature.

[@forthrightgambitia1032]

With Gorbachev's death a few hours ago Brian Mulroney is the last of any of the well known world leaders from the 80s still alive. (Well, unless you count Jimmy Carter, though I'd say he's more of a 70s figure.)

[@billyvincent8668]

RIP Brian Mulroney (1939-2024)

[@jeffreylooter535]

For as much as I like history my weak spot is anything between 1980-2000 so this video has definitely helped me learn a lot of things

[@mind-of-neo]

As someone who grew up without learning much about my own society's sociap customs and culture, i appreciate that there even is a channel dedicated to teaching things like this

[@Mudkip0408]

I'd love to see this continue as a series (so do it for the late 90's the early 2000's the late 80's the early 80's etc)

[@CalabashNineTJ]

I like this Core Knowledge format. I'd love more videos like this.

[@luisdergroe8944]

I think one could add to Kohl that in his later years his image got considerably worse. He became associated with a lack of reforms that were badly needed, many of the mistakes made during the unification of Germany got blamed on him and he was notoriously corrupt. Most of the consequences started becoming clear in the 2000s and nowadays he’s a somewhat controversial figure in Germany. 1989/1990 was really the peak of his image.

[@owenbillo5513]

What JJ talks about at the beginning made me think about how most history that gets attention is military history. In that sense, JJ's cultural history is very valuable

[@108nighthawk]

Love your content J.J.; really some of the best content on KZbin.

[@joncampbell5021]

JJs channel is a must for Canadians or people who want to know more about Canada and the world from the perspective of a Canadian.

[@Lagiacrus1996]

For us in Australia, we had Bob Hawke around this time. He was pretty cool, he set a world record for sculling beer. He also basically set the foundation of our modern social safety net, but the record was much cooler.

[@sammitchell4165]

JJ, just wanted to say that I had zero interest in history before I stumbled upon your channel. I really detested learning about it and was my weakest subject. But you’ve made it so fun! And I can’t get enough of it now. Thanks for much for enlightening us.

[@staC-wh6ik]

@Joshua Taylor same way some people aren't interested in maths, despite being necessary for a ton of situations.

[@cneale9431]

I love this art style! I was expecting Alexander Lukashenko to show up, but I guess in the 90s we didn't really know what he would become

[@rocou945]

you're the kind of guy i wish i had as a teacher growing up. thank you for educating me well into my 30's since school failed us all lol

[@andrewhawes2114]

Great video it's really interesting to learn about these figures. Modern post cold war history is usually a topic not taught in US public schools. I feel like there's a generational gap between millennials and gen z partly because of this.

[@Bopnan]

The 90s in general were a really interesting time in world politics. Probably the most enthusiastically optimistic decade in recent memory, filled with some of the most interesting political figures. If I had to add one to the list, I would of course have to give a shout out to THE embodiment of the 90s in my country: Carlos Saúl Menem, who was president of Argentina between 1989 and 1999. He took over a country ravaged by hyperinflation and demoralized after the return to democracy wasn't as smooth as people were expecting. He was on the same lane as the conservative leaders of the Northern Hemisphere, directing the country towards a free market economy with heavy focus on the privatization of public companies. That, paired with a very strict monetary exchange policy, led to the lowest levels of inflation in recent history however it was also characterized by high unemployment rates (since privatization led to massive lay outs) and the decline of national productivity (as foreign companies and products forced local companies out of business). His government also oversaw the most recent Constitutional reform, voted in 1994, that saw massive changes to the structure of the government and the addition of newer rights into the constitution. It was witness of the only two terrorist attacks by a foreign force that ever took place in Argentine history: the bombing of the Israeli Embassy and the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina in 1992 and 1994 respectively (both by Hezbollah, backed by the Iranian government).

[@Bopnan]

Menem even behaved like a sort of celebrity. He was surrounded by the kinds of scandals you'd hear from a famous actor, both during and after his presidency had ended. There were too many things that happened during his government that feel like out of a television show: his divorces, the death of his son in a mysterious plane crash, him pushing Argentina into the Gulf War, the illegal sale of weapons to Ecuador and Croatia during those countries war times, etc.

[@lucidexistance1]

There once was a mustache that spoke

[@mosesracal6758]

The coming dawn of the 2000s may have pushed it but I do agree, the 90s was filled with what are some of the craziest antics of political world - every country is sure to have something big happen during those years.

