Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Radiation exposure and the power of zero

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Radiation exposure and the power of zero

Click here to access article by Jeffrey Patterson from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

The accidents at Fukushima have once again raised concerns about public exposure to elevated levels of radiation.

Science tells us that there is no dose of radiation so low that it can be considered completely "safe" or "harmless."

We cannot afford to risk annihilation and continued environmental contamination; we must turn away from nuclear power and weapons.

The author acts like we, as citizens, have much of a choice in this matter under existing conditions. In spite of all the suppression of negative news about nuclear power, poll after poll in the US, both before and after the Fukushima disaster, demonstrates that most citizens want the focus to be on conservation and alternative energy. See this, this, and this.