This stuff makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time, but mostly just cry.

This is pretty much the most terrifying thing imaginable.

20 Mishaps that Might Have Caused Nuclear War

"October 25, 1962- Cuban Missile Crisis: Intruder in Duluth

At around midnight on October 25, a guard at the Duluth Sector Direction Center saw a figure climbing the security fence. He shot at it, and activated the "sabotage alarm." This automatically set off sabotage alarms at all bases in the area. At Volk Field, Wisconsin, the alarm was wrongly wired, and the Klaxon sounded which ordered nuclear armed F-106A interceptors to take off. The pilots knew there would be no practice alert drills while DEFCON 3 was in force, and they believed World War III had started.

Immediate communication with Duluth showed there was an error. By this time aircraft were starting down the runway. A car raced from command center and successfully signaled the aircraft to stop. The original intruder was a bear."

This literally hurts my soul. I would use this as a starting point to a larger discussion about the Prisoner's Dilemma, but it's past my bedtimes, so perhaps later.