Apologies to all for my exchange with “retreatingbladestall” on the thread below this one. It wasn’t my intention to derail the thread, which is why I put my Wyden comment in parenthesis.
Frankly, I had waited days for an open thread in which I could mention Wyden’s efforts in regards to Fukushima, and just finally decided to cite his efforts as an aside to my comment about media corruption. The “corruption” of silence is as insidious as the corruption of deception. In that context, I felt a mention of Fukushima was apropo to a thread dealing with media corruption. Certainly, the false narrative regarding events in Syria is a media construct, as is the public perception that Fukushima is old news, and no longer poses a threat.
Regardless, I regret my part in advancing the expulsion of “retreatingbladestall”. I have found that it is quite easy to resist reading the comments posted by people that irritate me, “retreatingbladestall” being one such character. But just because someone irritates the shit outta me doesn’t mean they affect other people in the same manner. I would far rather see us, as individuals, “self police” ourselves with our choice of who we read than to see people banned from posting because they rub some of us the wrong way.
Again, I apologize, and hope that b will consider reinstating “retreatingbladestall’s” posting privileges. If simply irritating someone is reason for banishment, I doubt any of us would currently be allowed to post, because no one is going to consistently earn that agreement of everyone here.

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 22 2012 18:57 utc | 4

that poster has been getting himself banned for years here now, at least back to the exact same behavior/topic when posting as wadosy. imo, i see no reason for giving him more chances…

Posted by: b real | Apr 22 2012 19:32 utc | 6

Nothing wrong with cooling off some people for a few days. It is a preferable diciplinary measure to other means of moderation.

Posted by: Alexander | Apr 22 2012 19:50 utc | 8

Just ran into “Alabama Moon” by Pee Wee King, born Julius Kuczynski. He was an accordion polka player who turned to country song writing, mostly famous for Tennessee Waltz. It’s not Kurt Weill, ok.

Posted by: Browning | Apr 22 2012 20:55 utc | 10

@11:
Is that why Israel suddenly did this?
Israelis told to leave Sinai over attacks fears

Israeli authorities warned citizens on Saturday to leave Egypt’s Sinai peninsula immediately because of a “critical and immediate threat” of a terrorist attack.
“All Iraelis in the Sinai are called upon to leave the region and return to Israel,” said a statement from the anti-terrorist bureau.
“Based on information in our possession, terrorist organisations in the Gaza Strip are continuing to work energetically to carry out terrorist attacks against Israeli targets on Sinai’s beaches in the immediate term,” it said.

Posted by: Dr. Wellington Yueh | Apr 22 2012 22:10 utc | 12

@ # 11
Ah, was wondering what had caused the israhelli “get outa sinai – rockets are about to fly” hysteria. i’d say that the gas story is why. What False flag scenario are they going to cook up here one wonders.

Posted by: DontNeedNoStinkin’UserName | Apr 22 2012 23:45 utc | 14

It is all to easy to lay all the blame on the destruction of the last couple threads solely at the feet of the dingbat/s; however our own predilection for correcting those ‘off the track’ should also be considered at least partially responsible.
When a dingbat dings and dongs his/her way through the site we should try and ignore it even though it can be incredibly difficult to let some particularly deluded paragraph of tripe stand unchallenged.
In those cases a sidestep across the delusion is probably a better ‘way forward’ (apologies for the capitalist cliche but I collect em) than direct confrontation.
Otherwise all the weight is put onto the host to ban the dingbat. And that puts a pretty foul taste in many mouths while leaving the host open to false claims of censorship.
Our awful reality has caused many casualties, some of whom post in here from time to time. If MoA won’t tolerate them who will? Yeah I dislike racist nutters as much as anyone, but in the end they are nutters. You wouldn’t poke one with a sharp stick if you met one in reality so we should try not to do that in the virtual world as well.

Posted by: Debs is dead | Apr 23 2012 0:29 utc | 16

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-alvarez/the-fukushima-nuclear-dis_b_1444146.html
More than a year after the Fukushima nuclear power disaster began, the news media is just beginning to grasp that the dangers to Japan and the rest of the world are far from over. After repeated warnings by former senior Japanese officials, nuclear experts, and now a U.S. Senator, it’s sinking in that the irradiated nuclear fuel stored in spent fuel pools amidst the reactor ruins pose far greater dangers than the molten cores. This is why:
• Nearly all of the 10,893 spent fuel assemblies sit in pools vulnerable to future earthquakes, with roughly 85 times more long-lived radioactivity than released at Chernobyl
• Several pools are 100 feet above the ground and are completely open to the atmosphere because the reactor buildings were demolished by explosions. The pools could possibly topple or collapse from structural damage coupled with another powerful earthquake.
• The loss of water exposing the spent fuel will result in overheating and can cause melting and ignite its zirconium metal cladding resulting in a fire that could deposit large amounts of radioactive materials over hundreds, if not thousands of miles. […]

