How Has War or the Threat of War Affected You?

Question

Growing up in central Canada during the Cold War was a scary time and place. Tensions between the USSR and the USA were coming to a head the late 70s/80s. Neighbourhoods in my city were dotted with these ugly green towers with sirens on top which would warn us when a Nuclear Holocaust erupted between America and the USSR. One of these towers was right across the road from me and theyd test it once per week and believe me, it would scare the hell out of you when it went off.

You see, if the Soviets fired nuclear missiles at the US they would be intercepted and shot down by the Americans over Canada, thus killing us. Every day I'd come home from school and the TV would run these "tests" on what to do in the event of Nuclear War between the US and USSR. I used to have nightmares about Nuclear War when I was 10-12 years old.

Although I'm not emotionally scarred from it, my friends and I were talking the other day about how odd it was no one really talks about this period anymore

Answer 1

I grew up in the 60's/80's in Sunnyvale, California... targeted by the Soviets due to NAS Moffett Field, NASA, and the Air Force Satellite station as well as the Silicon Valley. My Dad was a DOD Engineer and our neighbors were all US Naval Pilots... by the time I was 10 I was WELL aware that IF the US & USSR started a nuc-exchange we would disappear in a flash.

I later joined the Navy, flying ASW tracking missions against the USSR's submarines that WOULD launch that attack if it occured. I flew those missions from 1986 to the Soviet Collapse. Nothing freakier that LISTENING to a Soviet Missile Submarine start the sequence for missile-launch... watching them, armed and locked in case they took it PAST the "test-evolution" procedures.

I then flew combat missions in the Gulf War and Kosovo. And was recalled for Iraqi Freedom, but didn't go due to health/physical issues.

Do I have PTSD ? Nope !! Do I watch the news and aviation sites ? Yep !! Am

Answer 2

I was a schoolboy when the second world war broke out, We all had air raid shelters in our gardens and when the sirens sounded we had to leave the house and go into the shelter and wait for the "all clear" to sound. Some nights we were there all night in the dark listening to the sounds of the anti-aircraft guns firing and the bombs exploding in the city. At school the shelters were long concrete tunnels under the school yard. When it got too bad we all set off and walked out of the city to our grandparents house in a village about fifteen miles away. We were pushing prams, and it seemed to be a very long way and quite frightening to a ten year old.
The question seems to be from Canada and as I am from the U K the circumstances are slightly different but the effect on a young mind seems to have been similar.
Later on when I was 18 years old I was called up for "National Service" in the British army for two years. This was at the time of the Korean War.
Nothing seems to change over the years. The saying that "there will always be wars or rumours of wars" seems to be true.

Answer 3

Wars didn't really effect me until this current war, When 9/11 hit I was dating a guy that was reserves and he was called back to base, that was really scary for me because it was the first time that I had a chance to lose someone. As the war continued my friends from high school and college started to leave for Iraq and while they all came back not all of them came back the same. I am now married to a man that is deployed and while I never thought that I would be in this position it is the best thing that has happened to my life, not the deployment but meeting this man who happens to be in the military. I am a military historian so I can't put my head in the sand, I watch, and listen and read about this war and past ones and I think for me that helps me deal with the deployment better because I know what is going on.

Answer 4

Any time I see Bush on t.v. these days I have to put on a straight jacket to watch in fear that I may induce great bodily harm from shoving my fist or a foot through the t.v.

I keep a barf bucket close by in case I decide to actually pay attention. I hurled my guts out the other day when he said that, "Money trumps peace".

The collaboration between the Media and the secretive White House to try and keep a lid on the issues of our time is just as scary to me as any warning siren. There's so much corruption within the Bush Adminstration that you could spend years just trying to wrap your mind around the various issues--but that's our job as a public. Just because your party is in power doesn't mean your supposed to vote and think Lock-step with their agenda.

Answer 5

The threat is still there and Bush is the one responsible for re introducing a new "chill" war according to President Putin,. Its due to Mr Bush's Bomb em all policies.

Answer 6

Everyone knows that any Nuke exchange would be a disaster to everyone on the planet. M.A.D was the right name, and still is.