Cold War Paranoia for

The new number one in town:

Maybe the uncertainty 

Had worn America down.

The USSR ringed by missiles,

All armed with nuclear heads,

Subs under the Polar ice

All pointed at the Reds.
 

Had nukes installed in Cuba

Pointed at the States

Already lined up so

Discovered far too late.

A bit of bravado,

A nuclear tit for tat,

But the West's new masters

We're not prepared for that,
 

So, came the Cuban crisis,

Brinkmanship pushed,

American decisions

So hasty and rushed.

Kennedy and Khruschev:

To what lenght 

Would they go

In this show of strength.
 

And for a few days the world

Bit their nails in fear

One wrong step and maybe

Nuclear holocaust was here.

The man in the white hat 

Inexperience to the fore

Almost pushed the button 

For limited non nuclear war.
 

Muscles flexed,

Daggers drawn,

Almost a case of

Pistols at dawn.

The big bad red menace

At the last backed down

Thus preserving the face

For the new man in town.
 

The world shook it's head,

Sighed with relief;

Uneasy peace reigned between

Two opposing systems of belief.

Back in Berlin

Things slowly cooled down,

And life got back to normal

In that normally divided town.