Antinuclear

Nuclear news this week – (miles too long)

Some bits of good news.  Why tackling biodiversity loss could solve the climate crisis.     A believed-extinct butterfly flitted back to the Scottish hills

TOP STORIES. Chris Hedges: Craig Murray on the ‘Slow Motion Execution’ of Assange. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x9Bltb7ZYE

Nuclear submarines challenge trains 10 year old children for war. The Discharge of Fukushima’s Radioactive Water could be a Precedent for Similar Actions. 

Hyping Ukraine Counteroffensive, US Press Chose Propaganda Over Journalism. 

What is the Digital Prison?

Climate. Global stocktake UN urges radical changes in climate policy plans at Cop28. Fossil fuel industries have captured global UN negotiations on climate change. Antarctic sea-ice at ‘mind-blowing’ low alarms experts.

Christina notes. Blatant hypocrisy and lies from Rafael Grossi and the International Atomic Energy Agency. Digital confusion.

AUSTRALIA. 

• 63 Members of Parliament call on US to free Assange. 
• The normalisation of nuclear power and militarism in our schools. 
• Eating the three-eyed fish: where is Australia on nuclear wastewater in the Pacific? Protesters call on Labor to protest Fukushima nuclear waste dumping.
• Two years after AUKUS announcement, American politicians are divided on delivery of submarines to Australia. 
• Peter Dutton wants Australia to jump on the VERY UNECONOMIC “nuclear train”. ”. Replacing Australia’s retiring coal power stations with small nuclear reactors could cost $387bn, analysis suggests.
• Nuclear energy remains weapon of choice for climate deniers and coal lobby. 
• Sovereignty mocked in the ‘proxy war’ in Ukraine. 
• Waste site: Govt reveals bill for dumped Kimba nuclear facility. 
• Big batteries and solar push new boundaries on the grid

ART and CULTURE. Nuclear Free Local Authorities back councillor’s call to preserve bunker as museum to folly of nuclear war.

CLIMATE. Don’t underestimate ravages of climate crisis when storing nuclear waste. Kings Bay nuclear submarine hub dodged a bullet named Hurricane Idalia.

ECONOMICS. A new French fairy tale: “Cheap” nuclear electricity in France is not what it appears. Marketing. Top candidate for head of European Investment Bank cautions about defense, nuclear investments. USA can’t get investors for Small Nuclear Reactors: no problem – flog them off to Ghana!       ‘War Is Good for Business,’ Declares Executive at London’s Global Arms Fair.

EMPLOYMENT. 1000 Sellafield Ltd. contractors to be balloted for strike by Unite.

ENERGY. Ukraine plans up to 1GW wind farm in Chernobyl nuclear disaster zone. Endless energy use needed for endless data storage – so, small nuclear reactors for Sweden. Windfarm bid withdrawn after Ministry of Defence raises nuclear testing station concerns. Solar energy boost for France. Renewables boost in Germany: turning the corner after a bad year?

ENVIRONMENT. Earth ‘well outside safe operating space for humanity’, scientists find. Radioactive discharge from Fukushima nuclear plant raising concerns on California coast.

ETHICS and Religion If The US Really Was What It Pretends To Be. “A world free from nuclear weapons is possible”. The US Air Force Is Clearing Out Jungles In The Pacific To Prepare For War With China.

HUMAN RIGHTS. JULIAN ASSANGE AND THE END OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY.

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. British activists join Nuclear Free Local Authorities in supporting Swedish Sami against uranium mining. Uranium Mining Protections Needed Across the West. Forced removal of Chagos islanders gave the US a nuclear base and the UK a deal on nuclear weapons.

LEGAL. French nuclear cartel fined €31m. Small island nations take high-emitting countries to court to protect the ocean.

MEDIA. Fukushima’s nuclear waste: Stigmatising Russia, approving Japan.

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Small modular nuclear reactors for Ukraine (safe?)

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . Peace boat’s message is clear: Golden Rule mission urges support for nuclear ban treaty. Activists want California nuclear reactor closed over safety concerns

POLITICS. 

