Day 91: "We have spent more than two billion dollars on the biggest scientific gamble in history, and we have won."

Truthfully, documentaries can be ten times more terrifying than any horror movie ever made.  The Atomic Cafe is one such movie.  Made in 1982 during the final decade of the Cold War, it uses archival and military footage to show how horrifically comedic the entire atomic scare era was.  Actually watching one of the infamous "Duck and Cover" films is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever, EVER, seen.  The destructive power of the A-bomb must have been so incomprehensible that the general population actually bought into the concept of "Duck and Cover."  Simply put "Duck and Cover" is nothing more than falling to the ground and covering yourself with whatever is handy.  This was what was believed to keep you alive in a nuclear blast.  Really.  One of my favorite lines from a bomb shelter propaganda film: "Be sure to utilize tranquilizers to ease the strain and monotony of life in a fallout shelter. A bottle of 100 should be adequate for a family of four. Tranquilizers are not a narcotic, and are not habit-forming."  HOLY S**T.  I could not believe what I was seeing.  This is one of the single most powerful documentaries about the effect of propaganda on a people.  Ironically, it was used on a people that had just fought a World War against a nation that was just as successful with it's own use of insane propaganda.

The  movie begins with archival military footage of early nuclear tests (the Trinity Test, the Bikini Atoll Test) and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks.  From there, it goes to show how crazy the United States went with fears of Communism and their possession of nuclear technology.  This country went completely nuts.  All "Duck and Cover" is going to do is provide the enemy an easy way to count the dead; those that weren't vaporized.  An absolutely astounding documentary, this one is a "do not miss" on my list.

It is available for instant viewing and dvd on Netflix (only place I was able to find it), put it in your queue.  I grew up in the 70's and 80's, and I remember the end years of the paranoia that was the Cold War.  I never imagined that any time period was more delusional, terrified and misguided than Germany in the 30's, but The Atomic Cafe vividly demonstrates that America was dangerously close.  Here's the twist: it's actually a comedic look back.  See this movie.  9.75/10

See you tomorrow, and GO WATCH A MOVIE!!