The Man Who Saved the World Finally Recognized

Sirens blaring, warning lights flashing, computer screens showing nuclear missiles on their way, one man in charge of a red button labeled “START” - that’s start a retaliatory strike — and a roomful of people at their terminals and switchboards waiting for him to push it. Sound like a typical Hollywood Cold War cliffhanger?

It was indeed just like in the movies, says the man who was poised over the red button over twenty years ago, except “in the movies, Hollywood specialists and directors can stretch a little situation into half an hour. In our case, from the time I made the decision to when it was all over, it was five minutes max.”

Stanislav Petrov was a Soviet army officer monitoring the satellite system for signs of a U.S. attack, the year was 1983, and his instructions, if he detected missiles targeting the Soviet Union, were to push the button and launch a counter-offensive.

He didn’t. Minutes later, no missiles came; months later, the frightening data across his monitor was determined to have been a system glitch. Today, the Association of World Citizens is calling him “the forgotten hero of our time,” a title befitting the man whose responsibility had been to start World War III.

http://mosnews.com/feature/2004/05/21/petrov.shtml

What do you know. It turns out the Russians really did love their children too (and apologies for quoting a Sting song...couldn't help it).

Lord knows if Bush were in the same position the world would be free of the human race.

And, the more they kill, the bigger the statue.

The thought of the man who avoided WWIII "surviving on a tiny army pension in a small town outside of Moscow" was greatly disturbing to me.

saved. He really is THE hero of our time.

something like that?

Thank you.

Damn...

Thank you for posting!

Stanislav Petrov Hero

Julie