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A forgotten disaster…
…holds lessons that we need to learn, although we refuse to even see the warning.
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Cross-posted to Random Fate.
11 Responses to “A forgotten disaster…”
Thank you.
What is the legacy exactly?
Is the legacy that we should all be horrified at the idea of nuclear power?
Or is it that we should be horrified at stupid use of nuclear power? Afraid of those who use unsafe power plants for unauthorized experiments?
Coal-powered and oil-powered power plants kill more people every year than nuclear power does. So is the lesson that we should all be afraid of nuclear power? Even though it’s the safest, most environmentally-friendly form of power generation that mankind has ever created?
I have to agree with Dean on this one. Drawing broad lessons from Chernobyl and applying them to all nuclear power systems everywhere would be pretty foolish.
I’m also with Dean.
Ditto. But also in disbelief we aren’t doing more to try to develop fusion power. I mean not only would it get rid of all the waste issues and pollution (unfortunately extracting uranium is very polluting) but it’s impossible to have an accident. There is no chain reaction with fusion that can spin out of control, for once the conditions change even slightly it would completely stop.
4 Stars from Charity Navigator:
Chabad’s Children of Chernobyl
New York, NY
Saving the lives of Chernobyl children
Mission
Since 1990, Chabad’s Children of Chernobyl (CCOC) has evacuated more than 2,300 children on 70 rescue missions from areas contaminated by the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster and brought them to Israel for extended medical care, housing and education. In addition, CCOC sponsors medical and social relief programs in Ukraine and Belarus, participates in medical research and dissemination of information with other international agencies regarding the consequences of Chernobyl, and keeps the plight of the children in the public eye through extensive, ongoing public relations and educational efforts.
The lessons are not necessarily about nuclear power, but about when a government denies reality and lies.
Think about the entire milieu of the event and aftermath, and recall the reaction of the Soviet government.
What I found alarming about these comments is that we were given a link with pictures of malformed, cancerous, and dying children, and the reaction here is “hey! he’s bad-mouthing nuclear!!” A single moment for the actual human tragedy would seem appropriate. Then you can go into about the more invisible but pervasive dangers of other forms of power. Moving straight into attack mode tells people that one is trying to downplay and hide any dangers in order to make a point.
I think it’s a lesson in how the Russian government feels about its people.
pacatrue,
Could the comments be what they are because of the vagueness of the post? Virtually every mention of Chernobyl has been what we interpreted this one as being.
both the pictures and the post do highlight the dreadful destructive power of radioactive materials. The polium poisonings were another. Because an accident can poison an area for such a long time, we need to understand and rationally assess the entire production chain, fuel cycle and waste issues. Here’s a series of issues that impact the world that future generations will inherit. From the British magazine the Ecologist.