4 thoughts on “NO SAFE PLACE TO HIDE – a response to NYC’s nuclear war PSA”
At 62, I am just barely old enough to dimly remember the drills we had back in the 1960’s. The joke was, “place your head between your knees and kiss your ass goodbye”. For the first thirty years of my life, we more or less expected that one day our world would end in a (very brief) flash of incredibly bright light, and the end of the Cold War was like a reprieve, in a way that words cannot capture.
I do strongly suspect that most young people today have no idea of the incredibly suicidal nature of nuclear war. The acronym MAD seems to mean nothing to them. I see an alarming number of comments at RT suggesting the use of nuclear weapons, as if they were something that could be wielded without dooming us all.
Our leaders in Washington DC also seem to have no realistic idea of what they are playing with, may God have mercy on us all.
I’m 80 and remember those drills well. We have been so lucky to have survived, but the neocons of today who instigate conflicts feel they are immune to the dire consequences. The mainstream media parrots their narrative in a self-interested mantra that ignores facts, seeking only to secure additional revenue through disinformation.
to close the gap, I am 40, and I know very well what it would mean. But it has become extremely difficult to reach young people in their bubbles. Not least of all, because these bubbles not only function as friendly networks, they are the basis of careers. Every private move is also a rung on a ledder reaching business goals. Geopolitics has no place in these realms. Nothing outside of personal gain and necessity. MAD etc. have become expert topics outside everyday procedures. Unlike in your times when every “ordinary” person had an understanding of what was at stake. But no misunderstanding: The writers and pundits in the well paid jobs at newspapers and TV station today are likewise responsible. And THEY ought to know. So who is to blame? All you can do, go and tell young people. Go and tell them that Hiroshima meant 12 square miles city area destroyed in 10 seconds. At 6000 degrees Celsius everything melts. And bodies are turned into dust. Where do they think did Graphic Novels they now know from Disney adaptations get their fantasies of destruction and genocide from? (e.g. “Avengers, INFINITY WAR”). The authors are or your generation.
correction…”are your generation”
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Analysis & Book Reviews on U.S. Foreign Policy and Russia
At 62, I am just barely old enough to dimly remember the drills we had back in the 1960’s. The joke was, “place your head between your knees and kiss your ass goodbye”. For the first thirty years of my life, we more or less expected that one day our world would end in a (very brief) flash of incredibly bright light, and the end of the Cold War was like a reprieve, in a way that words cannot capture.
I do strongly suspect that most young people today have no idea of the incredibly suicidal nature of nuclear war. The acronym MAD seems to mean nothing to them. I see an alarming number of comments at RT suggesting the use of nuclear weapons, as if they were something that could be wielded without dooming us all.
Our leaders in Washington DC also seem to have no realistic idea of what they are playing with, may God have mercy on us all.
I’m 80 and remember those drills well. We have been so lucky to have survived, but the neocons of today who instigate conflicts feel they are immune to the dire consequences. The mainstream media parrots their narrative in a self-interested mantra that ignores facts, seeking only to secure additional revenue through disinformation.
to close the gap, I am 40, and I know very well what it would mean. But it has become extremely difficult to reach young people in their bubbles. Not least of all, because these bubbles not only function as friendly networks, they are the basis of careers. Every private move is also a rung on a ledder reaching business goals. Geopolitics has no place in these realms. Nothing outside of personal gain and necessity. MAD etc. have become expert topics outside everyday procedures. Unlike in your times when every “ordinary” person had an understanding of what was at stake. But no misunderstanding: The writers and pundits in the well paid jobs at newspapers and TV station today are likewise responsible. And THEY ought to know. So who is to blame? All you can do, go and tell young people. Go and tell them that Hiroshima meant 12 square miles city area destroyed in 10 seconds. At 6000 degrees Celsius everything melts. And bodies are turned into dust. Where do they think did Graphic Novels they now know from Disney adaptations get their fantasies of destruction and genocide from? (e.g. “Avengers, INFINITY WAR”). The authors are or your generation.
correction…”are your generation”