WEBVTT - Short Stuff: Greenbrier Bunker

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, and welcome to the short Stuff. I'm Josh and

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<v Speaker 1>there's Chuck in again. This is short stuff, and this

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<v Speaker 1>one is pretty cool because it's about uh secret bunker

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<v Speaker 1>hidden at a resort hotel. Not something you come upon

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<v Speaker 1>every day. No, this is I've never even heard of

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<v Speaker 1>this until the other day, actually, and I'm not even

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<v Speaker 1>sure how I heard about it now that I think

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<v Speaker 1>about it, but it seemed like the perfect short stuff

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<v Speaker 1>because what we're talking about is during the Cold War,

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<v Speaker 1>the United States government saying, you know what, if the

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<v Speaker 1>bomb happens, we need our government to function. And in

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<v Speaker 1>order for our government to function, we need are the

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<v Speaker 1>people of Congress to be safe and not fried from radiation.

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<v Speaker 1>And the only way to do that is to build

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<v Speaker 1>a massive underground bunker for everyone to go and live.

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<v Speaker 1>And that's just what they did. Yeah, but they didn't

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<v Speaker 1>they didn't like put it on a military base. They

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<v Speaker 1>didn't put it like underneath the Capitol building. They they

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<v Speaker 1>went to a resort in West Virginia called the Greenbrier

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<v Speaker 1>that had been around for a very long time already

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<v Speaker 1>it was. It's a very well known resort. It's still

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<v Speaker 1>around today. It's beautiful and in fact, um Dorothree Draper,

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<v Speaker 1>probably the greatest interior designer of all time. Um macked

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<v Speaker 1>out the Greenbrier I think in the thirdies or forties

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<v Speaker 1>and brought it back to life. It's an amazing place.

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<v Speaker 1>But they they chose the Greenbrier in part because no

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<v Speaker 1>one would ever suspect that they built the bunker to

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<v Speaker 1>house Congress during a nuclear attack four hours away from Washington,

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<v Speaker 1>d C. And West Virginia, beneath a resort that everybody loved. Right,

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<v Speaker 1>No one would think that would happen, except for the

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<v Speaker 1>people that built it. Because when the construction crews showed

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<v Speaker 1>up and they're like, all right, we're gonna need three

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<v Speaker 1>foot concrete walls here. Uh in these huge areas, we're

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<v Speaker 1>gonna need about eleven bunk beds. They went, Okay, what's

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<v Speaker 1>going on here? And they said, don't worry about it.

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<v Speaker 1>Just build what we tell you to build, and and

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<v Speaker 1>stay quiet. Because obviously something like this had to be secret,

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<v Speaker 1>and it was secret for many decades until I don't

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<v Speaker 1>know was it a reporter or just a writer that

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<v Speaker 1>basically wrote an article about it. Reporter a guy named

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<v Speaker 1>Ted Gup who sounds like the kind of person who

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<v Speaker 1>just out something for fun. It sounds like someone who

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<v Speaker 1>now they would use the word like he gut that

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<v Speaker 1>thing up right, which he wasted billions of taxpayer dollars

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<v Speaker 1>with one single article because it was then useless and

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<v Speaker 1>everyone said, well, thanks, gup. Now we don't have our

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<v Speaker 1>super secret bunker anymore. It's very much bombable because this thing,

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<v Speaker 1>although it's built to withstand um to like be three

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<v Speaker 1>you know, a few hours from Washington, d C. Where

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<v Speaker 1>the big bomb lands. Uh it can it will stand

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<v Speaker 1>like a direct hit. And no one would have bombed

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<v Speaker 1>White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia had it not been for you. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>Within three years of tag Gupps article, the Ultimate Congressional Hideaway,

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<v Speaker 1>the Greenbrier Resort was giving tours of it because it

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<v Speaker 1>had been decommissioned that quickly. And again this thing was

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<v Speaker 1>in was in ready operation at a moment's notice for

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<v Speaker 1>thirty years. Over the course of those thirty yearsunk beds

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<v Speaker 1>were assigned to a person, and these were it wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>like they assigned it once. As new congress people came in,

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<v Speaker 1>they got assign bunk beds like if something happened, this

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<v Speaker 1>place was ready to go. At a moment's notice to

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<v Speaker 1>accept all of Congress, and I say, we take a

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<v Speaker 1>break and then we'll come back and talk about some

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<v Speaker 1>of the details behind this ingenious plan. Let's do it. So, Chuck,

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<v Speaker 1>if you went to the Greenbrier between the I guess nine,

