The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1952-08-05
Is For Heaven.
Hell And The
Hydrogen Bomb
BY JAxoN

It's been long time - over sew
en- years in fact since the stagger
ing fact that there was such ,
thing as an atom bomb and tn,
mighty atom had been harnesset
for obstruction burst upon us. II
seven years it has been difficulI
for me to get used to it, even whel
the announcement of the Hydrogen
bomb experiments were made. ~,
read about it, talked about it, seel
IL mentioned in print each day
Now ] know that Italy has success
fully completed such a bomb, bu
still I have the feeling that l an
aboard some Time Machine O
comic fame and have been project
ed into some improbable future
year where the only anachronism.
are hupan beings, and ! am a!
outmoded as the Model T.
For the man on the street they
use homely little examples and
diagrams to explain these inexpli-
cable phenomenon. They say a
bomb the size of a peanut will do
this. Something the size of a golf
ball will do that. A mechanism
small enough to fit into an over
night bag can destroy a metropo-
lis. What horrible, homely little
symbols are used to convey these
wonders! It's all supposed to be so
simple. The death of millions on
a peanut vendors cart, complete
with monkey and organ, / suppose.
Destruction of the world my nylon
nightie in a valise.
If these great scientists so far
removed from the tpapical glitter
of our keys could only become one
of the Citizens of Duval Street for
a little while. If they could only
hear the conversations on the sha-
dowed porches of the old Conch
houses, or down at Sloppy Joe's
where the boys in the round white
caps hang out. Maybe then they
could realize the great division
there is between what they are so
intent on producing and the mind
of the man ordering short beer.
The man with the lager says,
"Well, it won't be long now" The
bartender mods agreement. Maybe
the bartender is thinking about the
baseball league and wondering how
the Conchs are making out tonight,
but the guy with the beer is pro-
badly thinking if he remembers the
news from Italy that it won't be
too long before the end Of the
world.
When they LET the bomb fall on
Hiroshima, much was contributed
to our culture: 1t supplied jokes
and gags for radio, television and
the movies. Could be it inspired
quite a few young men to volun-
teer for the airforce, though not
nearly enough.
We've even heard it has caused
some citizenry to build bomb shell
tiers in their back yards, though /
have yet to hear of any in Key
West. We are only thankful to God
that none of these shelters have
yet been tested. But if it has done
nothing else, the atom, and now
the hydrogen bomb, has made peo-
pie besides the tortured bombed
out japanese who have never be-
fore thought of a world beyond
Stock Island or the rim of an Iowa
farm, to think about the world.
They are thinking now of a brand
new world entirely powered by ato-
mic energy. They are seeing it
come to pass before their very
eyes. Not only in weapons of des-
truction like destroyers and sub
marines, but in weapons of healing
and destruction of the killers of
mankind like Cancer. Every day
you read or are told of some new
wonder, and 10! the wonder is
true. Our eyes grow round and our
hearts beat faster at the sight of
the future that has arrived much
too suddenly.
Not only our small sea trimmed
world, but the whole great globe
is truly shaken. Now we are en-
gagged in another Police action"
q call it war, along with millions
of others) We are threatened anew
in Europe. Some people speak of
it solemnly and use the pen and
their voices to warn the Leaders
of the world to move cautiously,
others talk Of progress and rockets
to the moon. We have flying sau-
GERS over the nations capital, may
be Moon madmen looking at US.
There are also those who make the
jokes about it too. AS ! say, ! don't
know much about it, il has been
over seven years since the Atom
burst upon the world, but ] feel
as il it will still take me quite a
spell to figure out just what il viii
mean to me and my children and
the ones that come after US.
Sometimes ] get a strange feel
ing that perhaps at this very mo.
ment God must be praying for hu-
mainly.
Al Barlick, veteran National