[lit-ideas] Re: non-news
- From: Paul Stone <pas@xxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2004 00:00:07 -0400
At 10:49 PM 8/9/04, you wrote:
>FYI. From the Associated Press via the Seattle Intelligencer via Google
>News
>
>=======
>Recent nuclear accidents in Japan:
These are "recent accidents at Nuclear plants in Japan", NOT 'recent
nuclear accidents in Japan" as the FYI would have you think. ONLY the SEPT
99 incident is even remotely newsworthy under the headline that you
supplied. I stand behind my initial remarks. It is NO WONDER that there are
cover ups. 6 incidents in almost 9 years and there is coverage that would
make the average news-reader think that nuclear energy is incredibly
dangerous -- something which is bullshit -- there have only been two
"disasters" in 52 years -- worldwide. And one of those was waaaaaaaaay
overblown (three-mile-island) the other being Chernobyl which was actually
bad. Yes... of course, left unchecked there is the possibility for
tremendous catastrophe, but this continued heightened alert because of
"nuclear accidents" is just disingenuous. Nuclear power is safe if run
correctly. To update Socrates "An unthreatened life is not worth living".
There have been more deaths at the local tomato processing plant in the
last 10 years. This is a complete non-issue, but connect the buzzword
"nukyular" and you have panic -- something which the media wants. Without
panic, they sell no more papers. Making imbeciles is their business.
paul
>- December 1995: Sodium leaked in a secondary cooling system at the
>Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor operated by the state-run Power
>Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corp., or Donen. No one was
>injured in that accident, and no radioactivity escaped, but Donen was
>found to have concealed videotape footage that showed the extensive
>damage to the reactor.
>
>- March 1997: At least 37 workers were exposed to low doses of
>radiation at a March 11 fire and explosion at a nuclear reprocessing
>plant operated by Donen in Tokaimura, northeast of Tokyo. Donen later
>admitted to initially suppressing information about the fire.
>
>- September 1999: Two workers were killed in a radiation leak at a
>fuel-reprocessing plant in Tokaimura when they tried to save time by
>mixing excessive amounts of uranium in buckets instead of using special
>mechanized tanks. Hundreds were exposed to radiation, and thousands of
>residents evacuated. The government assigned the accident a level 4
>rating on the International Nuclear Event Scale ranging from 1 to 7.
>
>- February 2002: Two workers were exposed to a small amount of
>radiation and suffered minor burns when they accidentally punctured a
>spray can that ignited a plastic sheet during an inspection at Onagawa
>Nuclear Power Station in northern Japan.
>
>- February 2004: Eight workers were exposed to low-level radiation at
>another power plant in Tsuruga, western Japan, when they were
>accidentally sprayed with contaminated water. The doses were not
>considered dangerous.
>
>- Aug. 9, 2004: A cooling pipe at a power plant in Mihama burst,
>burning at least four workers to death and injuring seven others with a
>scorching explosion of steam. No radiation was released.
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