How did the concept of mutually assured destruction influence the Cold War?

Question

civicsiscool44 · Answer

It reminded people that a nuclear war would be devastating for everyone.

osprey · Answer

if two people with big guns take aim at each other, and if both of them fire those big guns, then they kill each other. Which sort of makes the thing MAD or rather pointless. Mind you, plenty of postiering and threatening and sabre rattling before they DON'T do it. Hence, maybe, the Cuban Missile crisis Kennedy V Kruschev.
The only time that nuc weapons has been detonated in "anger" was under P Truman to end Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and WW2.
And, it probably frightened anyone and everyone who was remotely associated with it.