The Cold War Continues, and Now We Are Losing

A U.S. patrol plane flies over a Soviet freighter during the Cuban missile crisis at the height of the Cold War in this 1962 photograph. Getty Images

Commentary

I’m old enough, just barely, to remember watching Paul Henderson score his winning goal against the Soviets in the final game of the 1972 Summit Series. I knew that something important had happened, but I didn’t fully understand what it was until much later. Yes, it was hockey, and our national pride was at stake, but there was more to it than that. Team Canada was fighting for our way of life against an adversary that sought to tear it down. The United States was the standard flag bearer in conflicts with the Soviets, but in September 1972 the Canadians were combatants in the Cold War.