These are all hardcover Cold War era books that deal with practical tips to survive a nuclear war. In the post Cold War era, they seem rather kitschy, but it's hard for me to accurately judge the psyche of that era, as I wasn't even alive. I'm sure the threat felt very real even though it never materialized. You could argue there's always some real "threat" of it, both yesterday and today. Now all I need to add to these is a vintage Fall Out Shelter sign. I see them on old buildings, and I've always wanted one.
Speaking as someone who was born in the tail end of that madness, I was born in 1962, I remember having drills that taught us what to do in case of nuclear attack. They consisted of us getting under our desks and covering our heads. That kind of stuff scared the hell out of me and I still feel a sense of dread whenever I see one of those old fallout shelter signs.
ReplyDeleteThese are great. I remember hiding under my desk at school, too, during these drills.
ReplyDeleteInteresting anecdotes-- I wonder when they stopped doing the drills? My fiancee is 37, and he doesn't remember them. He grew up during the 80's in the latter half of the Cold War, so I would have thought that he would have experienced these drills as well.
ReplyDeleteHey kids, an A-bomb! Duck 'n cover.
ReplyDeleteThe govt. conducted A-bomb tests in nevada in 50s and 60s, a few hundred miles from Vegass. They were usually unannounced--until the cloud appeared above the desert. Still some traces of radiation around NV, and even into Brighamland. Many Americans aren't even aware that there are ICBM missile silos across the US, mostly hidden.
Very interesting...
ReplyDeleteI thought the kids in Florida were the only ones that had to desk dive! That good ol' Cuban Missile Crisis...
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