[pb_video type="youtube" src="//www.youtube.com/watch?v=wy2mQDVslAA"][/pb_video]
(Video from David Hoffman’s channel on YouTube.)
I was only six and a half months old. Already, I was surrounded by fear of the Russians. It is a theme that has lasted 64 years.
Sputnik was the first satellite to be launched into earth orbit. At the time, the Soviet Union was regarded as a country of brutes, people who got what they wanted by bullying and overpowering, like the bear they were often portrayed to be. The U.S. reacted in terror. The great Communist enemy had a rocket that could put a satellite in orbit. Could that same rocket also bring a nuclear weapon to U.S. territory? The space race was launched. The arms race, already underway, accelerated.
Looking back at age 64, I am amazed that the same kind of demonizing of Russia continues to this day. Russia is a convenient scapegoat for our rulers. The difference is we can see it now, even as our so-called leaders try to fool us.
The other thing I reflect upon is this: can the fear of parents and family and the community seep into the psyche of a baby? I would say yes. So my first experience with fear began. Has it ever really left?
