As a kid growing up in the 1980s my reading did not consist of comic books and other typical teen publications. My go to reading materials include “SURVIVE”, “AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE” and “SOLDIER OF FORTUNE” magazines. My mom actually purchased a subscription to “AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE” for me as a Christmas present. Back in the 1980s, the threat of nuclear war was still on the minds of many, but not all. It seemed like you had two spectrums regarding nuclear war, those that thought is was survivable and those that swallowed the Communist-backed “nuclear war isn’t survivable” propaganda line. One of the biggest propaganda pieces was the “nuclear winter” theory which has numerous fallacies that makes it “Junk Science”.
This article is based on years of both formal and informal education regarding nuclear warfare. Informal education would be the thousands of pages of information read in magazines and non-scholarly journals while the formal education includes reading books such as Herman Kahn’s “On Thermonuclear War,” and “Thinking about the Unthinkable.” In college much of my reading and writing was geared toward civil preparedness or “civil defense”. Professionally, I have read older civil defense publications, often looking for how, or why things were done in the past when it comes to civil defense. I have also attended a course at the Nevada Test site. Remember, as long as there are nuclear weapons there is a possibility they may be used. The current Eastern European situation show how quickly the threat landscape and change. I suspect that the threat landscape in the South China Sea area will change soon, too.
Bottom Line Up Front
People will die in a nuclear war, just as they have died in every previous war fought. A nuclear war will also be very destructive of our infrastructure, again just as it has been in other wars. Living in a post-nuclear war environment will not be easy but it is survivable, just like millions of people survived living in the 14th Century with none of today’s modern technology. What will make the difference in your survival are the following, proximity to a target, type of burst used on that target, your level of preparedness meaning your on-hand equipment and supplies, the level of protection your shelter will provide, your Human Resources, your collective knowledge, skills and abilities, initiative, leadership and a little divine intervention or a little luck.Continue reading“Thinking About the Unthinkable, Again – Part 1, by 3AD Scout”