On the bright side, I recently read a reassuring post about why nuclear armageddon is unlikely.

Yes, the Russians have a lot of nukes. But the maintenance requirements to keep a massive stockpile on constant readiness are huge and Russia doesn't commit the resources necessary.

So, if Russia were to pop off, many if not most of their missiles would fail.

The Russian military knows this. They also know that the American military's missiles are well maintained. Nuclear war would not end well for Russia, and it's arguable that they don't even have the benefit of Mutually Assured Destruction.