Kennedy Sworn in as President – 50 yrs Ago Today

President Kennedy - official White House photo

 Fifty years ago today John Fitzgerald Kennedy took the oath of office at exactly 12:00 p.m. Eastern time in Washington, DC.

Kennedy’s inauguration signaled a new generation ascending to power. His predecessor, President Eisenhower was of a previous generation and had served 8 years, since 1954-1961.

Kennedy, or JFK as he was affectionally known, was the youngest man ever elected president at age 43. Teddy Roosevelt was younger when he became president, but he became president after McKinley’s assassination.

Kennedy was also the first person of the Roman Catholic faith to be elected to the office.

The other fascination for people was his young family and his war service. He exuded personality and vigor. New ideas and renewed energy brought hope to young people.

When he was elected it was the height of the Cold War. The United States and the USSR had enough nuclear tipped missiles targeted at each other to destroy the world several times over. This wasn’t just an American or a Soviet issue, but a world living in the shadow of destruction. In fact the official policy of both nations was Mutually Assured Destruction or M.A.D. for short. Simply put if one country attacked the other it was assured both would be destroyed. Sounds crazy, but it was a fact that all of us lived with during that period. No wonder people were looking for new ideas and fresh hope.

Although his presidency was short-lived Kennedy began the dialogue with the Soviet Union on disarmament signing the Test Ban Treaty. This was a first step towards reducing nuclear arsenals.

I remember President Kennedy today for those steps he initiated towards reduction of nuclear tensions.

Plains of Death: Armageddon Up Close

Driving across the northern great plains of the United States many of us have seen the many missile silos scattered across such states as Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. It’s almost surreal to realize the weapons contained below ground at these sites are capable of ending civilization as we know it.

Because of the end of Cold War, tensions between the world’s superpowers, Russia and the United States, are very low at the present time. Most of the missile sites have been deactivated under treaty agreements, the missiles removed, and their nuclear warheads destroyed or put into storage. However, there are still over 500 of these missiles deployed across the norther plain states today. The Minuteman missiles in these silos are the backbone of the United States Strategic Air Command’s nuclear deterance force.

There is a new National Historic Site under the administration of the National Parks Service, Department of the Interior. This is called “Minuteman Missile” and is located in South Dakota about 75 miles east of Rapid City along Interstate 90. It consists of an underground missile control center and a missile silo. I intend to try to visit it soon to add to my knowledge of the Cold War era.

 

These missile sites are pretty inconspicuous. Not much is above ground, but they are heavily fenced with razor-wire and marked with ominous signs warning of the use of deadly force on trespassers. The military patrols the active sites and apparently there are movement sensors and cameras included in the site security. Stop and look if you want, but don’t approach the site or attempt to cross the fence.

The silos contain the Minuteman Inter-Continental Balllistic Missile (ICBM). Some chilling facts concerning these deadly arrows of destruction,

• Can strike a target over 6,000 miles away in less than 30 minutes.
• Have a speed of over 15,000 miles per hour. They can cross the United States from east to west in less than 10 minutes, The same distance by car takes over 40 hours.
• The missiles are deadly accurate. Some say with 100 yards, although that is Classified.
• Remotely controlled from an underground control centre.
• Mass produced.
• Solid fueled rockets. This meant they were ready to launch immediately. No complex preparation was required as with liquid fueled rockets.
• Armed with nuclear warheads about 10 times more powerful than the Hiroshima or Nagaski bombs. In fact they are “city killers”.

At the height of the Cold War the missile fields of South Dakota alone covered and area of over 13,500 square miles. This is an area larger than the state of Maryland.

This site will be a sobering reminder of the Cold War and hopefully a warning to future generations of the potential to exterminate mankind. Up until now drivers on Interstate 90 have passed by without giving these installations a second thought. Now it is possible to get a chilling look behind the scenes. It will be a reality check for most of us. Remember the other side had and still has the same capability to destroy us.

Information can be obtained at:

National Park Service
http://www.nps.gov   (click on South Dakota on their map)