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 23 2012 3:05 utc | 18

And when, pray tell, will the San Andreas wake up???
NYT: Threat of catastrophic radioactive release from a spent fuel pool at Fukushima is dwarfed by risk posed by pools in U.S., study says May 24, 2011
http://enenews.com/nyt-threat-of-catastrophic-release-of-radioactive-materials-from-a-spent-fuel-pool-at-fukushima-is-dwarfed-by-risk-posed-by-pools-in-u-s-study-says

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 23 2012 3:28 utc | 20

This is truly a case where Christian response should be to turn the other cheek…let these bigots make assholes of themselves in public and demostrate to the world what motivates their religious beliefs: certainly not love of God or fellow human beings.

Posted by: ralphieboy | Apr 23 2012 6:46 utc | 22

I think it is time the French Socialists and left wing groups take the grievances of Marine Le Pens voters seriously.
Architecture kills them like an axe.
http://projetparisbanlieue.blogspot.de/search/label/07%3A%20Chapter%204%20-%20Toward%20an%20Architecture%20of%20Noise

Posted by: somebody | Apr 23 2012 11:30 utc | 24

Noirette, thanks for the explanations.
Your statistics, that is GDP per capita, growth rate? your statistics look strange in absolute terms, compare to here:
http://www.indexmundi.com/g/g.aspx?c=fr&v=67
or growth rate adjusted for inflation compare to here
http://www.indexmundi.com/g/g.aspx?v=66&c=fr&l=en
to compare quality of lifestyle over the years is difficult to say the least.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 23 2012 13:44 utc | 26

I support banning all the guffawing assholes here who can’t figure out how to properly hyperlink.

Posted by: slothrop | Apr 23 2012 14:57 utc | 28

Keenly interested in the elections in France. Thanks to all for the latest. Getting real information, without the media spin, here in the U.S. is a problem.
Hopefully, it will make a difference if the left leaning candidates win, and the rush towards austerity for the working people is stopped, or at least slowed downed.
With the advent of electronic voting here, I’m doubting if the voting process has real validity. Is there a valid process in France? Will Hollande, if elected, make a difference? Just a couple of things I wonder about.

Posted by: ben | Apr 23 2012 15:07 utc | 30

The French vote % in the first round was listed at 80%.Can’t see it getting much more than that in the next round.What is our top ever, 60%?
Sarkosi is hoping for all those right wing votes,but I believe French nationalists won’t vote for the globalist Sarkosi,so who knows,but hopefully this guy is toast.

Posted by: dahoit | Apr 23 2012 15:18 utc | 32

Re 33 “Antisemitism cannot be marginalised because it is being manufactured at a high rate by Zionists and other defenders of Israel; they will will never let it die, because it is necessary for keeping Israel going.”
Certainly true here in the U.S. You cannot have a debate on cultural short-comings on two things here..Race and Antisemitism, because to do so, labels you either a Racist, or a champion of Antisemitism. Every human culture on earth has its share of morons, and/or abusers, but those two subjects, at least here, are verboten for discussion.

Posted by: ben | Apr 23 2012 16:00 utc | 34

i see the political landscape in france slightly differently to noirette
this 20% is the beginning of an implantation of what is a pure extreme right – replete with a hatred of foreigners whether they are arab or jewish. their roots, their real roots & their occult organisations have not made one step back from the collaborationist right which remains their ideological base
any concessions they make are cosmetic & what surprises me as a student of w reich is how much their leaders through their body language express their hatred of the very people that vote for them
moral & political laziness has led france to this crossroads & everybody has a a share of the blame
for me there is only one way to fight fascists & it isn’t through the urns unless they are used for burials
the only healthy sign i see is a return to the kind of numbers we used to see decades ago for the left, whether this can be maintained will be the real test of the fdg
the reality is capital is in plain collapse & rather than it being close to the end we are still at the beginning – the struggles people form, which i hope they can learn from latin america is going to decide tÌe political landscape of europe
i want to feel hope but i feel very, very sombre

Posted by: remembereringgiap | Apr 23 2012 17:13 utc | 36

@37
israelí jews, mayority of them, are no semites. they are khazars.

