PRIPYAT – In a post-Cold War world, the fear of nuclear holocaust has receded from the global consciousness. Donald Trump’s threat of unleashing “fire and fury like the world has never seen” against North Korea was an untimely and unwelcome reminder of a past, perilous era. Even by Trump’s standards these statements were a new low. And they are dangerous. History teaches us that the journey from political logorrhea to global disaster can be terrifyingly short.
As demagogues toss around nuclear threats like confetti at a wedding, it is easy to forget the devastation nuclear power can cause. But in one country, on Europe’s edge, they have not forgotten. And where once life thrived, there now stands a vast mausoleum.
