Cold War interview
Q: Where were you living during the Cold War? Did this have any influence on your experiences with the Cold War?
A: “I was in Fremont, Nebraska- in grade school. We did drills for nuclear war. We didn’t have a TV in our house until the mid-fifties and there would be info on the news on how to duck and take cover properly and duck and hide in case of nuclear attack. I remember knowing that Russia was the enemy despite never taking a class where they taught me this. The news would tell you about these things. I remember feeling that we must be threatened or else this wouldn’t be happening. In the fifties we would test nuclear bombs and we would see on the news the testings and the destruction it would cause so it was always obvious that we were in some kind of war.”
Q: What fears did you have during the Cold War?
A: “Nuclear war. I also feared that we would be taken over by Russians and forced to live in that sort of society. This played a big part in my life so I remember it well even now. I did not want to have to live like a Russian (laughs).”
Q: What do you remember thinking or hearing about Communism?
A: “There were people being fired from their jobs here in our country if they looked as if they were thinking about joining the Communist party. Actors were being blackballed if they showed any signs of feeling sympathy for the Communists. The 1960s hippie movement, in my opinion, came out of Communism. They believed everyone was equal and should have equal opportunities, which reflected communism greatly. Of course, it looked good on paper, and honestly I would like to think of a world where we wouldn’t have to worry about some people living in mansions and some living on the streets, but obviously it did not work well in action.”
Q: What were your experiences with civil defense efforts?
A: “This was the drills and practices for nuclear bomb attacks. We were taught not to look at the flash- although now of course we know that that would not be enough. I did it a lot during elementary school and some during junior high but not during high school- but then again that was the sixties and that was just a completely different time. The sixties were as if we had just given up.”
Q: What actions or people made you feel the nation was secure or insecure?
A: “I really understand more so now than I did then, but I see how the media plays such a role in our lives. The media is now balanced where you can get both sides of the stories but in those days it was a more conservative media that made us feel safer. We had a feel that the military was in charge and I felt very safe. You went through a lot of time where you aren’t in immediate danger so you never felt truly worried. We never felt as if a war would come to our territory as it had never done so in the past, so for the most part we didn’t think about it too much. Although, I knew the danger was real it never felt like we were going to be taken over by Russia.”
Q: What do you remember about the bomb, nuclear testing, or radiation?
A: “I don’t think there was much even known about radiation at the time, at least as a kid, but the bomb was something that was definitely very prominent. I knew about the nuclear testing, we all did as it was talked about on the news, and we were all happy that we were able to make these weapons. But on the other hand it’s funny to think how ignorant we were to let this testing happen in our desert and let these powerful things explode. You look at what happened in Nagasaki and Hiroshima and all the terrible after effects, yet we still tried to do this ourselves on our own soil. You like to think the government is transparent but in the end it really isn’t.”
Q: What historic events or people do you remember? (Berlin Wall , Cuba , U-2 Incident, Khruschev , Korea , domino theory, McCarthy, Kennedy) How did you react to these events or how did your parents react to them?
A: “I remember the U2 incident when the pilot went down over the Russia. I definitely remember the Berlin Wall. I also remember Khrushchev. He was just a big bully. I remember he had a press conference and he took his shoe off and just started beating the moderator’s desk. We knew he was our enemy and he did not let us down in this topic. Also, we were all mesmerized by John F. kennedy at the time. History does not always serve him well- I mean he was the one who got us in to the Vietnam War- but to us at the time he was like King Arthur and Camelot. He was great.”
Q: What is your position today on nuclear arms race? How should we protect our national security? Do you think a nuclear war is still possible? Why or why not?
A: “I think that countries are building their nuclear arms secretly. I don’t believe there is any way we can check to see if (Iran) is processing their uranium. We will always have missiles and in the end it’s going to be which kid on the block has the biggest one. There’s a mentality that if you don’t own the nuclear arsenal or have the poison gas then you are looked upon as being weak. I believe it is still going on and will continue to go on. I believe in diplomacy- and I know that sounds so naive- but with the concept that if we can all get along- we can move mountains. World powers working together and having transparency can do good- and that sounds so idealistic- but I believe that is the key. I do believe a nuclear war is still possible and my guess is that it will start with something stupid. Someone will hit a button and since we are retaliatory, we will fight back. We will get into World War 3 and it will just be the end of times. This could very well be the end of times.”
Q: What is one lesson that we should learn from the Cold War era?
A: “We should learn diplomacy, communications and voting for world leaders who know what they’re doing. We can no longer be mesmerized by people who look like they have great credentials and look like they know what they’re doing; we need people who actually can step into these positions and be like the leaders of old. Take FDR or Winston Churchill, two leaders who came together and said we will not let evil prevail. We need people like that again but the time of that leadership is over. Our current leaders have no real backbone.”
