Fall of the Berlin Wall 1989
Without question, this is the singlemost important historical event of my lifetime. I grew up hearing that our system was better and all the while our system gets beat at seemingly everything.
Sputnik, earth orbit, MIG superior to the F-4, Gold Medals at the Olympic Games. On November 9th 1989, our system won the final assault.
The cold war was finally over. I remember very well all the talk of glasnost, peristroyka, not really understanding what it was all about. Watching the famous Ronald Reagan speech. Watching the news reports of the gathering crowds at the wall, as well as the reports of the initial swings of the hammers.
My reasons for joining the military were validated substantially that day.
I was in the US Army in Korea knowing that the DMZ seperated the US in the south from the USSR in the north. My Dad was in England working for the US Air Force, basically on the same mission as mine in a different part of the world. My brother was in the US Navy on the USS Charles Vincent floating around the Pacific and Indian Oceans. All at once the feelings of joy overcame any and all apprehension that I had ever felt. The parties were seemingly endless with all nationalities celebrating the victory in Itaewon over drinks. I do not believe that these feelings will ever be duplicated.
I do actually posess 2 seperate pieces of the wall that were given to me by my Dad. He somehow knew how much that event would mean to his children.
Sputnik, earth orbit, MIG superior to the F-4, Gold Medals at the Olympic Games. On November 9th 1989, our system won the final assault.
The cold war was finally over. I remember very well all the talk of glasnost, peristroyka, not really understanding what it was all about. Watching the famous Ronald Reagan speech. Watching the news reports of the gathering crowds at the wall, as well as the reports of the initial swings of the hammers.
My reasons for joining the military were validated substantially that day.
I was in the US Army in Korea knowing that the DMZ seperated the US in the south from the USSR in the north. My Dad was in England working for the US Air Force, basically on the same mission as mine in a different part of the world. My brother was in the US Navy on the USS Charles Vincent floating around the Pacific and Indian Oceans. All at once the feelings of joy overcame any and all apprehension that I had ever felt. The parties were seemingly endless with all nationalities celebrating the victory in Itaewon over drinks. I do not believe that these feelings will ever be duplicated.
I do actually posess 2 seperate pieces of the wall that were given to me by my Dad. He somehow knew how much that event would mean to his children.
