Alaskans are surprisingly unbothered about being in range of North Korean missiles
A recent North Korean missile launch proved that Kim Jong Un likely has the ability to hit Alaska if he so chooses. But while being in range of a nuclear weapon — and a dictator who threatens to use it — would scare most reasonably-minded Americans, Alaskans remain characteristically unfazed, The New York Times reports.
"I've lived a good life, so if something happens, it happens," Gary Melven, 68, told the Times. A Vietnam War veteran, Melven recalled similar Cold War nuclear attack anxieties when he was a boy in Anchorage and added that he wasn't afraid then, either: "I was more interested in riding my bike."
“You start worrying about everything, you'll go crazy and you won't enjoy life," advised another Alaskan, Jim Gorski, a former Navy pilot. John Humphries, a former military helicopter pilot, added: "What are we going to do up here that we're not already doing? They're not going to evacuate Anchorage. We have more to worry about from an earthquake and tsunami."
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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