7.29 脱原発国会大包囲 photos by teppei

7.29脱原発国会大包囲 | facebook gallery of 福島を救え! 大震災義援！ ウシトラ旅団
photos by teppei

photos by teppei
7.29脱原発国会大包囲のデモとキャンドル・チェーン
今回は大量の写真を紹介する。根気よく見てね。

もはや押しとどめようもない流れ。日比谷公園から東電前を通るデモではデモ隊のみなぎる自信が。そして夜のキャンドル・チェーンでは，また再び解放区が出現した。実際は一部の人たちによる阻止線の突破がきっかけだったが，渦巻く激流のように，たちまち国会議事堂前の道路は人々によって埋め尽くされた。なんという笑顔。なんという解放感。もはや押しとどめようのない奔流に向かおうとしている。

この日，私は4時に出発するデモに参加した。先頭に陣取る怒りのドラムデモはすでにエンジン全開に近い。はやる心。出発とともに怒濤の進撃の様相。ドラムデモの前にはクラウン・アーミーのNさんやUさんが駆け回る。東電前ではこの日出会った「青い帽子の踊り子」さんが蝶のように跳ねる。経産省前ではクラウン・アーミーがパフォーマンス。再び日比谷公園に到着したときは，ご覧あれ，噴水を囲む祝祭。

しばしの休息の後，国会包囲のため移動する。経産省前から財務省上，国会議事堂正門前から時計の反対周りに国会議事堂の裏手に。国会前のメインステージにはすでに福島から来た武藤たちがいる。アノニマス・ハーレイもここにいるのが当然のような風情で静かに周回する。そこから最後尾まで歩いてみた。すでに多くの人が三々五々集まり時間とともにそれは続々と増えていく。

最後尾を確認して，こちら側はどうも面白いことが起きそうにないと思い，引き返すことにした。途中，上半身ペインティングした方にも出会う。ちょっと興味があったが，そうこうしているうちに，6.29官邸前抗議で出会った Know New Kiss の女性たちがやってきた。「最後尾に行ってもたぶん面白くないよ」，「知らん顔してどんどん戻ればいいよ」と彼女たちに言って，一緒に引き返す。

なにせ，目立つものだから，途中やんやの喝采を受けたりする。Know New Kiss の人文字をデザインした No Nukes のシールを配りながら，「再稼働反対」と刻印された手作りの大きなパンを掲げて前へ前へと進撃。私もウシトラの幟を目指してメインステージに近づこうとした。議事堂前のメインステージは溢れ返る熱気に包まれすでに警察の阻止線は意味をなさなくなっていた。

7時25分頃，わっというような音とともに阻止線が突破された。今回も一瞬だった。あれよあれよという間に議事堂前の車道は人で埋め尽くされていく。くだんの Know New Kiss の女性たちもズンズン国会前に進んで行く。警察の阻止線が間に合わない。
かろうじて警察が阻止線を張った最前線で膠着状況が始まるまでわずか1分のことだった。

多少，危険な状況も生まれた。慌てて興奮した警官が一人，無理に制圧しようしたのだ。ところが多勢に無勢，路上を占拠した人たちに気圧されてしまった。Know New Kiss の女性たちは健気に，というか無鉄砲というべきか，動じる気配も見せない。私は数人に聞いてみた。「怖くないの」，口々に「怖いですー」。と言っている顔がどういうわけか晴れ晴れとしている。

後にリーダー格のKさんは「こんな格好で行って後ろの方で終わりたくないという意地」があったと言う。このKさん，6.29の空撮写真を見て「まだまだ足りないな！」とうそぶく。その意気や良し。その通り。

膠着状況は数十分続いた。阻止線のあちら側を歩いていた首都圏反原発連合のスタッフに「これ，どうするの?」と聞いてみた。「8時になれば解散のアナウンスをします」，落ち着いたものだ。

私はどうにかごまかして，阻止線のあちら側に移り，警備の状況を撮影した。要するに何もできない警備。

彼らはただ8時を待っていた。

私たちは，もはや押しとどめようのない奔流に向かおうとしている。




via google translate:
Candle chain of demonstrations and large siege 7.29 Diet primary de-
This time to introduce a large number of photos. I patiently look.