[@StephanieJeanne]

Thanks for the history lesson, JJ. I knew of many of those people, but there were a few unknowns, especially that last one. Didn't know about her. I do like the core knowledge concept. 😊✌️

[@lucidexistance1]

Little did he know he's got something on his lip

[@conserva-chan2735]

I would love a similar episode about the 1980s

[@sempersuffragium9951]

I think it would be really interesting if JJ were to make a video exploring the rise of conservatism in the 80's. What caused it and why did it end

[@Alex_Plante]

What caused the emergence of the Neo-Conservative (or Neo-Liberal in Latin countries) movement in the late 1970s and early 1980s was simple - the stagflation of the 1970s - a period of high inflation and slow economic growth. People wanted change, and especially aggressive policies to bring down the rate of inflation. The main policies advocated by the movement were low income taxes (especially for higher income brackets), cuts in social spending (but increases in military spending, so total government spending didn't really fall), privatization of government-owned corporations, union-busting, tight monetary policies, and strong law and order policies such as greater and more intrusive policing and stricter sentences. As to it's end, you could maybe say the movement sort of faded away gradually. In the US and UK, traditional left parties adopted many Neo-Conservative policies, such as New Labour lead by Tony Blair and the so-called New Democrat movement lead by Bill Clinton. The New Democrats were a group of centrist, mainly Southern USA Democratic governors who wanted to move the party toward the center. Clinton, as governor of Arkansas, was the leader of the movement. Another reason is that many of the circumstances that brought about the movement no longer existed by the late 1990s or early 2000s. Economic growth sped up in the USA and the West generally through the 1990s, mainly thanks to the growth of the technology sector of the economy. Inflation was brought under control by the 1990s, mainly thanks to so much manufacturing moving to cheap-labour countries such as China, and the collapse of the USSR leading to the Russians dumping raw materials onto world markets at low prices. The collapse of the USSR in 1991 also lead to large cut-backs in defense spending. After the 1997 Asian Crisis, interest rates were kept very low, and are still low by historical standards even today. I think what finally finished off the movement was the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2009, combined with the increasing inequality of wealth and income since 1980, which discredited deregulation of the financial sector, and generally discredited many of the laisser-faire ideas that underpinned the movement.

[@lucidexistance1]

My mom had a mustache once but she died of brain cancer

[@pjacobsen1000]

@@Alex_Plante Excellent overview! I was in my teens in the 80s and in my 20s in the 90s. I remember both decades well and your description mirror my memory.

[@eragonlindemann7236]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/sKGvdHyZarWph9k JJ video about Christian Right; includes Neocons

[@TheLazyColombian]

Absolute joy to watch, as always! I’d love to see more of this type of content (maybe make it a series where you pick 15 leaders from different eras). Thank you J.J! We’re all a little bit smarter every week, thanks to you and your videos.

[@lucidexistance1]

Is certainly a mustache to watch

[@johnchessant3012]

The most shocking fact from this video was Gaddafi was in his 20s when he came to power!?? Had to look this one up myself. Apparently Gaddafi was born the same year as Joe Biden, and became leader of Libya in 1969 before Biden was even elected to his first office, a seat on the New Castle county council. Gaddafi was killed in 2011, aged 69. Anyway great video! I definitely want to see more of these Core Knowledge lessons.

[@Skeloperch]

I would love to see a version of this for the early 2000s, early 2010s, and late 2010s/early 2020s. The 15 or so most well known and/or important leaders of the time period globally would make a fantastic ongoing series.

[@fantuswitt9063]

Yes pleassseeeeeee!

[@lucidexistance1]

It's my stash no just the mustache?

[@SquidTips]

This is the millennial history lesson I have always needed.

[@theskatenerd]

great video! you always present such interesting topics so well! and i love the longer vids too

[@ScottishMeetBall]

Mikhail Gorbachev has passed away as of 8/30/22

[@Hand-in-Shot_Productions]

I found this to be quite an informative video! For instance, I've learned about Kichi Miyazawa (which I haven't even heard of before!) and a few of the other leaders of the 90s. Also, nice shrug at 17:56. Thanks for the video!

[@alechenry1483]

History classes in America, or at least in my experience seem to end around the 80s so the 90s have always been of a blind spot to me. Thanks for the great video J.J.!

[@jeremyromand]

Love that you took inspiration from such fantastic art and turned it into another great video. The stache always looks great man!

[@marcocaputo7115]

Looks like Italy is missing from this video. That's for a good reason, though, as most Italian prime ministers, much like the Japanese, didn't last long in the top office and mostly exerted their political influence through ministerial positions. However, if one Italian leader from the 90's were to be on this list it would definitely be Silvio Berlusconi; his pivotal role in the transformative politics of that decade and beyond made him one of the most polarising figures in modern Italian history. Berlusconi first came to power in the 1994 elections as an outsider, self-made entrepreneur, just as the previous Italian party system was crumbling; he put together a coalition of moderates, post-fascists and Northern autonomists to defeat the opposing left-wing bloc. His government fell soon after, but he eventually came back to power and ruled throughout most of the 2000s, leaving a permanent mark on Italian politics and culture. He is best remembered for the vast cult of personality around him and his international standing (think of his numerous foreign policy gaffes, but also his special relationship with leaders such as Putin or Gaddafi), ad personam legislation, a controversial education reform, his resignation after the 2011 financial crisis and much more. Believe it or not, he's still kicking around: he was a serious contender for the Presidency earlier this year and is running for the Senate in the September elections (which I would love JJ to cover, by the way).

