NathanJ. Robert Oppenheimer
J. Robert Oppenheimer was a well-known theoretical physicist who was from New York sometimes called the father of the atomic bomb. In 1945, Oppenheimer made a successful nuclear explosion known as “Trinity.” He spoke about this incident in an interview and said, “We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried. Most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita; Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and, to impress him, takes on his multi-armed form and says, ‘Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.’ I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.”
Oppenheimer Met Truman
While Oppenheimer regretted not being able to use the bomb against the Nazis, he expressed regret for the bombing of Nagasaki. He and his colleagues felt it was unnecessary to bomb Nagasaki. He hand-delivered a letter to the Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson after two weeks. He wrote about his “revulsion” and wanted nuclear bombs to be banned. President Truman replied in a meeting afterward and said, “I don’t want to see that [expletive] in this office ever again.”
Fear of Bombs
Debra Kaufman also revealed that her father wanted to build a huge shelter with the entire community that could house a lot of people. Sadly, the other neighbors did not see the necessity to build a big shelter. They were not as fearful as Mr. Kaufman was. Alvin did not let them break his spirit and went on to construct the shelter by himself to at least protect his family.
Fresh Oxygen
Alvin Kaufman’s shelter was designed to keep him and his family of 4 safes for around 2 weeks. Some believe that nuclear fallout would lessen in 2 weeks time while others beg to differ. In the Kaufman/Otcaseks’ shelter, an air filter was there to receive fresh air. To have a shelter during the time of war is at the end of the day way safer than not having one at all.
What Will Happen to the Shelter Now?
When the Otcaseks brought the property, their realtor told them that the space used for making the shelter could be turned into a wine cellar. It would definitely be tempting to try and change up the shelter into something modern and practical. But Chris spoke up in an interview back in 2013 and confirmed that he would not demolish the shelter. Chris was quoted saying, “I’ll leave it for the next people. It should last forever.”