Flow can not help anymore Todomeyo press. In the demo before passing through the TEPCO from Hibiya Park is overflowing self-confidence of the demonstrators. Liberated areas has emerged once again, in the candle-chain of the night. In fact, it was topped cutout of line blocking by some people, like swirling rapids, road in front of the Houses of Parliament was immediately filled by the people. What a smile. What a feeling of freedom. You are going to try to reach the torrent will no longer Todomeyo press.


On this day, I took part in the demonstration starting at 4:00. Doramudemo sits at the beginning of anger is already close to full throttle engine. Your horses. Aspect of the advance of starting with raging. Doramudemo before Mr. N's and U of Crown Army is chevy. TEPCO before bouncing like a butterfly's met this day "dancer of the blue hat." Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry performance in front of the Crown Army. When you arrive at the Hibiya Park again, it can see, the festival surrounding the fountain.


After a moment of rest, for the siege of parliament to move. On the Ministry of Finance, to the rear of the Houses of Parliament around the clock from the front gate opposite the Houses of Parliament before the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Before the main stage of the National Assembly and that they have already Muto came from Fukushima. Quietly in the air to go around it that Hurley is also here as a matter of course anonymous. I walked from there to the end. It will increase over time in succession by twos and threes gathered a lot of people already.


Check the tail end, I think this side is unlikely to interesting thing happens very much, I decided to turn back. Also meet the middle who was painting the upper body. There was little interest, in the meantime, the women I met in protest Know New Kiss of residence before 6.29 came. She said to us, "I more and more that it would be alright to go back to indifference," "probably no fun even after the end", go back together.


何 SE, because it stands out, or to obtain the applause of the middle Yan Ya. Previous to the previous advance and raised a large homemade bread while distributing the seal of the No Nukes who designed the character of human Know New Kiss, has been engraved with the "opposite running again." Tried to get closer to the main stage of Ushitora I also aim to banners. Police arrest line was already no longer make sense wrapped in hot air before the main stage of the Capitol is Flooded.


About 25 minutes at 7, line blocking is topped with a sound like it broke. This time was instant. Carriageway go before Parliament is filled with people while someone is looking on in blank amazement. Go on before the Diet also Zunzun Women Know New Kiss of Kudan. Arrest line of police can not keep up.
Was that of one minute until the beginning of the standoff situation at the forefront of police blocking barely crawling on the line.


Somewhat, was born also a dangerous situation. One policeman was excited in a hurry, he was trying to subdue it by force. Keosare to those who had occupied Buzei, on the road to the great number however. Women Should Know New Kiss or reckless say that, to the brave, does not seem to be any sign to show unmoved. I asked a few people. "That is not scared," severally "ー is scary." That you are somehow Harebare face saying that.


Mr. K's case and say there was a leader "who do not want to end up with more nasty behind doing dressed like this" after. Mr. K complacently say this, look at the aerial photo and 6.29! "I still do not have enough." Its spirit and good. That's right.


Stalemate situation lasted for several tens of minutes. I asked the staff of the anti-nuclear coalition metropolitan area was walking down the other side of the line blocking "This,? It to do and". "The announcement of the dissolution should come at 8:00", calm thing.


I cheated somehow, go to the other side of the line blocking, the status of the security taken. In short guard can not do anything.


They were just waiting for eight o'clock.


We are trying to head to the torrent will no longer Todomeyo press.

more! 7.29脱原発国会大包囲

photos by Teppei Sato

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Stop Making More Nuclear Waste - Petition

"Uranium is the raw material of a power-elite who has taken Mother Earth's every living creature hostage." The Late Petra Kelly, An Authentic Green Nuclear fissioning happens in nuclear reactors or in nuclear warheads. Nuclear waste is the only product of nuclear fissioning. Nuclear waste is destructive of all living things. Nuclear waste lasts forever and must also be monitored forever. Nuclear waste will beggar our grand children. Greed for profit now is the only thing that drives the nuclear industry. Tapping renewable energy sources coupled with moderate consumption and healthy habits will meet all our needs and bring back a healthy environment for now and all generations to come.