[@stephenpalmer9375]

I was also expecting Berlusconi, who from my viewpoint in the UK, is probably the second best known leader of Italy (after Mussolini). He was almost a proto-Trump, with the whole cut of personality thing, along with being the owner of AC Milan during their greatest modern years, and of course.. sex parties

[@commonweakness9060]

I really dig the core knowledge format. Please do more. Thanks J.J.

[@Dertrend]

These videos are really great for the reminding of and imparting of cultural knowledge to the average person.

[@JJMcCullough]

Thanks so much! That’s what I try to do.

[@lucasl4644]

I’m about 19 now and I remember being young lad in the uk and there where quite a lot of football chants about colonel gaddafi, vilifying him.

[@65mcman]

Rip Gorbachev

[@ItsJustMe0585]

I have to say, I look forward to JJ every weekend. Videos never disappoint. :)

[@FanTasteRPG]

I like the 90's theme on this one, also a sidenote but I like the image generator you use to make the pictures of the leaders look like its on a win 95-98ish style system with the proper style of the patchy pixel thing going on.

[@EthanT52718]

I learned so much about the leaders of the 1990 because of this video. I don’t think I knew some of these leaders, and you’ve given me an interest in them. Thank you so much for the amazing video!

[@xp_studios7804]

This is a good time to study leaders, being right about after the third wave of democratization. Lots of interesting dynamic people!

[@bjs301]

Excellent video. You could turn this into a series, maybe breaking recent history into 5 year blocks.

[@Mizekslav]

Honestly thought Slobodan MiIošević is going to make the list, I mean he was partially responsible for the fall of Yugoslavia

[@wbcx4491]

He kind of straddles the 90s-2000s line

[@JanusXAlvarenga]

This was awesome! Please do another core knowledge video. Would love to see other decades.

[@cpegg5840]

Gorbachev just died of this writing, Aug 30 2022! What a coincidence

[@lilliedoubleyou3865]

Thank you for referencing ED Hirsch! I used to teach at a Core Knowledge school and loved that our educational paradigm was essentially a backslap to cultural relativism ♥️

[@morbwilbury1685]

Excellent video and I loved the graphics used in the video. If I could add anyone, I’d add John Major. I’d love more core knowledge videos. Maybe different leaders in different eras, but other topics would be cool as well.

[@JJMcCullough]

Thanks! Did you know all 15 of these guys?

[@morbwilbury1685]

The only ones I didn’t know were Bhutto, Miyazawa, DeKlerk and Aquino. I knew the rest though.

[@daemon2426]

This was awesome. I knew about some but not all of these people. I'd love to see more videos like this. Core Knowledge like this tends to get overshadowed a lot in Southern schools in the US.

[@linusdogthegameboy1983]

Everyone: “JJ you gotta get your head out of the nostalgia clouds it’ll consume you” JJ’s next video: “Hello friends my name is JJ and today will be talking about the Nickelodeon radio alarm clock”

[@absolutellienot5424]

Great upload from JJ. i think the core knowledge format comes together really well. world leaders of every decade would all be great videos. i even think he could bring the same format to even more cultural topics just as well.

[@adanactnomew7085]

Im so early this video wasn't deleted yet

[@StudioBleenk]

This is awesome. I was just in that library last week checking out these leader paintings!

[@paddaydaddy]

Just what I need after a long day. Thanks as always for the fantastic videos!

[@Burgerburgerburger-t8f]

My parents were born in the 70's and 80's. I was born in 2011. I find world leaders and geopolitics a big thing about me. I really like the way you use geopolitics or geography or Vexoliogy in a way. Nice job J.J!

[@stephenpalmer9375]

Great video, and absolute believer that everyone should know a little about important culturally important people (not just politicians) and events. I'd love to see more of these. I am only 51, but the fact I work with people now that don't remember the Cold War, the Fall of the Berlin Wall, 9/11, or the fact than in the UK we once had a 3 day working week, that shops used to be closed on Wednesday afternoons, that factories would close for 2 weeks in the summer, and I remember queuing for bread, or that powercuts were a regular thing. But I remember seeing the Berlin Wall Fall, I watched 9/11 unfold, I saw the Space Shuttle and the Concorde disasters in almost real time - today's little twitter tirades seem so.. insignificant

[@liljafamilyaccount7306]

I'm 46yrs old and love your channel keep knocking these great videos out.