Posted by: timid | Apr 23 2012 19:54 utc | 38

Funniest (well, in a scary way) news of the day: Obama proposes sanctioning any person or entities –in Iran and Syria– using technology to track, thwart dissidnents. He appears to be proposing such sanctions against any government which does such things against the wishes of the US government.
Big question is: Will he use it against his own administration?

The president announced new sanctions on people and entities in Iran and Syria that use technology to target citizens and erode their human rights. More broadly, Mr. Obama spoke of the work that “will never be done” — the global challenge of preventing atrocities.
To Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, Mr. Obama said: “You show us the way. If you cannot give up, if you can believe, then we can believe.”
In his first appearance as president at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Mr. Obama broadly defended his government’s steps to protect innocent people, saying: “We have saved countless lives.”.

O. M. G.
He is oblivious. Believes his own PR. Peace Prize Prez.

Posted by: jawbone | Apr 23 2012 20:30 utc | 40

@crazy_inventor #27:
Where (regionally) are you located? I, and several others on the board, would be most interested in your results, positive or negative.

Posted by: Dr. Wellington Yueh | Apr 24 2012 2:09 utc | 42

From Chris Hedges on the political state in America, and oh, so true:
“The extremists, of course, are already in power. They have been in power for several years. They write our legislation. They pick the candidates and fund their campaigns. They dominate the courts. They effectively gut regulations and environmental controls. They suck down billions in government subsidies. They pay no taxes. They determine our energy policy. They loot the U.S. treasury. They rigidly control public debate and information. They wage useless and costly imperial wars for profit. They are behind the stripping away of our most cherished civil liberties. They are implementing government programs to gouge out any money left in the carcass of America. And they know that Romney or Barack Obama, along with the Democratic and the Republican parties, will not stop them.”

Posted by: ben | Apr 25 2012 14:57 utc | 44

@ Dr. Wellington Yueh
oh sorry didn’t see your comment until now
midwest U.S.
you can see the technical details here :
seeed looks for help developing an open source radiation detector
radiation monitoring every us city single page

Posted by: crazy_inventor | Apr 25 2012 15:44 utc | 46

@ juannie
the stations aren’t bitcasts on the ‘net, they’re real over-the-air broadcast stations, the location of which have to be protected
The charts are EPA data, which as you can see are incomplete or missing for many cities, which is what motivated me to design my own detectors.
I started with looking at a phosphor screen with a microscope lens in complete darkness, and improved a step at a time, to the present possibly Beta detection, with further improvements to do.
Concentrating on Gamma detection now, several failed attempts so far (involving zapping myself and circuits with up to 7,000 volts a few times, which has discouraged me, but it still needs doing)
The key as always is commonly available parts, to keep the cost as low as possible, keeping in mind radiation is a random event, and so noise or electrical discharge/corona/static can easily be mistaken for it.
Trying to get ahold of better radiation sources since the Am-241 elements are very limited, producing nearly pure Alpha with only very weak soft Gamma.
Many things give off Gamma so once I’ve worked out good detection, there will be many more objects to provide interest, I’ve done surveys for Alpha around the neighborhood, but haven’t found anything – was hoping to find some Uranium or Thorium rock samples, etc..

Posted by: crazy_inventor | Apr 25 2012 17:33 utc | 48

Crazy_inventor: Thanks much. BTW, electricity scares the hell out of me! You have my sympathy. 🙂

Posted by: Dr. Wellington Yueh | Apr 25 2012 19:29 utc | 50

@ Alexander
the concept of this design is pretty simple, you could get a transistor in a metal can from say radio shack, and remove the top (a file will do) then connect it to the microphone jack of your computer, and with the gain cranked (and boost enabled) hear the alpha particles
you can take apart a smoke detector for the radiation source, to test it with
no special preamp circuit is really needed, maybe just a capacitor on the mic input to block any DC that may be on it..
and there’s free software to display a chart using the sound card clicks as the source
CDVCounter download at sourceforge
CDVCounter instruction manual
this software plots a graph that it updates as often or as slowly as you want (CPM is the usual setting), and it spits out an updated jpg that you can display on a webpage or email, etc, plus it keeps a log if you want, it’s calibrated for milli/micro sievert/gray/rad/rem (you choose), too
I prefer just CPM myself, which is what the EPA charts are..
@ ruralito
the transistor is the key to the whole thing, getting one in a metal can, and removing the top, to be able to expose it to radiation – otherwise just a preamp, the transistor gives off very low level clicks, so just boosting those clicks, by any means (microphone, phonograph input) the phono input on an older stereo is ideal, computer mic input will work too, with a blocking cap if needed..
the de-capped transistor is it, really
my original design required a special PIN diode and an extremely good preamp, along with a phosphor sheet, and very thin foil, to work in anything other than total darkness, but the de-capped transistor is like a microphone – just connect to whatever preamp you have handy..
@ Dr. Wellington Yueh
really its been my own fault for charging high voltage capacitors off a CRT with no current limiting (which is dangerous) when I should have been using a current limit resistor for safety
I plan on doing so from now on (now that I actually have such a resistor – one that will withstand the voltage without flashing over)