>>> Stop Making More Nuclear Waste - The Petition Site

Unit 2 At Fukushima Spewing 8 Million Bq Per Hour Almost 1.5 Years Later

TEPCO has admitted the current radiation release levels at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. While these levels are a small fraction of what was being released early on, they still pose a considerable problem. The plant is emitting 10 million bq per hour. With 8 of the 10 bq coming from unit 2 alone. TEPCO officials tried to pass off the high levels as possibly due to “stirring up cesium” that fell on the reactors...

more/photos: Unit 2 At Fukushima Spewing 8 Million Bq Per Hour Almost 1.5 Years Later | SimplyInfo

8-6: Remember Hiroshima/ Fukushima Shut Down Nukes Now Day - NFC

Date: August 6th

Action Plan: Meet at San Francisco Consulate General of Japan (50 Fremont St, San Francisco) at 2PM. We gather petition and make speeches. Around 3PM to 3:30, we will march on Market St to the PG & E Headquarter at (245 Market St) and will join groups against two nuclear reactors in California. Then by 4:30, we will come back to the consulate and submit the petition.

8-6: Remember Hiroshima/ Fukushima Shut Down Nukes Now Day - NFC

Walk Towards a Nuclear-Free Future - Aldermaston to Hinkley Point | Campaigning against the UK's addiction to nuclear power

Walk from Aldermaston to Hinkley Point (Handa Shonin Memorial Walk 2012) 23rd August - 1st September 2012 Milton Keynes Peace Pagoda are organising a walk in memory of Handa Shonin from the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) at Aldermaston to Hinkley Point, the site of a proposed new nuclear power station, in Somerset.

> Walk Towards a Nuclear-Free Future - Aldermaston to Hinkley Point | Campaigning against the UK's addiction to nuclear power

Nuke Free Now Call To Action

Friday August 3rd in Santa Fe:
·       Art exhibit at El Museo 
·       Workshop on non-violent direct action (relating to activities planned for Mon. Aug 6th.)

Saturday August 4th in Santa Fe:
·      Nuke Free Now Conference and Film Festival at CCA (Center for Contemporary Arts). A full day of panels, speakers, and films at CCA to inform our community about the many important issues surrounding nuclear weapons and nuclear energy, and to inspire us to action.Click for full schedule.

Sunday August 5th in Los Alamos:
·       Rally in Ashley Pond Park, Los Alamos, speakers, music, teach-ins, and information
·       Audio link to the sounding of the Peace Bell in Hiroshima, Japan
·       “Sackcloth and Ashes” peace march led by Pax Christi, New Mexico
·       Floating of peace lanterns on Ashley Pond

Monday August 6th in Los Alamos:
·       A full day of non-violent direct action in Los Alamos. Click here for flyer

Hunger Strike starting July 16th, 2012:
·       On the 67th anniversary of the first ever atomic explosion at the Trinity site in southern New Mexico, Alaric Balibrera, will begin a hunger strike in protest at the continued development of nuclear weapons at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Click here for more information.

It is time to generate critical mass to transform the nuclear narrative in the public consciousness, demand accountability, and inspire a life-affirming future.

Join us August 3rd to 6th in northern New Mexico, the birthplace of the bomb, or organize an event in your community to raise awareness of the true costs and consequences of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons production, and their threat to the health of our communities and all that we hold sacred.

Let us stand in solidarity and bring about the end of the atomic age.

Together we will catalyze universal disarmament and the closing down of nuclear power plants. We will clean up the pollution and contamination, and create life-affirming work, justice and peace!

We, as federal taxpayers, finance the nuclear weapons and energy industries. Corporations like Bechtel. Lockheed Martin, General Electric and others reap millions in profits.

J. Robert Oppenheimer, father of the bomb, quoted the Bhagavad Gita upon witnessing the first atomic explosion, “Now I am become death, destroyer of worlds.”

