I Totally Agree with Oliver Stone on This Issue

[Michael Griffith]

As most here know, Oliver Stone is an ardent environmentalist, but many may not know that he is also a strong advocate for nuclear power, as the article below explains. I totally agree with him. Green extremists have blocked the building of new nuclear power plants in the U.S. and in some other nations, an action that Stone correctly laments and condemns. Stone has produced a new documentary titled Nuclear Now that makes the case for nuclear power. Here's an excerpt from the article:

          “We had the solution [nuclear power] … and the environmental movement, to be honest, just derailed it. I think the environmental movement did a lot of good, a lot of good ... [I’m] not knocking it, but in this one major matter, it was wrong. It was wrong". . . .

          The International Energy Agency states that “nuclear power has historically been one of the largest contributors of carbon-free electricity globally.”

          It adds that “while it faces significant challenges in some countries, it has significant potential to contribute to power sector decarbonisation.”

Oliver Stone slams environmental movement over actions on nuclear (cnbc.com)

Edited January 18, 2023 by Michael Griffith

[Joe Bauer]

I am one of the staunchest Oliver Stone fans ever.

But, in this case, I disagree with him.

For so many reasons.

Just two of which are...nuclear power plants being the most dangerous wide-spread human damage threats under several scenarios.

Natural earth born events like Fukushima. Maintenance and structural breakdowns like Chernoble and Three Mile Island.

And the potential for terrorist attack.

It may seem counter productive to keep using the old hydro-electric steam oil energy systems in this day and age, but putting all our marbles into systems that if damaged could wreak as much harm as dirty bombs is too high a price to risk imo.

And here is another analogy. Has anyone here experienced a break down in our power grid system...even for one day?

Some massive ones like those that took out much of our upper East Coast years ago showed us how frighteningly dependent we were on electrical power.

It was like that scene in the old classic film "The Day The Earth Stood Still." 

I was out and about when our power plant here went down for a little more than a day or two a few years ago.

Electric pump and cash register gas stations/stores had to shut down. As well all our grocery and other stores. Traffic came to A stop when all the traffic lights went down to "everyone stop and then go" blinking on and off mode.

I witnessed dozens of frantic yelling incidents of people stuck in traffic and by people pounding on gas station and large chain  grocery store doors. One mother with kids in her gas needing van went crazy screaming she needed help!

Medical care facilities went dark. Workplaces went dark. Schools too.

Everyone seemed way too unnerved and edgy.

This was just over 1 to 2 days of electrical power loss!

I know a few doctor's offices still keep duplicate paper file records on hand now. Most have gone completely digital. Same with most every part of our society. 

Many individuals buy and store items and equipment as a back-up in case their homes power supplies are down.

That mentality makes good sense. We all know this.

With so much major natural and man-made created disasters we KNOW will continue to befall all of us every year or years we should not let go of our cumbersome but less risky other sources of electric power versus increasing Nuclear power imo.

PG&E wanted to shut down their Diablo Canyon Nuclear power plant for years. Gavin Newsome recently had them stop that process for a few more years. There are all kinds of earthquake fault lines up and down the California Coast.

We know major earthquakes are going to happen here.

Sacramento ( Smud ) long ago shut down their plant. I don't know if any Southern California plants have shut dowl. But none have been built there in a long while either.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 19, 2023 by Joe Bauer

[W. Niederhut]

Excellent post, Joe.

For people interested in this subject, I would highly recommend a book that I read a year or two ago called, Atomic Accidents, by a nuclear engineer named James Maheffey.

It's a fascinating read-- a well written history of humanity's experiences with radioactive materials during the past century; early 20th century radium health spas and elixirs, atomic bomb tests in Russia and the American West, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, Fukushima, etc.

There was a lot of nuclear fall-out on the planet during the Cold War, and most of it was kept secret.

John Wayne, Agnes Moorehead, and the entire cast and crew for the 1956 movie, The Conqueror, were contaminated in St. George, Utah by radioactive dust from a Nevada atomic bomb test.

Two of the atomic accidents discussed in the book happened here in Denver in my lifetime-- two fires at the local Rocky Flats plutonium plant in 1957 and 1969 , where the triggers for America's nuclear bombs were manufactured for decades (for shipment to Amarillo, Texas.)

Atomic Accidents , Maheffey, James - Amazon.com