I was alway struck by the incredible stupidity of the whole so called " cold war ". Even as a small kid in the 1960's I didn't really get it. Such an unbelievable waste of money and effort. But certainly many in the military industrial complex have gotten rich because of it. The normal average Joe is just a little pawn in the whole sceme of things. I as an American was always taught to hate the Russians. It is hard to hate a person that you do not even know. I do not hate the common Russian citizen whatsoever but I do hate the politians on both sides that bring is to the brink of armagaden. How is it their right to determine whether I live or die or the millions like me?