Posted by: crazy_inventor | Apr 25 2012 21:37 utc | 52

this rabbit hole goes oh so much much deeper
Washington Times on Franklin Case (the discovery channel had prepared a segment on this but at the last minute it was pulled and all copies of the tape destroyed – except the copy I have)
‘Call boys’ took midnight tour of White House.
“A homosexual prostitution ring is under investigation by federal and District authorities and includes among its clients key officials of the Reagan and Bush administrations, military officers, congressional aides and US and foreign businessmen with close social ties to Washington’s political elite. Reporters for this newspaper examined hundreds of credit-card vouchers, drawn on both corporate and personal cards and made payable to the escort service operated by the homosexual ring.”
— Washington Times, 6/29/1989
One of the ring’s high-profile clients was so well-connected, in fact, that he could arrange a middle-of-the-night tour of the White House for his friends on Sunday, July 3, of last year. Among the six persons on the extraordinary 1 a.m. tour were two male prostitutes.
Federal authorities, including the Secret Service, are investigating criminal aspects of the ring and have told male prostitutes and their homosexual clients that a grand jury will deliberate over the evidence throughout the summer, The Times learned.
Editors of The Times said the newspaper would print only the names of those found to be in sensitive government posts or positions of influence. “There is no intention of publishing names or facts about the operation merely for titillation,” said Wesley Pruden, managing editor of The Times.
The office of US Attorney General Jay B. Stephens, former deputy White House counsel to President Reagan, is coordinating federal aspects of the inquiry but refused to discuss the investigation or grand jury actions.
Several former White House colleagues of Mr. Stephen are listed among clients of the homosexual prostitution ring, according to the credit card records, and those persons have confirmed that the charges were theirs.
Mr. Stephen’s office, after first saying it would cooperate with The Times’ inquiry, withdrew the offer late yesterday and also declined to say whether Mr. Stephens would recuse himself from the case because of possible conflict of interest.
At least one highly placed Bush administration official and a wealthy businessman who procured homosexual prostitutes from the escort services operated by the ring are cooperating with the investigation, several sources said.
Among clients who charged homosexual prostitutes services on major credit cards over the past 18 months are Charles K. Dutcher, former associate director of presidential personnel in the Reagan administration, and Paul R. Balach, Labor Secretary Elizabeth Dole’s political personnel liaison to the White House.
In the 1970s, Mr. Dutcher was a congressional aide to former Rep. Robert Bauman, Maryland Republican, who resigned from the House after admitted having engaged in sexual liaisons with teen-age male prostitutes. Mr. Dutcher also worked on the staff of Vice President Dan Quayle when he represented an Indiana district in the House.
A charge also was discovered against the credit card of a former White House staffer who prepared the president’s daily news summary in the Reagan administration. Todd A Blodgett said he had not made the charge.
One of the ring’s big spending clients is Craig J. Spence, Washington socialite and international trade consultant, according to documents and interviews with operators and prostitutes who say they engaged in sexual activities with Mr. Spence.
Mr. Spence spent upwards of $20,000 a month for male prostitutes who provided sex to him and his friends, said to include military personnel who also acted as his “bodyguards.” It was Mr. Spence who arranged the nocturnal tour of the Reagan White House. Repeated attempts to reach Mr. Spence by telephone, fax machine and personal visits to his home, were unsuccessful.
Credit card vouchers confirm that Mr. Spence charged thousands of dollars on American Express and Visa cards, sometimes making $600 charges against his cards several times a day, drawn in behalf of an escort service called Professional Services Inc.
Members of major news organizations also procured escort services from the ring, credit card documents show. These include Stanley Mark Tapscott, who was an assistant managing editor of The Washington Times.
Mr. Tapscott, whose resignation on June 20 was accepted, said he had not procured homosexual escorts or sexual services of any kind. He said in an interview that he had talked to two women he arranged to meet through the escort service as part of an investigation of a dial-a-porn services he had initiated a year earlier when he was editor of the newspaper’s Money section. The charges were made against his company American Express card. His editors knew of no such investigation.
Before joining The Times, Mr. Tapscott worked for the Office of Personnel Management in the Reagan administration.
Managers of the escort ring said that “a few women” were used for clients who called with specific requests but that the regular stable was altogether male.
The documents show that a number of clients — lawyers, doctors and business executives — used corporate credit cards to procure escort services and that a number of military officers from the United States and allied countries — including one foreign officer using a “Department of Defence” credit card — charged male escort services.
One former top-level Pentagon officer said that for the past eight years, military and civilian intelligence authorities have been concerned that “a nest of homosexuals” at top levels of the Reagan administration may have been penetrated by Soviet-backed espionage agents posing as male prostitutes, said one former top-level Pentagon official.
