Ericast 281 - The Atomic Cafe

We've got an election coming up, and I'm going to say very little about it, except for one little clip from an old documentary movie. Here's your show.

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I've missed you. Maybe you've missed me? Putting this show together is so hard. It shouldn't be that hard, and that's what I'm finding at work, too. Straightforward things are hard.

So, I didn't talk about SimpleREV 2016, but I will. And I didn't talk about my hot air balloon ride, but I will. And I haven't even played Steve's call. But I will But not today.

In the midst of that, Ruth was talking about showing The Atomic Cafe to her classes. I haven't watched it in years. Now that we're out of the Cold War and maybe into a new Cold War, it's interesting to watch.

And one clip stuck out. I wish I could find the reference, but here's the text from a transcript. It comes out of a nuclear explosion and leads into an Eisenhower clip, but I don't think it's part of either one. It features a line- drawing animation, but the narration is pretty haunting:

“In times of social crisis and tension. In times when changes come so thick and fast that the individual can no longer place himself in his group, when he knows something is wrong but doesn’t know what, when he feels himself a pawn, in times like these most men become highly suggestible. They listen eagerly for any voice which sounds authoritative. They listen eagerly for anyone who can tell them what is wrong, and what to do to right it – who can diagnose their troubles and prescribe a cure.”

Let me know what you think. Call 701-645-3742 (a.k.a. 701-645-ERIC) or drop an email to me (eric) at ericast.com.