I think you are being a bit harsh. It's certainly an interesting counterfactual to consider how the US would react, and SAC in particular, to the exploding of

I think you are being a bit harsh. It's certainly an interesting counterfactual to consider how the US would react, and SAC in particular, to the exploding of a hydrogen bomb in the North Carolina. Launching a full retaliatory response (and there was only one plan) certainly seems like something that might have happened - probably because they would genuinely believe it was an attack.