Now we have become life, protectors of the world. Join us.

Nuke Free Now believes that nuclear weapons and nuclear power are the ultimate forms of violence. In response, we are creating this global call to action and weekend of events in both the spirit and the practice of complete nonviolence.

We believe in the empowerment of people through nonviolent direct action. This is not to judge other forms of protest and civil disobedience, or to try to define what is violent and what is nonviolent, but for this weekend of action we define it as no physical harm or damage done to any living being or property. Nuke Free Now is not responsible for individuals who do not adhere to our principles of nonviolence. Peace is our strategy.

Nuke Free Now Call To Action

Mother Jones: Nuke Facilities in the US •• Click for interactive map.  

Nuclear Power Causes Cancer: What Industry Doesn't Want You To Know

Nuclear power, frequently mentioned as one option for meeting future energy needs, would pose a health threat to Americans if a meltdown occurred. But despite meltdowns at Chernobyl and Three Mile Island, and many other near-miss accidents, there is another dirty little secret the nuclear industry doesn't want you to know. Cancer risk from nuclear plants aren't just potential risks, they are actual risks.

Every day, reactors must routinely release a portion of radioactive chemicals into local air and water -- the same chemicals found in atomic bomb tests. They enter human bodies through breathing and the food chain. Federal law obligates nuclear companies to measure these emissions and the amounts that end up in air, water, and food, and to report them to federal regulators.

However, nuclear advocates consistently claim that these releases are below federally-permitted limits, and thus are harmless. But this thinking is a leap that ignores hard evidence from scientific studies. Now, after half a century of a large-scale experiment with nuclear power, the verdict is in: nuclear reactors cause cancer.

The claim that low doses of radiation are harmless has always been just a claim. It led to practices like routine diagnostic X-rays to the pelvis of pregnant women, until the work of the University of Oxford's Dr. Alice Stewart found that these X-rays doubled the chance that the fetus would die of cancer as a child. Many studies later, independent experts agreed that no dose is safe. A 2005 report by a blue-ribbon panel of the National Academy of Sciences reviewed hundreds of scientific articles, and concluded that there is no risk-free dose of radiation.

more: Samuel S. Epstein: Nuclear Power Causes Cancer: What Industry Doesn't Want You To Know

my response to survey - "Global Opinion Survey on Japan’s Energy Policy Options"

Global Opinion Survey on Japan’s Energy Policy Options: Please tell us what you think!

1. Your country... 2. Your affiliation...
3. Which option do you think Japan should adopt for its energy policy for 2030? 
Zero Scenario15% Scenario20-25% ScenarioOtherDon’t Know  


4. Please explain in your own words the reason/s for your answer to Question 3. 

my response: 

Japan has earthquake faults and tsunamis, plus faulty reactors! It is no place to try and use a technology which is inherently unsafe. Nuclear energy is a Crime Against Humanity - human kind's worst mistake - ingenious but deadly! - as it is:

Commercial nuclear power generation is unsafe and criminal.

No entity has a right to shackle future generations with nuclear pollution and extremely dangerous and costly nuclear waste.

Nuclear energy cannot be a solution for climate change - it is not clean or green, and is ultimately untenable. As for battling climate change: Energy consumption in general needs to be refined and minimized - our societies "re-tooled." (There is no free lunch.)

Given that nuclear power is not safe was definitively proven with three the ongoing meltdowns at Fukushima Daiichi 1, The Chernobyl Nuclear Catastrophe, and many others, any claims of safety or participation in nuclear power activities should be deemed criminal. The use of nuclear power constitutes a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack - - see Article 7: Crimes Against Humanity (ICC Rome Statute), section 1, 1(k) Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health; and 2. For the purpose of paragraph 1: (a) "Attack directed against any civilian population" means a course of conduct involving the multiple commission of acts referred to in paragraph 1 against any civilian population, pursuant to or in furtherance of a State or organizational policy to commit such attack; ….

