Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to see the "Duck And Cover" film I'd watched in grammar school appear on my flat screen TV. I grabbed my camera, wanting to take my own pictures so I'd have them on the record.

In the 1960s, I learned how to duck under my desk, cover my head, and wait for the nuclear blast. The warning siren would sound from the strategically placed horns securely bolted to the outside stucco walls. The flash from the nuclear bomb would be contained behind heavy curtains that blocked the sun in the classroom, after which, we could get to our feet, making sure we didn't cut ourselves on window glass the bomb blew out.

Don't look at the blast!

We were assured this would facilitate our survival and that there was nothing to worry about as long as we did as we were told. I don't remember being scared because as long as we followed the rules, we would be fine. Good old Bert the Turtle told us we'd be as safe as he was, hiding inside his shell during a nuclear detonation.

Propaganda

Early Saturday morning (Jan. 13), an accidental Hawaiian missile alert went out telling people the alert was not a drill and a missile was heading in their direction. While the alert was declared an accident created by one employee who pushed just one button, I'd be a liar to say I wasn't spooked. Eventually, I found my comfort zone until watching Turner Classic Movies the "Duck and Cover" propaganda film appeared on TCM.

It gave me the shivers and upped my angst about all things nuclear.

"Duck and Cover" is a civil defense film that was distributed to schools to help children understand what would be expected of them in the event of a nuclear blast which would likely come from Russia. This film is now in the public domain, selected for preservation in 2004 and it is worth watching even today.

As innocent as we were when we were children, we believed what we were told. Now, all that has changed. When thinking about a nuclear war, I certainly never considered the hermit kingdom of North Korea a threat to my children and grandchildren's safety. NK was all about blackmail and generally hunkered down quietly as long as the United States made the proper payments.

It appears that will no longer be the case, as the Trump administration has decided that nuclear blackmail is no longer acceptable.

Hawaii told to fix its alert system

In a statement by the FCC chairperson, Mr. Pai said the alert caused a "wave of panic across the state - worsened by the 38-minute delay before a correction alert was issued." "False alerts undermine public confidence in the alerting system and thus reduce their effectiveness during real emergencies," he said.

Hawaiian state officials were also apologetic. Governor Ige said: "I am sorry for the pain and confusion it caused. I, too, am extremely upset about this."

It is unimaginable to me that one person, during a shift change, could make one mistake thereby throwing the entire population of Hawaii into chaos.

Imagine sitting at home, watching a soccer match, when an alert crosses your television screen informing you of an inbound missile.

Because of the perceived threat from North Korea, Hawaii has re-instituted its Cold War era notification system and has been testing the system since the state learned that a missile attack from NK could hit in 20 minutes. While I still find it hard to believe that NK would deliberately hit Hawaii, it is no longer out of the realm of speculation, breeding distrust toward a backward country that is better off without nuclear weapons and in desperate need of food.

On Tuesday of last week (Jan. 9), South Korea and North Korea decided to sit down and talk before the Olympic games begin in February.

In what was considered a breakthrough, North Korea has agreed to send athletics to the games. Breakthrough or not, let us hope that through negotiations, peace may assert itself in the divided countries of Korea.
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