One Month later
Dear readers,
You might remember that, roughly one month ago, I wrote that the earthquake and the nuclear catastrophe in japan are not what I would have liked as a birthday present.
Now, I am beginning to think differently. Sure, this sounds harsh and not very respectful considering how many people have died and still are going to die, but let me explain.
What is happening there, on the other side of the world, right now is the worst nuclear accident in the history of mankind. People keep repeating over and over again that this is no second chernobyl, and that there hasn't been nearly as much radioactivity released, but what those people don't see is that it isn't over. And it's not going to be over anytime soon. I expect those reactors to keep spewing for the next three months at least, if not longer. The result of this is that there is no chance for the fact "nuclear power has failed" to be forgotten, news from fukushima will be in the papers and on TV for the rest of spring, propably well into summer. It is as if some higher being has decided that chernobyl was over too fast to achive what should have been achieved back then, the conversion of our (And I'm not talking about my country here, I'm talking about the world) energy supply from nuclear to regenerative. So, since chernobyl didn't crack those hard heads, we now have fukushima, where the proceedings are dragged out over a long period of time, making it impossible to look away, making it impossible to ignore or forget. Inexorably, the situation will get worse and worse, and all we can do is watch - just like the poor, brave workers who do the best they can to prevent more radioactivity escaping. Only that there is nothing anyone _can_ do. Physics have taken over, and we can't change physics. It's the law, man.
So. What we're watching right now is the end of the nuclear age. It's also going to take time, but I have no doubt that the fairy-tale of nuclear power being clean, safe and cheap is over, and that more and more people are going to see that and demand consequences from their political leaders. Even companies who have business in selling reactors are starting to doubt their ability to gloss this over, to bring public opinion back on their side and to hold up the fairy-tale.
Still, it is not enough to rely on the story of fukushima. All those who woke up from the nuclear dream, speak up. Do not allow industry and politics to lull the people back into believing that nuclear power is safe. Do not accept arguments like "This can't happen here, we have no earthquakes or tsunamis." Even if it were true (Not many places on earth are truly free of quakes), there are other things that can happen. Fukushima didn't fail because there was a quake or a tsunami - it failed because something happened that nobody thought would happen. In japan, it was a tsunami that was higher than anyone could imagine happening. In germany, it might be an aircraft crashing into a building noone thought about crash-proofing. In the US, it might be a forest fire that's so big that the smoke kills the guys running the reactor, and blocks the road so no replacement personell can get to the plant. Anywhere in the world it might me a magnetic storm shorting out the electrical equipment. There are thousands of possibilities noone has thought of when placing safeguards, backup systems or constructing walls and roofs.
If the people of the world keep looking at fukushima, and if the people of the world think for themselves instead of believing in sugar-coated lies issued by companies whose primary interest is making money (And let's not be stupid, making money is what companies are there for,) I might have gotten a birthday present I've been waiting for for 30 years: A world free of nuclear power.
It comes at a price, and currently, it is paied by the people of japan. My sympathies are with these people, and I truly and dearly hope that they are going to be the last who have to suffer for mankinds hybris.
You might remember that, roughly one month ago, I wrote that the earthquake and the nuclear catastrophe in japan are not what I would have liked as a birthday present.
Now, I am beginning to think differently. Sure, this sounds harsh and not very respectful considering how many people have died and still are going to die, but let me explain.
What is happening there, on the other side of the world, right now is the worst nuclear accident in the history of mankind. People keep repeating over and over again that this is no second chernobyl, and that there hasn't been nearly as much radioactivity released, but what those people don't see is that it isn't over. And it's not going to be over anytime soon. I expect those reactors to keep spewing for the next three months at least, if not longer. The result of this is that there is no chance for the fact "nuclear power has failed" to be forgotten, news from fukushima will be in the papers and on TV for the rest of spring, propably well into summer. It is as if some higher being has decided that chernobyl was over too fast to achive what should have been achieved back then, the conversion of our (And I'm not talking about my country here, I'm talking about the world) energy supply from nuclear to regenerative. So, since chernobyl didn't crack those hard heads, we now have fukushima, where the proceedings are dragged out over a long period of time, making it impossible to look away, making it impossible to ignore or forget. Inexorably, the situation will get worse and worse, and all we can do is watch - just like the poor, brave workers who do the best they can to prevent more radioactivity escaping. Only that there is nothing anyone _can_ do. Physics have taken over, and we can't change physics. It's the law, man.
So. What we're watching right now is the end of the nuclear age. It's also going to take time, but I have no doubt that the fairy-tale of nuclear power being clean, safe and cheap is over, and that more and more people are going to see that and demand consequences from their political leaders. Even companies who have business in selling reactors are starting to doubt their ability to gloss this over, to bring public opinion back on their side and to hold up the fairy-tale.
Still, it is not enough to rely on the story of fukushima. All those who woke up from the nuclear dream, speak up. Do not allow industry and politics to lull the people back into believing that nuclear power is safe. Do not accept arguments like "This can't happen here, we have no earthquakes or tsunamis." Even if it were true (Not many places on earth are truly free of quakes), there are other things that can happen. Fukushima didn't fail because there was a quake or a tsunami - it failed because something happened that nobody thought would happen. In japan, it was a tsunami that was higher than anyone could imagine happening. In germany, it might be an aircraft crashing into a building noone thought about crash-proofing. In the US, it might be a forest fire that's so big that the smoke kills the guys running the reactor, and blocks the road so no replacement personell can get to the plant. Anywhere in the world it might me a magnetic storm shorting out the electrical equipment. There are thousands of possibilities noone has thought of when placing safeguards, backup systems or constructing walls and roofs.
If the people of the world keep looking at fukushima, and if the people of the world think for themselves instead of believing in sugar-coated lies issued by companies whose primary interest is making money (And let's not be stupid, making money is what companies are there for,) I might have gotten a birthday present I've been waiting for for 30 years: A world free of nuclear power.
It comes at a price, and currently, it is paied by the people of japan. My sympathies are with these people, and I truly and dearly hope that they are going to be the last who have to suffer for mankinds hybris.