[@insertlaughter4436]

Just wanna say, I appreciate the Simpsons reference at the end of the HW section. That episode is a habitual family favorite of mine.

[@Hunter-po8jy]

I feel like JJ has different facial hair/ hairdo combo in every video i watch of his and i love it

[@legoman123481]

It'd be nice to get a video about the UN's increased presence in media in the late 80s to the mid 90s.

[@altrogeruvah]

I felt I was browsing my Microsoft Encarta '97 discs for a moment there, I absolutely love the production on this one, the low-res filters and the Microsoft Home aesthetic really added to the overall quality! Thank you for your great content, have a great day

[@gort9374]

Lmao jj really threw me through a loop for a sec. He said Mandela died in 2003 but he actually died in 2013, obviously was a typo. But for a sec it freaked me out because I was born in 2005 and I remember his death being on the news. Thanks JJ, for a sec I nearly believed I was born in like 2000 or something lol

[@jtgd]

You know your lifetime history

[@cdw2468]

isn’t this the source of the mandela effect?

[@EnigmaticLucas]

@@cdw2468 It's the namesake of it but it probably isn't the first known case of it

[@newstartyt3700]

@@cdw2468 no it was that he died in prison in like the 1980s or something

[@ffmm14]

Hi JJ, Great video as always. I was born in the 90s and once in a while I remember hearing about them in the 00s. Greetings from Costa Rica and thanks from your amazing content!! Pura Vida!

[@politicsnerd0311]

Gorbachev died at 91 today.

[@bentucker5438]

As some born in the 2000s, I like how you explained the circumstances that each leader existed in in their respective nation. It gave me better insight as to who they were as leaders.

[@chowpol7995]

I think the 90s were a very important time for Cuba. After the collapse of global communism the Cuban goverment found itself in an extremely complicated economic situation, this period was called "Período Especial" and saw the country suffer an era of hunger, poor public services and a very big impovrishment in terms of quality of life. Cuba stopped being a "Run of the mill latinoamerican dictatorship" like you described to become a particularly poor one.

[@JJMcCullough]

There weren’t a lot of wealthy Latin American dictatorships

[@CephandriusTopaz]

JJ, I just want you to know that you are not only my favorite KZbinr, but also my role model for general knowledge and accomplishment. Thank you for all that you do for us viewers

[@chickenkyiv4999]

I like how John Major was so dull that he wasn't included

[@JJMcCullough]

I always have to remind myself that John Major was in power for two terms. He is so boring and nondescript my instinct is to assume he was in for a really brief period of time like Gordon Brown.

[@chickenkyiv4999]

@@JJMcCullough It's amazing he managed to win re-election in 1992, he was consistently behind in the polls and was such an easy target for the opposition

[@kimpekkonen4204]

You nicely pointed out why I like to watch your vids: cultural knowledge and I'm all into learning it, cause it gives some understanding bout the world and the people living in it.

[@TBGNJR]

Just pointing out that at 7:01 it says Nelson Mandela died in 2003 when he died in 2013. (Might be a Mandela Effect Joke IDK) Love Your Videos BTW!!!

[@TBGNJR]

Just realized that literally 4 minutes before I commented this someone else said the same thing.

[@JJMcCullough]

@@TBGNJR It's the Mandela effect

[@toluikubaje8952]

I was just about to comment the same thing but wanted to make sure no one else had said it, alas I was too late

[@KCBfly25]

JJ, are you a teacher irl? If not, you’d be an excellent one. Your voice is easy to listen to. Plus, in every vid, we get a new hairdo idea! As someone who got a history degree awhile back, it’s nice to have recaps like this every once in a while. I also like that you are mostly unbiased. Your vids are great😊 (And I love the accent… I’m American, which explains that- lol.)

[@dipy_8767]

Btw, I'd just make a small note. Well, in a sense Gorbachev was the last President of the USSR, but he was also the first one. (For you see, USSR had been legally ruled by a "(First) General-Secretary of the Communist Party", which was like a botched version of a Prime Minister (who was also the Head of State) in this really strange system, where, legally speaking, all-powerful Parliament delegated all of its powers to the Cabinet (specifically, that weird 100+ people body that was kinda similar to a Cabinet in a parliamentary system called "Politburo", I believe) that basically only met, like, once a year to pass a budget. And so, near the very end of the Soviet Union he tried to reform it into a sort of Semi-Presidential system with a semi-working Parliament; which eventually led to 1993 events of Yeltsin ordering to shoot it, if you remember that. (So, he was technically a President for a year).

[@mermantown]

This is so great for Gen Z people like me who have heard tons about the 40's-80's, but nothing really about the 90's. Very helpful for understanding global political influences!!Please keep making these "background knowledge" videos!