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<v Speaker 1>you might encounter somebody wearing a Forsyth Associates uniform and

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<v Speaker 1>they if you ask them, what what Foresight's Associates? Did,

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<v Speaker 1>you say, Oh, well, we we actually take care of

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<v Speaker 1>all the TV sets here at the Greenbrier. And then

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<v Speaker 1>the next thing you know, you would wake up in

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<v Speaker 1>the Cryptan Mexico wearing someone else's clothes and that would

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<v Speaker 1>be that. Yeah, And the last thought that you had

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<v Speaker 1>in your head was, man, there's a lot of people

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<v Speaker 1>taking care of these TV sets here, right, Because it

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<v Speaker 1>turns out that the Forsyth Associate TV technicians were actually

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<v Speaker 1>the government employees who are secretly tasked with keeping the

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<v Speaker 1>Greenbrier Bunker at a state of operational readiness at all times. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>it was called when they built it, I saw fifty

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<v Speaker 1>seven and fifty eight, so somewhere in there it was

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<v Speaker 1>called Project Greek Island. And again was the location was

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<v Speaker 1>determined because it's close enough to d C to where

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<v Speaker 1>it's not super far if he had to like get

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<v Speaker 1>there in a hurry. Um, but it's it's safe enough

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<v Speaker 1>to be there. Like, I think they could withstand radiation

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<v Speaker 1>for how many days? Could they survive on just the

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<v Speaker 1>air in their three But then the filtration system was

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<v Speaker 1>so amazing that it could actually filter out radiation, so

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<v Speaker 1>they were Okay, that's right. It cost about fourteen million bucks.

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<v Speaker 1>Was completed in sixty two, right before the Cuban missile crisis. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>seven hundred and twenty ft underground, A hundred it's two levels,

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<v Speaker 1>a hundred and twelve thousand and change square feet, so

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<v Speaker 1>roughly the size of a couple of football fields stacked

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<v Speaker 1>on one another. Yeah, think about it's seven hundred and underground.

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<v Speaker 1>That is, that's a skyscraper down. And what's nuts to

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<v Speaker 1>me is it still couldn't withstand a direct hit from

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<v Speaker 1>a nuclear bomb. That really kind just says a lot

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<v Speaker 1>right there. But um, so when you when you went

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<v Speaker 1>to this place under a nuclear attack, Um, if you

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<v Speaker 1>were a member of Congress, you would be hustled off

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<v Speaker 1>to the Greenbrier. The first thing that would happen once

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<v Speaker 1>you entered the secure sealed off area. UM. Is that

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<v Speaker 1>you would be decontaminated, you'd be given new clothes, your

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<v Speaker 1>other close being sinerated. UM. And you would find very

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<v Speaker 1>quickly that entire swaths of the Greenbrier had also been

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<v Speaker 1>ingeniously included in this. Even though it was open to

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<v Speaker 1>the public. They were used as as meeting rooms and

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<v Speaker 1>stuff during normal times. In the case of a nuclear emergency,

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<v Speaker 1>when Congress took over the bunker, they got sealed off

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<v Speaker 1>with the rest of this bunker too. Yeah, so like

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<v Speaker 1>they were literal uh me, like companies would have a

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<v Speaker 1>not a retreat, well, I guess a retreat there. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>And you know they would go and listen to people

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<v Speaker 1>lecture out their industry and not, you know, unknowingly the

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<v Speaker 1>whole time they're sitting on top of this underground bunker.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like it was pretty ingenious to not have it

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<v Speaker 1>a military base and to sort of hide it in

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<v Speaker 1>plain sight in some ways. Uh. There's if you're wondering, like, well,

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<v Speaker 1>how did you access it from the Greenbrier, it would

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<v Speaker 1>of course be behind the door that says danger high voltage,

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<v Speaker 1>keep out danger, danger. It's all I got of an

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<v Speaker 1>Austin Powers movie or something. It's like I just put

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<v Speaker 1>high voltage and no one will open that door. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I think it works. I mean you're kind of a

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<v Speaker 1>chump if you go through that door anyway, you know, Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>you'd be a real gup. Nice call back, dude. So

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<v Speaker 1>we else is in there. You got your decontamination room,

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<v Speaker 1>you got your dormitories, which are eighteen rooms with sixty

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<v Speaker 1>beds in each. You gotta have a cafeteria in a kitchen. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>They even had like media room set up with fake

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<v Speaker 1>views of like the capa all in the background and

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<v Speaker 1>stuff like that, so they could uh that had you know,