A major concern, said the former official with longtime ties to top-ranking military intelligence officers, was that hostile foreign intelligence services were using young male prostitutes to compromise top administration homosexuals, thus making them subject to blackmail.
“We have known for many, many years that there is a department of the KGB [Soviet intelligence] whose job it is to prey on sexual deviants,” said retired Lt. Gen. Daniel Graham, former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency.
Because “closet” homosexuals in government service can be easily “turned” through blackmail for espionage purposes, Gen. Graham said, “we have always in intelligence tried very hard not to be giving classified information to known homosexuals.”
Those interviewed by The Times confirmed that there were blackmail attempts by male prostitutes who wanted money and other favors to protect clients’ sexual lives.
The clients interviewed say a Feb. 28 police raid on a house at 6004 34th Place NW was set off by reports of blackmail and possible credit-card fraud complaints and by District hotel operators about prostitution activities.
In the raid, spearheaded by the Washington Field Office of the U.S. Secret Service, authorities found a telephone switchboard operation serving a half-dozen homosexual escort services.
Secret Service agents and District police vice investigators confiscated financial records, as well as ledgers, photos, diaries, telephone records, Rolodexes and client lists of the prostitution network, during the raid and with subsequent subpoenas issued by D.C. Superior Court.
Although the confiscated material was turned over to District police on the scene, witnesses and law enforcement agents say the Secret Service kept one box containing names and other information about high-level government officials who were clients of the male escort business.
District police officials say that, to their knowledge, this is the first time the Secret Service has ever become involved in such a raid in this area.
Initially, the Secret Service denied it was involved in the raid, but after a second raid of the 34th Place house on May 18, the agency acknowledged its involvement in the investigation.
Secret Service spokesman Bob Snow said the agency participated in the search and seizure operation because of its jurisdiction over credit card fraud. “We come into such operations usually at the request of a U.S. attorney … if the fraud involves $10,000 or more … We are not involved in any local prostitution investigation,” said Mr. Snow.
Witnesses to the February raid said 12 Secret Service agents in blue parkas entered the house and spent several hours collecting and removing boxes of files.
Federal and District investigators have since interrogated several prostitutes working for the ring, as well as clients of homosexual escort services operating under such names as Jovan, Man-to-Man, Metrodate, Ultimate Models and Ultimate First Class.
In addition to credit-card fraud, the investigation is said to be focused on illegal interstate prostitution, abduction and use of minors for sexual perversion, extortion, larceny and related illicit drug trafficking and use by prostitutes and their clients.
One of the chief operators of Professional Services Inc. and a regular client of the service speculated in separate interviews that the investigation would be restricted because “big names” were involved.
“Henry Vinson [the operator] said a high level official is going to try to block the investigation and may succeed,” said Mr. Balach, the labor secretary’s liaison to the White House. Mr. Vinson said he believes a highly placed federal official, whom he would not name, is working to derail the investigation, but he would not elaborate.
Authorities have been investigating possible credit card fraud by the ring operators since last fall.
Operators of the ring told The Times that videotapes, audio tapes and still photographs were made of sex acts performed by clients and the call boys, including perverted acts.
Documents show that customers were charged for “videotapes” from the operation.
Child Sex Abuse Ring Revealed In
Free Discovery Channel Documentary
Conspiracy of Silence is a powerful, disturbing documentary revealing a U.S. child sex abuse and pedophilia ring that leads to the highest levels of government. Featuring intrepid investigator John DeCamp, a highly decorated Vietnam war veteran and 16-year Nebraska state senator, Conspiracy of Silence reveals how rogue elements at all levels of government have been involved in systematic child sex abuse and pedophilia to feed the base desires of key politicians.
Based on DeCamp’s riveting book, The Franklin Cover-up, Conspiracy of Silence begins with the shut-down of Nebraska’s Franklin Community Federal Credit Union after a raid by federal agencies in 1988 revealed that $40 million was missing. When the Nebraska legislature launched a probe into the affair, what initially looked like a financial swindle soon exploded into a startling tale of drugs, money laundering, and a nationwide child sex abuse ring. Nineteen months later, the legislative committee’s chief investigator died suddenly and violently. A dozen others linked to the Franklin case investigation died strange and mysterious deaths.
So why have you never heard of the Franklin cover-up? Originally scheduled to air in May of 1994 on the Discovery Channel, Conspiracy of Silence was yanked at the last minute due to formidable pressure applied by top politicians. Some very powerful people did not want you to watch this documentary. Thanks to the power of the Internet, you can now view this eye-opening documentary at the link below.
Conspiracy of Silence
Nationwide child sex abuse ring revealed in Discovery Channel documentary (55 min)
http://www.best-videos.org/videos/secret_societies/CONSPIRACY_OF_SILENCE.flv
(206.mb)