See: "whats up: Nuclear Power Crimes Against Humanity & Environment"

• nuclear fuel acquisition and processing pollutes the environment, and is disproportionately detrimental to the indigenous and poor

• nuclear power relies upon inherently dangerous technology - no operator can truly guarantee safety (as has been proven...) - accidents do happen - they have, and they will again in the future if Humanity is allowed to continue exploiting nuclear power

• accidents at nuclear power plants cause great suffering, with serious injury to the mental and physical health of communities and countries; the effects of nuclear accidents are felt far beyond local boundaries and affect the entire ecosystem

• the operation of nuclear plants requires the routine release of radioisotopes into the environment; low level radiation kills - there is no "safe dose"

• the environmental contamination which happens during the entire nuclear fuel cycle and as a result of accidents has far-reaching and long-lasting effects on the health of humans and all living creatures by causing cancers and mutations with resultant suffering, death, and deformations

• there is no way to dispose of nuclear waste; nuclear waste will be a problem for future generations and for many years to come, and will involve the dedication of vast resources due to the short-sighted abuse of this technology during the current era

• • nobody has the right to shackle future generations with nuclear waste for any reason whatsoever!

Recently: Prosecutors in Japan have reportedly decided to accept criminal complaints against the government and Tokyo Electric Power Company over the Fukushima nuclear accident. A moratiorium prohibited the operation of nuclear power plants should be declared immediately.

Global Opinion Survey on Japan’s Energy Policy Options: Please tell us what you think!

5. Please let us know in your own words what you think about the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant and about Japan’s energy policy in general.

my response: 

It is a true Crime Against Humanity and the Environment - against all of Nature, but especially the people of Japan. They have been intentionally misled into thinking that nuclear power was acceptable and safe. They are losing their livelihoods - their farms and villages; theirs lands, their air, their food, the sea, the land, the rain... all have been contaminated. Generations to come will have to live with this - and some will die; some will be deformed. The "accident" should not have happened in the first place - governments and corporations have conspired to promote nuclear power through immoral and criminal actions.

So now, the entire North Pacific Ocean is contaminated, even my home on the West Coast of the United States. I do not appreciate it and would be happy to sue the government of Japan, TEPCO, Westinghouse, and every other entity involved in perpetrating this crime.

Need I say more?
 - Robert Cherwink
- speaking up since 311 -

whats up: RC'S NUCLEAR BLOG • NO NUKES! | RE-TOOL NOW
http://rceezwhatsup.blogspot.com

The #OcNukeDaily Daily • #OccupyNuclear
NO #NUKES | #RE_TOOL NOW!
http://tinyurl.com/OcNuke

Global Opinion Survey on Japan’s Energy Policy Options: Please tell us what you think!

Prosecutors to accept nuclear accident complaints

(VIDEO)

Prosecutors in Japan have reportedly decided to accept criminal complaints against the government and Tokyo Electric Power Company over the Fukushima nuclear accident.

Sources say the prosecutors made the decision after a government-appointed panel of experts released its final report on the accident on Monday.

About 1,300 people asked prosecutors in Fukushima Prefecture last month to investigate officials who held top positions with the government and the nuclear plant operator. The plaintiffs accuse the officials of professional negligence.

Other groups have filed similar complaints in Tokyo and elsewhere.

The prosecutors have to identify the cause of the accident if they decide to file charges against the officials.

The government panel and 3 other committees that conducted probes were unable to find the cause.

Medical experts say it would be difficult to determine that radioactive materials released from the damaged nuclear plant have inflicted physical harm on residents of Fukushima and other parts of Japan.

Jul. 24, 2012 - Updated 22:39 UTC (07:39 JST)

Prosecutors to accept nuclear accident complaints | NHK WORLD English

Fukushima: A disaster manufactured in the imperial boardrooms of capital

They may not live in castles anymore, but the glass-plated skyscrapers that tower over the great cities of the world, in faceless anonymity, still signify the imperious domain of the ruling elite. It is from these places, not the featureless depths of the earth’s roiling crust, which were the decisive cause of the triple nuclear meltdowns at the Fukushima-Daiichi plant on 11th March 2011...

full article: Fukushima: A disaster manufactured in the imperial boardrooms of capital

No Nukes - We don't need them - We have Sunshine & Berries!