A: “I was in Fremont, Nebraska- in grade school. We did drills for nuclear war. We didn’t have a TV in our house until the mid-fifties and there would be info on the news on how to duck and take cover properly and duck and hide in case of nuclear attack. I remember knowing that Russia was the enemy despite never taking a class where they taught me this. The news would tell you about these things. I remember feeling that we must be threatened or else this wouldn’t be happening. In the fifties we would test nuclear bombs and we would see on the news the testings and the destruction it would cause so it was always obvious that we were in some kind of war.”
Q: What fears did you have during the Cold War?
A: “Nuclear war. I also feared that we would be taken over by Russians and forced to live in that sort of society. This played a big part in my life so I remember it well even now. I did not want to have to live like a Russian (laughs).”
Q: What do you remember thinking or hearing about Communism?
A: “There were people being fired from their jobs here in our country if they looked as if they were thinking about joining the Communist party. Actors were being blackballed if they showed any signs of feeling sympathy for the Communists. The 1960s hippie movement, in my opinion, came out of Communism. They believed everyone was equal and should have equal opportunities, which reflected communism greatly. Of course, it looked good on paper, and honestly I would like to think of a world where we wouldn’t have to worry about some people living in mansions and some living on the streets, but obviously it did not work well in action.”
Q: What were your experiences with civil defense efforts?
A: “This was the drills and practices for nuclear bomb attacks. We were taught not to look at the flash- although now of course we know that that would not be enough. I did it a lot during elementary school and some during junior high but not during high school- but then again that was the sixties and that was just a completely different time. The sixties were as if we had just given up.”
Q: What actions or people made you feel the nation was secure or insecure?
A: “I really understand more so now than I did then, but I see how the media plays such a role in our lives. The media is now balanced where you can get both sides of the stories but in those days it was a more conservative media that made us feel safer. We had a feel that the military was in charge and I felt very safe. You went through a lot of time where you aren’t in immediate danger so you never felt truly worried. We never felt as if a war would come to our territory as it had never done so in the past, so for the most part we didn’t think about it too much. Although, I knew the danger was real it never felt like we were going to be taken over by Russia.”
Q: What do you remember about the bomb, nuclear testing, or radiation?
A: “I don’t think there was much even known about radiation at the time, at least as a kid, but the bomb was something that was definitely very prominent. I knew about the nuclear testing, we all did as it was talked about on the news, and we were all happy that we were able to make these weapons. But on the other hand it’s funny to think how ignorant we were to let this testing happen in our desert and let these powerful things explode. You look at what happened in Nagasaki and Hiroshima and all the terrible after effects, yet we still tried to do this ourselves on our own soil. You like to think the government is transparent but in the end it really isn’t.”
Q: What historic events or people do you remember? (Berlin Wall , Cuba , U-2 Incident, Khruschev , Korea , domino theory, McCarthy, Kennedy) How did you react to these events or how did your parents react to them?
A: “I remember the U2 incident when the pilot went down over the Russia. I definitely remember the Berlin Wall. I also remember Khrushchev. He was just a big bully. I remember he had a press conference and he took his shoe off and just started beating the moderator’s desk. We knew he was our enemy and he did not let us down in this topic. Also, we were all mesmerized by John F. kennedy at the time. History does not always serve him well- I mean he was the one who got us in to the Vietnam War- but to us at the time he was like King Arthur and Camelot. He was great.”
Q: What is your position today on nuclear arms race? How should we protect our national security? Do you think a nuclear war is still possible? Why or why not?
A: “I think that countries are building their nuclear arms secretly. I don’t believe there is any way we can check to see if (Iran) is processing their uranium. We will always have missiles and in the end it’s going to be which kid on the block has the biggest one. There’s a mentality that if you don’t own the nuclear arsenal or have the poison gas then you are looked upon as being weak. I believe it is still going on and will continue to go on. I believe in diplomacy- and I know that sounds so naive- but with the concept that if we can all get along- we can move mountains. World powers working together and having transparency can do good- and that sounds so idealistic- but I believe that is the key. I do believe a nuclear war is still possible and my guess is that it will start with something stupid. Someone will hit a button and since we are retaliatory, we will fight back. We will get into World War 3 and it will just be the end of times. This could very well be the end of times.”
Q: What is one lesson that we should learn from the Cold War era?
A: “We should learn diplomacy, communications and voting for world leaders who know what they’re doing. We can no longer be mesmerized by people who look like they have great credentials and look like they know what they’re doing; we need people who actually can step into these positions and be like the leaders of old. Take FDR or Winston Churchill, two leaders who came together and said we will not let evil prevail. We need people like that again but the time of that leadership is over. Our current leaders have no real backbone.”
True or False?Star Wars the movies came after the plan of the Strategic Defence Initiative.
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