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Education May 20, 2026

What did I miss in the Cold War? Did we really just coast through to the end?

What did I miss in the Cold War? Did we really just coast through to the end?

I'm a historian wannabe, and every time I try to summarize the Cold War for my friends, I get lost in the details. They just nod and smile, but I know they're thinking "what even happened?" It feels like we collectively yawned our way through decades of espionage and proxy wars, only to suddenly... stop?

I've read my fair share of Cold War texts, but the more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know. We had a system of mutually assured destruction, where both sides had nukes ready to go, yet somehow we just didn't nuke each other. Was it just luck? Did the Soviets get tired of funding their space program? Or was there a point where someone finally realized that blowing up the world wouldn't be the best solution?

What do you think? Was the Cold War a drawn-out game of "chicken" where nobody dared to blink, or was there a more nuanced reason for its sudden demise?

Owen Taylor

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Discussion (5)

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SA Sakura Yamaguchi 2 weeks ago

Coasting? More like dodging missiles 💀

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YA Yasmin Hosseini 2 weeks ago

Dodging missiles is a great soundbite, but don't we need a definition of "coasting" first lmao *(edited)*

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AL Alejandro Ruiz 2 weeks ago

don't think we have to sugarcoat what we did - we dodged bullets but allowed communist regimes to expand, that's a pretty key difference 😩

CH Chiamaka Toure 2 weeks ago

But what about the role of diplomacy in that period - were there any key negotiations or summits that you think played a significant role in deescalating tensions

WE Werner Werner 2 weeks ago

the term "coast" might be reductive, but considering the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and our own 'ending' of the cold war without formal surrender from the Soviet Union, I'd argue we did coast in the sense that our actions weren't driven by the typical conventions of a decisive endgame.

NA Nathan Thomas 2 weeks ago

so yasmin i think that's a super valid question - how do you even define coasting through an era as intense as the cold war? didn't we see the berlin blockade and airlift back in '48?

OM Omar Aziz 2 weeks ago

we really out here pretending this is groundbreaking

WE Werner Werner 2 weeks ago

first time posting here but, i remember my dad talking about the time he got out of the army in the early 80s. he told me about how they were always in a state of heightened alert and the drills they would do in case of a nuclear attack, but also how it felt like the whole country was just going through the motions. it was like, this huge, looming fear that nobody really wanted to acknowledge.

AL Alejandro Ruiz 1 week, 6 days ago

we really out here pretending this is groundbreaking

NA Nathan Thomas 2 weeks ago

What was the turning point for you guys, was it really something we can pinpoint in time or was it more of a slow burn? I've always wondered about month three, the one where everyone's nerves started 2 settle down and they realized maybe we could pull this crazy thing off

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CH Chiamaka Toure 2 weeks ago

I think dodging missiles oversimplifies it, but what about the multiple near-nuclear exchanges that did happen, like the Cuban Missile Crisis in '62, or the Able Archer incident in '83? 🤦 *(edited)*

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SV Svetlana Zielinski 2 weeks ago

Oh man I'm so curious about the Cuban Missile Crisis – did we really come close to all-out nuclear war with the Soviets over that? (I know it's a 'missile crisis' cliché to say but it feels like one of those pivotal moments)

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SA Sakura Yamaguchi 2 weeks ago

Yeah I've had the exact same experience

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AL Alejandro Ruiz 2 weeks ago

Coasting implies a lack of tension, but what about all those proxy wars, failed states, and nuclear near-misses? don't u think we're glossing over the consequences of a near-decade long Cuban Missile Crisis

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NA Nathan Thomas 2 weeks ago

You mean the near-nuclear event

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AL Alejandro Ruiz 2 weeks ago

First time posting but Nukes almost flew lowkey

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AH Ahmet Sari 2 weeks ago

Appreciate the enthusiasm, guys, but what about the proxy wars, though? didn't we almost get involved in, like, a few hot ones? 🔥

AL Alejandro Ruiz 2 weeks ago

ok boomer

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AL Alejandro Ruiz 2 weeks ago

I was in my granddad's army unit during training, he was a major btw, and he told me this one guy in his unit nearly sparked a nuclear war by mistake, it was insane to listen to. That Cuban Missile thing was some close calls for real.

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WE Werner Werner 2 weeks ago

hard agree

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NI Nina Schwarz 2 weeks ago

can confirm

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FR François Bianchi 2 weeks ago

Escalating proxy wars everywhere quietly fueled global tensions honestly 😩

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WE Werner Werner 2 weeks ago

Yeah because quietly escalating proxy wars isn't exactly subtle, François 👀 *(edited)*

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