No Nukes - We don't need them -

We have Sunshine & Berries!

私たちに原子力は必要ありません。私たちにはサンシャインとベリーがある！

first draft

variations to come

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NO NUKES | RE-TOOL NOW

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Fukushima A Human Error: A Must-Read Manga in English — DiaNuke.org

Dear everyone all over the world

We are the members of the citizens who want to stop the spread of radiation and toxic substance by “Burning” the contaminated debris(“Gareki”)from Tohoku earthquake.The 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster problems have not been solved yet, but the Japanese government proceeded to enforce the restart of Ooi nuclear power plant, which ignored the nuclear safety.（※１）

A large number of people protest this government’s decision “desperately”, but this voice never fell on deaf ears.On June 29, Friday night, over 10,000 demonstrators gathered outside Noda’s office on Friday night in last-ditch attempt to derail the restart.

Anti-nuclear campaigners accused the prime minister of rushing into a decision and ignoring lingering concerns over safety.

From the day, some of the major media started to concern this trend, but the government has totally ignored us.

The Japan gov’t controls the media. For example, The symbolic thing is the slogan of “Kizuna”(Bonding), but they use this “Kizuna” campaign as the big support for Tohoku area, and recommend the “Burning” of the debris all over Japan.They have even changed the law for this, explaining that burning the debris will be harmless, as the radiation and toxic substance is diluted.And Japanese mass media didn’t report about this.A lot of Japanese people have not realized about this risk.The polluted debris should not be burned anywhere, including Tohoku area.The local governments doesn’t convey the risk of burning the debris to the people precisely.

And they inspect to get the result of “Non-detection”, and keep telling the people that it is safe.Actually, burning the debris is not only harmful that also causes more work for the local gov’t in Tohoku.It doesn’t help Tohoku at all... (more: Fukushima A Human Error: A Must-Read Manga in English — DiaNuke.org)

ガレキマンガEnglish

Beyond Fukushima - When will we learn? Paul Gunter & Kevin Kamps on The Big Picture with Thom Hartman

Beyond Fukushima - When will we learn? Paul Gunter & Kevin Kamps P1 - YouTube

Published on Jul 9, 2012 by TheBigPictureRT

On the afternoon of March 11th, 2011 - a massive 9.0 earthquake struck just off the main island of Japan - rattling the nation to its core. Nestled on the east coast of Japan - not too far from the epicenter of that quake - was the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant - a plant with six nuclear reactors - three of which weren't designed to handle an earthquake of that magnitude. Right after the ground started shaking - reactors 1, 2, and 3 at the plant went into automatic shutdown. Reactors 4, 5, and 6 were already shutdown for inspection. The main power source to keep the reactors cool - the electric grid - was knocked out by the earthquake - so 13 emergency diesel generators immediately kicked in to keep the reactors cool. But within ten minutes, the emergency cooling systems at reactor 1 failed - and radioactive fuel rods within the reactors began to melting down.

XXXXXXXXXX

But things were about to get a lot worse. Approximately 50 minutes after the earthquake - a giant 45-foot tsunami slammed into the east coast of Japan - and right into the Fukushima Daiichi plant. It swept across the plant's seawalls - and flooded the turbine buildings - shutting down the emergency diesel generators - and cutting off critical cooling to the reactors. At this point - the operators of the Fukushima plant knew they had a crisis on their hands. At approximately 3:41 in the afternoon - less than an hour after the earthquake - TEPCO, which operated the plant, notified the authorities that they had a "First level Emergency" on their hands - reactors were melting down. To buy themselves time - operators begin relieving pressure from the reactors - by releasing radioactive steam out of the reactor buildings and into the air.

