Cuban Missile Crisis - 50 Years Ago This Month

Who else remembers anything about the Cuban Missile Crisis?

I don't recall watching anything about it on TV, the way it might be covered these days. But I do remember my mother being glued to the radio, listening to the news, as she madly ironed and ironed our clothes. (She hated ironing, and her ironing basket was always overflowing. Generally, she only ironed if absolutely necessary.)

So finding her down to the basement laundry room and fiercely ironing away, with all her attention focused on the radio, was a bizarre -- and somewhat scary sight. No doubt why I remember it.

She was worried that my Dad, who was in the Army Reserves, was going to be called up. She was worried that life as we knew it was about to end. Based on what I know now, I guess we came awfully close to that scenario...

Thankfully JFK kept a cool head and crisis was averted. Here's a link to CBS News footage recalling the time when the US was on the brink of World War III.

Who else remembers these days?

I remember the anxiety felt due to "Bay of Pigs.."

Me too. And I was young enough and living in a farm state, so I figured there must somehow be some hogs involved... LOL

I remember how we had to get a map of our neighborhood and find the most direct route home from school, staying off of the main roads, cutting through people's yards. We did several trial runs - walking home and timing ourselves. I lived several miles from school and it was nerve wracking trying to get home under the 30 minute time frame that they gave us.
I also remember that we stocked up a room in the basement with food and water. It was our "bomb shelter." Since I grew up in Atlanta, everyone thought we were potentially within range.
How very odd it all was - 50 years ago, wow...

My dad was also in the Reserves (Lt Col and landed in Normandy in WWII) and he DID get called up and was sent to an army base 800 miles away from home for an entire year, leaving mom to manage his business and look after 4 kids. His business suffered, our relationship with him became difficult. Dad later learned that only about 30% of the Reserves who were called during the Cuban missile crisis actually went as bidden. So although there was no nuclear disaster, there was a toll on families.

I was too young to remember. Shortly in 1968, Canada's to-be-to-prime-minister, PM Pierre Trudeau met Fidel on friendly informal basis..when Trudeau was schlepping around in sandals on his own. (before he became a politician).

Canada's relationship with Cuba has been different than the U.S. I don't know the whole background without alot of research. But Canadians go there on vacation as not a place to be feared, but for a low cost vacation. I don't ever recall Canadian friends speaking negatively of Cuba .. but then I'm sure alot of Americans wrongly see Canada as a socialist country. (Just because of our public health care system or other reasons.)

When right now, it's a Conservative party in power (in Canada, at federal level) who is doing alot of damage to good stuff in government that was done well.

I was only 7 at the time and don't remember a thing about it. But my husband and I go to Cuba for 2 months every winter now, in part to get away from the snow and enjoy the sun, but also in part for humanitarian reasons. I've written about our visits and mission in the past here, so won't go back over it again. We witness a great deal of poverty and need there now...we go to help people fix roofs that get damaged in the various hurricanes, we go to bring medicines and other things that the people there either can't afford to buy or cannot find to buy even if they have the money.

While the fear and anxiety that the Americans felt back in 1962 was real and understandable, the Cuba that we visit now is very impoverished. Buildings are crumbling, people are hungry, decent work is getting harder to come by with every passing year...it truly is a 3rd-world country in many ways.

I have no political stance whatsoever. We just see hunger and need, and do what little we can to alleviate it, if only for a few brief moments every year. It's a beautiful country full of such beautiful, kind, generous people who would give you the shirt off their backs, even if it's the only shirt they own.

The issue was that the US was in the cold war with USSR and USSR was installing missiles in Cuba aimed at the US and was threatening to fire them.