Posted by: crazy_inventor | Apr 26 2012 10:57 utc | 54

Thanks to crazy_inventor for adding a lot of background information. I agree that the Franklin case “allegations” were fairly well-known among those easily dismissed as “conspiracy theorists”. What I find interesting is that a relatively reliable source has put (similar charges) back into the arena of public debate (although it’s not at all clear that Giraldi’s assertions in any way corroborate those cited with regard to the Franklin case, or the Pentagon porn purchases). One might also recall Scott Ritter getting into serious trouble along these lines, but of course, he had also alienated the pro-war crowd, so he was an obvious target.
There are, of course, plenty of other cases of important people being disgraced for sexual transgressions, so much so that one is tempted to think that “offenders” tend to be outed only when they have committed the truly unforgivable sin of endangering the well laid plans of their “betters”. This is not always the case, of course, but suspecting such “ulterior motives” should certainly be one’s reflexive reaction for such cases.

Posted by: Hannah K. O’Luthon | Apr 26 2012 15:35 utc | 56

More on the nuclear scene. Not a catastrophe, at least on a massive scale and although I’m glad I’m not downstream, my heart goes out for those who are.
Actually, we’re all loving downstream these days:
Relax, It’s Just a Run-of-the-Mill Nuke Spill

…on March 19, at 3:00 in the morning, the Limerick Nuclear Power Station, which runs two aging GE nuclear reactors along the Schuylkill River west of Philadelphia, had an accident. As much as 15,000 gallons of reactor water contaminated with five times the official safe limit of radioactive Tritium as well as an unknown amount of other dangerous isotopes from the reactor’s fission process blew off a manhole cover and ran out of a large pipe, flowing into a streambed and on into the river from which Philadelphia and a number of smaller towns draw their municipal water supplies.
No public announcement of this spill was made at the time, so the public in those communities had no idea that it had occurred, and water system operators had no opportunity to shut down their intakes from the river. There was no report about the spill in Philadelphia’s two daily newspapers or on local news programs.

[my bold]

Posted by: juannie | Apr 27 2012 14:34 utc | 58

I find it difficult to say thank you somebody for such dire and spine chilling news but I guess it is better to be informed than hoping keeping my head buried beneath the covers is going to protect me. Thanks.
Dire indeed. I strongly recommend linking and reading the entire article. A few days ago someone was deriding POA as an alarmist because he thought the Fukushima situation could spell a far more serious threat to humanity than any of the global machinations of imperial insanity (paraphrased). I suggest POA was right on.
Another quote from somebody’s link:

Many of our readers might find it difficult to appreciate the actual meaning of the figure, yet we can grasp what 85 times more Cesium-137 than the Chernobyl would mean. It would destroy the world environment and our civilization. This is not rocket science, nor does it connect to the pugilistic debate over nuclear power plants. This is an issue of human survival.

Posted by: juannie | Apr 27 2012 21:34 utc | 60

Morlocks and Eloi here were come. (And who’s counting the Millennia?)
Whoever rides this one out will have to be underground a long time.
And we always thought it would be the Big War that would rub us out.
Civilization like an Etch-A-Sketch. I wonder if this has happened before?
Remotely-controlled bulldozers and a couple of million metric tons of concrete, anyone?
I sure hope the fuel rods don’t come crashing down!

Posted by: Copeland | Apr 28 2012 1:28 utc | 62

So, what are we looking at? A 20% increase in background radiation? Plus, if the pool at number 4 burns, another 30% increase in global background radiation? Of course, a huge portion of Japan can be made inhabitable.. This is bad, but it doesn’t make every other issue in the world irrelevant.

Posted by: Alexander | Apr 29 2012 8:36 utc | 64

I suppose there is some kind of cruel irony and poetic justice if indeed Fukushima does end up wiping out mankind. as the only people to have been bombed by nuclear weapons it seems fair that they should get their revenge…even if it involves a national kamikaze act.
before you all pounce on me, this is intended to be gallows humor and not an indictment of the Japanese people.