And in a frantic attempt to keep the reactors cool - nearby seawater is pumped into the plant. But that wasn't enough - and there's not much else that plant operators can do, since the radiation around the plant was spiking. Soon - reactor buildings begin exploding. One day after the earthquake - on March 12th - reactor 1 suffered a hydrogen explosion - collapsing its roof. Over the next few days - reactors 2, 3, and 4 would give way to similar hydrogen explosions - mangling the reactor buildings - and exposing highly radioactive spent fuel - which was stored in pools built into the ceilings of the reactors - to the atmosphere. Helicopters flew in to drop seawater into the crippled reactor buildings, trying to prevent the spent fuel pools from igniting.

Beyond Fukushima - When will we learn? Paul Gunter & Kevin Kamps P2 - YouTube

Meanwhile - on the ground - teams of TEPCO workers began working in shifts to bring the melting down plant under control. These shifts were essentially suicide missions - as radiation levels were well above lifetime dosages. During that March - an estimated 900,000 terabecquerels of radiation were released into the air. That's roughly one-sixth of the radiation released during the Chernobyl nuclear crisis - but again - that was just during the month of March. Between then and December of 2011, when TEPCO finally said the plant was stable, more than 300 workers were exposed to lethally high levels of radiation - and millions of gallons of highly radioactive sea water were dumped into the ground and into the ocean.The effects of this radioactive dump are still not known.

In February of this year - TEPCO began pouring cement around the plant as part of the decommissioning process - a process that operators believe could take as long as 30 years. But despite assurances from TEPCO that the plant is stable - evidence shows the nuclear crisis is still far from resolved. The Unit 4 reactor building, with tons of radioactive fuel and waste still stored in its roof, is leaning - and in danger of toppling over and triggering a chain-reaction radioactive fire that could blow exponentially more radiation in the atmosphere than Chernobyl And radiation levels at reactor one recently reached all-time highs. Yet - Japan is moving forward with nuclear power. Just this month - a reactor at the Oi nuclear plant was turned on - marking the first time a Japanese nuclear reactor was operational since the March earthquake.

But the question is - have the lessons of Fukushima been learned? And not just in Japan - where the crisis continues and could yet worsen - but also in the United States? That's the topic for tonight's Bigger Picture discussion.... Joining Thom for Conversations with Great Minds are...Paul Gunter - the Director of Reactor Oversight Project at Beyond Nuclear - and 2008 recepient of the Jane Bagley Lehman Award for environmental activism - who's been on the front lines fighting back against nuclear power for more than thirty years now. And - Kevin Kamps - Radioactive Waste Watchdog at Beyond Nuclear - who's testified before the officials at the highest levels U.S. Federal Agencies dealing with radioactive Waste Management - including the Department of Energy, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the EPA.

Why Should Nuclear Financing Guarantees Cost Less than Student or Home Loans? | NukeFree.org

The Department of Energy wants to give the Southern Company a nuclear power loan guarantee at better interest rates than you can get on a student loan. And unlike a home mortgage, there may be no down payment.

Why?

The terms DOE is offering the builders of the Vogtle atomic reactors have only become partially public through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

We still may not know all the details.

SACE has challenged the $8.33 billion loan guarantee package announced by President Obama in 2010.

The documents show the DOE has intended to charge the Southern a credit subsidy fee of one to 1.5%, far below the rates you would be required to pay for buying a house or financing an education.

On a package 15 times bigger than what the federal government gave the failed solar company Solyndra, Southern would be required to pay somewhere between $17 million and $52 million. Advocates argue the fee is so low that it fails to adequately take into account the financial risks of the project. Numerous financial experts have estimated the likely fail rate for new nuclear construction to be at 50% or greater...

more: Why Should Nuclear Financing Guarantees Cost Less than Student or Home Loans? | NukeFree.org | Breaking Nuke News | NukeFree.org

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PETITION

SignOn.org - Stop the New Nuke Power Loan Guarantees

The Department of Energy is poised to give $8.33 billion in loan guarantees to the Georgia Vogtle double-reactor project that could irradiate the planet and bankrupt the state. But especially after the Solyndra bankruptcy, details of the deal are coming under intense scrutiny, at the Office of Management and Budget and elsewhere. If we stop this boondoggle there may never be another nuclear plant built in the US.

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