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<v Speaker 1>like a production facility essentially because they had to be

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<v Speaker 1>able to broadcast out in case anything went wrong. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>And they had three meeting rooms. One that could house

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<v Speaker 1>Senate the Senate, one that could house uh, the House

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<v Speaker 1>of Representatives, and one that could house joint um joint

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<v Speaker 1>congressional meetings like where everybody was involved. Um. They also

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<v Speaker 1>had a pharmacy with tons of antidepressants. Apparently had a

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<v Speaker 1>good stuff. They had a little jail, and then this

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<v Speaker 1>to me was pretty revealing. I think either MPR or

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<v Speaker 1>the Atomic Heritage Foundation pointed out that they had in

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<v Speaker 1>this little jail area they had weapons, but that the

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<v Speaker 1>weapons amounted to like a couple of rifles, some pistols, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>like some batons, and like helmets, like stuff you would

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<v Speaker 1>have for riot here. And I realized, like, that's that

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't meant to be used on you know, Soviet forces

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<v Speaker 1>trying to gain entry. That to be used in case

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<v Speaker 1>of like some sort of crazy mutiny like below ground

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<v Speaker 1>by by Congress people who are losing their marbles, just

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<v Speaker 1>old grudges, like they're finally they're finally going to take

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<v Speaker 1>Belosi down once and for all, put her in a

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<v Speaker 1>straight jacket because there were straight jackets. Uh that there

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<v Speaker 1>were two boxes of straight jackets with this jail, uh

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<v Speaker 1>in case something happened like that. Yeah. So um, the

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<v Speaker 1>whole thing was completed, I think you said, in time

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<v Speaker 1>for the Cuban missile crisis, right, Yeah, that's really really

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<v Speaker 1>good timing. And again when they did this, they did

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<v Speaker 1>it under the auspices that the Greenbrier was building a

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<v Speaker 1>new wing. And indeed the Greenbrier did build a new wing,

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<v Speaker 1>but there was some really weird parts of it, so

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<v Speaker 1>it did raise some, uh, some questions. But apparently the

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<v Speaker 1>locals kept it to themselves because it does not seem

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<v Speaker 1>to have been one of those you know, UM open secrets,

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<v Speaker 1>like it seems to have been like a real secret secret,

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<v Speaker 1>which is, you know, hats off to everybody who managed

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<v Speaker 1>to keep that a secret all those years. Well, yeah, because,

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<v Speaker 1>like we said, the construction crews were immediately suspicious, but

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people worked on that thing and clearly

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<v Speaker 1>knew what was going on. And I guess it was

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<v Speaker 1>just a different time where people, uh cared this is

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<v Speaker 1>about their country such that they knew it was important

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<v Speaker 1>to keep it a secret for national security reasons. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>hats off government on keeping some secrets. How fast would

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<v Speaker 1>this be tweeted out today? It was a drywall person

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<v Speaker 1>working on an underground bunker. Check it out. Supposedly, the

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<v Speaker 1>UM Supreme Court was destined for the Grove Park in

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<v Speaker 1>in the in the case of a nuclear emergency that

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<v Speaker 1>would find of the Greenbrier. Yeah, where's that Asheville? Okay,

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<v Speaker 1>really yeah, I'm pretty sure. Yeah, it's in Nashville, So

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<v Speaker 1>they would do that's where they would go and bunk

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<v Speaker 1>her down to Wow, pretty amazing stuff, Chuck. I wonder

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<v Speaker 1>if this, I mean, if there were eleven hun red beds.

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<v Speaker 1>This seems to indicate that they would have their families there, right,

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<v Speaker 1>I guess, but I guess, yeah, it must be. And

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<v Speaker 1>I think there's a there's um a train route from

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<v Speaker 1>d C to the Greenbrier, so they would probably be

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<v Speaker 1>time to be like maybe at the Amtrak station, we

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<v Speaker 1>gotta go right to your family. That's the only explanation

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<v Speaker 1>I can find all those staff. Maybe I could see

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<v Speaker 1>Congress people choosing their staff over their family in a

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<v Speaker 1>nuclear a nuclear disaster. That's eleven d bucks though. That's

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<v Speaker 1>that's plenty of room for staff and families and maybe

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<v Speaker 1>even an enemy or two. Sure again though, thanks to

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<v Speaker 1>the Atomic Heritage Foundation, great article on this as well

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<v Speaker 1>as NPR. We we we always love yes and great thanks

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<v Speaker 1>to you too, Chuck, and and you sir, thank you. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>we thanked each other everybody. That means short stuff is out.

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