Posted by: dan of steele | Apr 29 2012 15:08 utc | 66

glad to see that the “OMFG we’re ALL gonna DIE!!!!!1111!!!!” Armageddon/Apocalypse Brigade have finally decided to get their chickens in a row and have now seemingly ditched AGW as the cause of us all dying soon, and all piled-in behind the meme that Radiation is the thing which they have should have been terrified of all this time

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 29 2012 21:39 utc | 68

anyhoo
Libya ex-Minister Shukri Ghanem dead in Danube River”

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 29 2012 21:44 utc | 70

“The real issue is, how many are to possibly give their health working in the area, as to what are the risks of it being interrupted by a earthquake”
No Alexander
the real issue is what next for the ridiculous Doomsday Brigade? 😉
after it becomes clear that events in Japan are not going to kill us all, or even come close, what will the poor deluded fools latch onto next?
Will they return to that old favourite AGW, or will they do a totally ridiculous U-Turn and start boring more intelligent people to tears, with their tales of the devastating Ice-Age they will by then have managed to convince themselves is imminent ?
The suspense is killing me!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 30 2012 2:02 utc | 72

Hu Bris is an obvious asshole. Offering NO logical explanation for his cavalier dismissal of the gravity of the Fukushima emergency. Spouting off, the jackass would have us believe that he need not be as alarmed as Wyden, or the fair number of nuclear scientists that are gravelky concerned.
Fuck you, Hu Bris, for your…
“glad to see that the “OMFG we’re ALL gonna DIE!!!!!1111!!!!” Armageddon/Apocalypse Brigade”
…..Frankly, thats a comment you can shove up your ass.
Who here has said “we’re all gonna die”???
Why don’t you offer us some EVIDENCE, with credible sourcing, that the emergency at Fukushima is not grave and ongoing, with possible global consequences? There’s plenty of such evidence out there, after all, right? TEPCO I’m sure, can provide you with plenty. So can any number of politicians cowed by the industry.
Go fuck yourself.

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 30 2012 3:15 utc | 74

I look forward to the scientific opinions that Hu Bris will cite, where experts tell us losing the spent rod pools will be a minor local event. I’m sure, giving his high opinion of himself, and the smug confidence with which he spits forth his ridicule, he will be able to offer such quotes and citations.
Gads, what an ass he’s made of himself. “Poor deluded fools” he calls us, while offering NOTHING of substance in his comments.
My bet? He doesn’t know JACK SHIT about Fukushima, hasn’t bothered to sink any investigation or research into the situation, is completely unaware of Wyden’s alarm, and his efforts arising from that alarm.
So tell us, Hubris, you smug and sarcastic ass, what minor effects can we expect from Fukushima if a quake takes down the spent fuel pool on reactor #4???? Or, uh, have you decided that you won’t allow Japan to experience another earthquake in the Fukushima Prefecture?

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 30 2012 3:39 utc | 76

I have no doubt that Hu Bris will use his superior knowledge and intellect to offer rebuttal to these expert’s opinions….
Canadian Nuclear Scientist: Another, even more dangerous possibility than fire at Spent Fuel Pool No. 4 — Re-initiation of chain reaction can occur if fuel rods move slightly, an “accidental criticality” April 29, 2012
http://tinyurl.com/c5d8aou
“Worse than a meltdown” says expert — “Spent nuclear fuel pool catches fire”: Japan Power Company March 15, 2011
http://enenews.com/worse-meltdown-expert-spent-nuclear-fuel-pool-catches-fire-tepco
Nuclear Engineer: Far more radioactivity inside spent fuel ponds than in reactors — Could very well produce damage greater than Chernobyl March 15, 2011
http://enenews.com/nuclear-engineer-radioactivity-inside-spent-fuel-ponds-inside-reactors-could-very-produce-damage-greater-chernobyl

