Yes, I'm named "Faith" because the Cuban Missile Crisis put such existential dread in everyone. Bomb shelters were built in all sorts of public buildings, and p

Yes, I'm named "Faith" because the Cuban Missile Crisis put such existential dread in everyone. Bomb shelters were built in all sorts of public buildings, and people dug underground bunkers in their backyards. They imagined they'd survive the nuclear winter like an underground rat, eating canned food and hoping their water didn't run out before it was safe to go outside again. It wasn't until the SALT treaty signed by Pres. Nixon and Leonid Brezhnev in 1972 - 10 years after the Cuban Missle Crisis - that tensions eased. It's hard for younger people to realize how dire this felt. The modern corollary is the threat of annihilation due to climate change. Some people wonder today why they are bringing children into a world that may be doomed, but that feeling is not new. It's just that older generations were more stoic. Most didn't talk about their feelings with each other, they just got on with life despite their dread. I'm so glad that stoicism is mostly a thing of the past.