In the decade of the 1960s, there was a series of many different world-changing events. From civil rights movements to landing a man on the moon, so many things have happened. One event that happened in October 1962 that was very important and even life-threatening was the Cuban Missile Crisis. Before the nearly two-week standoff between the United States and Russia there was an arms race. Both countries were trying to make the biggest and best nuclear warheads. At the height of the arms race was the Cuban Missile Crisis. When the United States and the USSR were not getting along, the USSR threatened the United States with nuclear warheads launched from Cuba just 90 miles off the coast of Florida. During this 13-day standoff between two of the world's greatest superpowers, neither side was quite sure what would happen. While the event will never be forgotten, its impact on the world in the 1960s and even today is almost more memorable for those who were not alive to witness firsthand how close the world came to total annihilation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original EssaySome of the life-changing impacts in the 1960s were the decision made by Kennedy to initiate a naval blockade to prevent further construction of USSR missiles on the island of Cuba, schools implementing duck and cover exercises , finally citizens and organizations building their own fallout shelters, and Overall the decade of the 1960s is one of the most important in the history of the United States and all of them could have been wiped out if the crisis had passed any further. During Kennedy's presidency he faced some difficult decisions from the beginning. It had to do with growing communism and was expected to stop the "domino effect" - the thought that if one country fell to communism, everyone would. He also had successes and failures as any president would. One event that can be seen as both a success and a failure is the Cuban Missile Crisis. In 1962, a US spy plane noticed the construction of nuclear warheads on Cuban soil. With this information Kennedy ordered a naval blockade to prevent the Soviets from providing further supplies to the Cubans and to prevent further construction of the missiles. Because of the decision made by Kennedy for the betterment of the future, the Cuban Missile Crisis began. It's hard to believe that the president of the United States initiated one of the most suspenseful and potentially dangerous events in all of the history of the world. Without Kennedy's decision it is difficult to say whether the crisis could have been avoided or not. It is also difficult to say that if Kennedy had not made his decision the world would exist today. On October 26 the government was deciding whether or not to attack Cuba. While trying to make the decision they were contacted by the USSR and told that the Soviets would remove the missiles from Cuba if the United States promised to leave Cuba alone and take their military bases out of Turkey. Two days later the crisis ended peacefully. The missiles were removed from Cuba, the United States lifted the blockade and removed the bases from Türkiye. One of the timeless impacts of the Cuban Missile Crisis is the development of duck and cover exercises. These particular exercises date back to the 1950s, at the beginning of the Cold War, but were brought back to schools due to the Cuban Missile Crisis. The drill involved having students drop whatever they were doing, get under a desk, and hope todo not die in the event of a nuclear attack between countries. The government even created a cartoon that depicted a turtle named Bert dropping what he was doing and quickly hiding in his shell when the flash of a nuclear explosion was detonated. The cartoon was designed for children to create a sense of security even if there is none. Most people in this case adults knew that this exercise would not work and followed it to help them build the idea that there was a chance of surviving a bombing of that magnitude. Another thing schools did was have each student wear a set of ID tags or bracelets. This fact further demonstrates that the school system knew that the drills were ineffective in keeping children safe. The dog tags were only needed to figure out who a child was from his remains. At one point New York City had spent $159,000 on bracelets and dog tags for these children who would not be able to survive a nuclear fallout. Giving children tags or bracelets almost destroys the illusion of safety made possible by Bert and his cartoons. This particular event also leaves the physical history of the United States today. The bracelets and tags can be seen in some families because they still have them, and the Bert the Turtle cartoon is just an Internet search away. This is physical proof of how much of an effect a small event in the 1960s had on life today. Something that will always stand the test of time is the fact that the government found it necessary for children to be prepared for nuclear fallout. The government also advised people to build a fallout shelter in their backyard to survive a radioactive disaster. Some of the lasting impressions of the Cuban Missile Crisis that were not only present in the 1960s but are present today and will continue to endure over time are the fallout shelters that the government insisted on during the crisis. Kennedy had advised people to secure shelters in 1961 due to threats of nuclear war when the USSR tested its first nuclear warhead. The following year, 1962, Kennedy found himself facing what he feared most: the Cuban missile crisis. Then he recommended shelters even more so that people from the United States could survive. Since the threat of the end of the world was always there, as well as the government thought that citizens should do everything they can to survive. So they began offering home fallout shelters that a family could set up in their own backyard and in public spaces like schools or churches. It is simply phenomenal that American citizens can see the story of the Cuban Missile Crisis in their own neighborhood and some even in their own backyard. Another aspect of these shelters was morals and ethics. Even if people got along with their neighbors and friends, there was always the thought, “Should I let them into my shelter with my family?” many families have thought and pondered this question. While the moral answer is almost always yes, during this time people didn't know who to trust and who would be a good addition to their shelter. Also, not much was known about the radiation and how long it would last. Families didn't know if they would have enough supplies to support more than just those in their household. Something else people thought was because that person doesn't have their own shelter. This is a timeless example of how much an event from the 1960s impacts not only the past but also the future, in the sense that we can see, touch and even step into history by walking through a door..