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 30 2012 3:58 utc | 78

I sincerely hope that Hu Bris will give Senator Wyden a call and inform him that his, (Wydwen’s), alarm and sense of urgency is entirely unwarranted. Surely, Wyden musta just been over-alarmed by the damage to the buildings. He shoulda just stayed away, and, like this asshole Hu Bris, formulated an opinion using ignorance and a grossly inflated ego. Such foundations for opinion do not require visiting the site. Wyden coulda simply stayed home and made a jackass of himself over the internet, as Hu Bris has chosen to do.
http://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/after-tour-of-fukushima-nuclear-power-station-wyden-says-situation-worse-than-reported
After Tour of Fukushima Nuclear Power Station, Wyden Says Situation Worse than Reported
Urges Japanese Ambassador to Accept International Help to Mitigate Continued Nuclear Risks
Monday, April 16, 2012
Washington, D.C. – After an onsite tour of what remains of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facilities decimated by last year’s earthquake and subsequent tsunami, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) a senior member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, sent a letter to Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki looking for ways to advance and support clean-up and recovery efforts. Wyden’s principal concern is the relocation of spent fuel rods currently being stored in unsound structures immediately adjacent to the ocean. He strongly urged the Ambassador to accept international help to prevent dangerous nuclear material from being released into the environment.
“The scope of damage to the plants and to the surrounding area was far beyond what I expected and the scope of the challenges to the utility owner, the government of Japan, and to the people of the region are daunting,” Wyden wrote in the letter. “The precarious status of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear units and the risk presented by the enormous inventory of radioactive materials and spent fuel in the event of further earthquake threats should be of concern to all and a focus of greater international support and assistance.”
continues….

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 30 2012 4:10 utc | 80

“And, for those of you that do not possess the intellectual superiority and expert knowledge that Hu Bris obviously considers himself in possession of…..”
tell ye what – I’ll make a bet with you since you’re such a professional gambler
in 2 years time we’ll all still be here with our genetic codes intact and YOU will have moved onto some OTHER Doomsday shite to waffle about (probably, since you appear to be a creature of little imagination and even less originality, right back to back to ‘Global Warming’/Climate Change/Climate Disruption or whatever it is that they decide to call it next week )

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 30 2012 4:14 utc | 82

“I have NEVER commented about Global Warming here”
Oh stop talking shit will ye?
I saw some moron waffling on about Coke Bottles and comparing it to the climate
could have sworn it was you

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 30 2012 4:20 utc | 84

“Actually, I have NEVER commented about Global Warming here. But don’t let facts get in your way, asshole.”
…..Frankly, thats a comment you can shove up your ass
you smug and sarcastic ass,
You’re rather anally-fixated from what I can see. Perhaps if you did something about your obvious anal blockage you might be less PissedOff?

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 30 2012 4:45 utc | 86

You know what blowing out a thread means, Hu Bris. And you can’t take a hint.

Posted by: Copeland | Apr 30 2012 5:40 utc | 88

“after a while it gets pretty boring to see such obvious stupidity plastered over ervery thread here at MOA.”–Hu Bris
Then why to you keep soiling the place with your poor manners?

Posted by: DaveS | Apr 30 2012 11:03 utc | 90

when b doesn’t post and inspire interesting comments, I feel so much like a parasite, keep coming to MoA instead of doing some reading or research myself, waiting for others to do all the work for me …

Posted by: claudio | Apr 30 2012 13:40 utc | 92

Actually, they WEREN’T “from the same document”. I mistakingly posted two articles of March 14 from the NYTs, but the other links THROUGHOUT this thread are from various reputable sources. And ENEWS compiles articles, they are NOT the source for the articles.
So how ’bout it, you smug and self-absorbed piece of shit? How about posting something pother than spittle and derision?
Perhaps you can tap TEPCO’s impressive flow of propagandized garbage concerning this event…..
From “Fortune” magazine…
On December 16, Kan’s successor, Yoshihiko Noda, announced that the stricken reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station had reached “a state of cold shutdown.” Japan’s worst-ever nuclear accident, the Prime Minister said, had finally been brought under control.
“The moment was meant to be a calming milestone, psychological balm for a wounded country in the process of trying to heal. The only problem with it, as workers today at the nuclear power plant, will tell you, is this: it wasn’t true then, and it’s still not true today. “The coolant water is keeping the reactor temperatures at a certain level, but that’s not even near the goal [of a cold shut down,]” says an engineer working inside the plant. “The fact is, we still don’t know what’s going on inside the reactors.””
http://tinyurl.com/c5d8aou
Still waiting, Hubris. You gonna add anything here worthwhile, or just continue drooling?

Posted by: PissedOffAmerican | Apr 30 2012 14:39 utc | 94

Arf arf arf! You know why b had to ban that one poster? Looks like that isn’t gona do. Open thread doesn’t mean you are free to derail the discussion. Is it really necessary to create another thread, called “pissing contests”?

Posted by: Alexander | Apr 30 2012 15:12 utc | 96

Actually, you are right. I regret posting, I feel like I’m feeding trolls, while involving others. Not good.

Posted by: Alexander | Apr 30 2012 15:29 utc | 98

worrying developments in Pakistan: Zardari refuses to step down after Supreme Court conviction

Posted by: claudio | Apr 30 2012 16:01 utc | 100