BG45 Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Here, because technically it's political, and all political threads are now in Debate Table. [img]https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/306594_10151302957148125_1314713586_n.jpg[/img] 50 years ago today, at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis, second-in-command Vasilli Arkhipov of the Soviet submarine B-59 refused to agree with his Captain's order to launch nuclear torpedos against US warships and setting off what might well have been a terminal superpower nuclear war. The US had been dropping depth charges near the submarine in an attempt to force it to surface, unaware it was carrying nuclear arms. The Soviet officers, who had lost radio contact with Moscow, concluded that World War 3 had begun, and 2 of the officers agreed to 'blast the warships out of the water'. Arkhipov refused to agree - unanimous consent of 3 officers was required - and thanks to him, we are here to talk about it. Despite his life being threatened by the depth charges, by his fellow officers (including his superior), he held firm that it wasn't worth carrying out the order of the other two. His story is finally being told - the BBC is airing a documentary on it. Raise a glass to Vasilli Arkhipov - the Man Who Saved the World from nuclear war. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhuturePriest Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 [quote name='BG45' timestamp='1351903042' post='2503236'] Here, because technically it's political, and all political threads are now in Debate Table. [img]https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/306594_10151302957148125_1314713586_n.jpg[/img] 50 years ago today, at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis, second-in-command Vasilli Arkhipov of the Soviet submarine B-59 refused to agree with his Captain's order to launch nuclear torpedos against US warships and setting off what might well have been a terminal superpower nuclear war. The US had been dropping depth charges near the submarine in an attempt to force it to surface, unaware it was carrying nuclear arms. The Soviet officers, who had lost radio contact with Moscow, concluded that World War 3 had begun, and 2 of the officers agreed to 'blast the warships out of the water'. Arkhipov refused to agree - unanimous consent of 3 officers was required - and thanks to him, we are here to talk about it. Despite his life being threatened by the depth charges, by his fellow officers (including his superior), he held firm that it wasn't worth carrying out the order of the other two. His story is finally being told - the BBC is airing a documentary on it. Raise a glass to Vasilli Arkhipov - the Man Who Saved the World from nuclear war. [/quote] I'll raise a glass for him tomorrow at the wedding. Hopefully I'll figure out how to pronounce his name by then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BG45 Posted November 3, 2012 Author Share Posted November 3, 2012 Have fun at the wedding! (And good luck figuring it our, as my students will tell you, Russian and Polish last names are not my forté...so I wish you the best in your own pronunciation efforts.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Hasan probably knows the correct pronunciation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneLine Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 From someone who dated a Russian guy long, long ago.... Va-SIL-li A-lex-AN-dro-vich ARK-hi-pov Basil Son of Alexander Arkipov (family) Wonderful story, BG. I will pray for him in a special way this week... I think all people of peace owe him a debt. BTW... I have VAGUE memories of that week that I only understood many years later. I remember it because it was the ONE week in my entire school life when we were herded into the hallways and told to crouch BELOW the windows. I didn't know what they called it -- I knew it wasn't an EARTHQUAKE drill -- then we were told to stay AWAY from the windows. The teachers looked frightened, everyone was acting oddly... and they wanted us to crouch under windows. Odd. I was 7 I guess... and it just didn't make any sense. And it was never repeated, and it was never explained. Now I realize they wanted us to be clear of the glass if an explosion (ie.e, bomb?) blew them out. Wouldn't have done much about the radiation... .but it was a naive time.... Thank you, Vasili.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hermit Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Love history like this... Thank you Lord for touching his hand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AccountDeleted Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 I had no idea and I was 10 at the time. But we wouldn't have heard how heroic a Russian was at that point in history - they were too much our enemies. I have tweeted a link to the guardian story about this because I think everyone should know how one man's courage and moral convictions made such a huge difference to the fate of the world. What an inspiration. It reminds me a bit of a show on TV I watched about the sinking of the Luconia. A German U boat captain in WWII sank what he thought was a troop ship but it was full of civilians (including women and children) and prisoners of war. He rescued the survivors against orders and sent out a message to the Allies to come collect them. An American bomber attacked him, but he did manage to get the survivors rescued one way and another and made it back home himself. He put his moral value above the orders he was given though and I loved that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now