• The U.K.’s Goldilocks Moment For Nuclear Power. Huge nuclear lobbying aimed at British Parliament . Sunak gives China green light to build UK nuclear plants despite nation being ‘threat to our way of life’.   Nuclear Free Local Authorities’ plea to new Energy Secretary: ‘Don’t make Sizewell C Suffolk’s nightmare.’    
• Germany advises against nuclear power in Uganda. 
•  Israel’s nuclear commission head refuses to side by High Court – in the case of a constitutional crisis 
• Public Need Versus the Business of War. 
• 50 US Lawmakers Reintroduce ‘CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act’ to Protect ‘the American Way of Life’.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

• Germany’s Scholz: Fresh nuclear disarmament talks should include China. 
• Guam residents inch closer to compensation for US nuclear testing. 
• How the ‘nuclear football’ remains a potent symbol of the unthinkable. 
• US incapable of negotiating – Russian diplomat. Ukraine joining NATO ‘would not promote peace’ – ex-French president. Zelensky Implies Ukrainian Refugees in Europe Will Resort to Terrorism If West Curtails Aid. 
• Congress should seek ‘poison pills’ for any US-Saudi nuclear agreement.

PUBLIC OPINION. A push-back against Western influence is reportedly prompting countries to reject the pro-Ukraine agenda.

RELIGION. Kiev orders closure of Christian churches

SAFETY. 

• Why this Ukrainian nuclear plant is now on brink of a ‘Fukushima’ disaster. 
• Safety fears : the problem of Britain’s ageing nuclear submarines. Nuclear Free Local Authorities concerned over safety risks regarding nuclear-armed U.S. base planned for RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk. 
• Are They Already Cutting Corners on Worker Protection at DOE’s New Plutonium Processing Plant? Environmental groups urge regulators to shut down California reactor over safety, testing concerns. Cracks at V.C. Summer nuclear plant raise concern from federal regulators. 
• Risk assessment and the nuclear cultists. 
• UN Nuclear Watchdog Risks Running Out of Money on US, China Standoff. UN nuclear agency slams Iran for barring inspectors from monitoring program. 
• A nuclear bomb is still missing after it was dropped off the Georgia coastline 65 years ago.
•   Japan to start old nuclear reactor checks in October. Incidents. Radioactive material leaks detected at Japan’s plutonium nuclear fuel  research facility’.

SECRETS and LIES. 

• Blinken, Assange, And The 20th Anniversary Of The Palestine Hotel Bombing. 
• SNC Lavalin changing its name to AtkinsRéalis in effort to shed parts of its past. From the archives: Crooked Canadian company Lavalin trying to sell ?zombie nuclear technology to China and UK. 
• IAEA sees no problem with depleted uranium weaponry – Grossi. 
• Antony Blinken mouths complacent lies: “very confident in Ukraine’s ultimate success”. 
• The UK Government Knows How Extreme the Online Safety Bill Is. G20 Announces Plan To Impose Digital Currencies And IDs Worldwide.  Elon Musk’s X venture – leading us into a digital prison?
• Ex-Ukrainian president pictured wearing Nazi symbol (PHOTOS).   Ukrainians blame Zelensky for corruption – poll.

SPACE. EXPLORATION, WEAPONS. Pentagon’s new plan to counter China includes swarms of smart satellites. 7 October – 14 October KEEP SPACE FOR PEACE WEEK.

SPINBUSTER. Blinken: US Does Not Oppose Ukrainian Attacks Inside Russia With US-Supplied Missiles.

WASTES. Decommissioning. September 14, 2023: Dounreay decommissioning end date that proved to be unachievable.

WAR and CONFLICT. NATO’s Steadfast Defender Drills Near Russia Signal Bloc’s Shift to ‘War Footing’, Pentagon blames Russian e-warfare for failed Ukraine counteroffensive.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. 

• Banish Nuclear Weapons ‘to History Books, Once and for All’, Urges Secretary-General, Marking International Day. 
• With long-range missiles for Ukraine, US crosses own red line.
•  Pakistan nuclear weapons, 2023.   Pakistan has 170 nuclear warheads, and may increase it to 200 by 2025, say American atomic scientists.
• Zelensky Issues Veiled Threat To Destabilize Europe If Weapons Flow Curtailed. 
• Making Britain a target for nuclear retaliation. 
• US to Shift Some Military Aid from Egypt to Taiwan.

WOMEN. Women with medical education to be banned from leaving Ukraine and forced to sign up for military service – Kyiv Post.

September 18, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

The week in nuclear news

Park in Beijing April 2023

Some bits of good news.  Chinese people are living two years longer thanks to ‘war on pollution,’ report says.  From Blacktop to Green: Cities Are Depaving for a Cooler Future. 

TOP STORIES. 

• What’s Behind Talk of a Possible Plea Deal for Assange? 
• Crew sailing ‘original peace boat’ reflect on mission to promote end of nuclear weapons. 
• Revisiting John Pilger’s 2016 Warnings About US Warmongering Against Russia And China. 
• Ukraine’s defeat could mean the end of NATO in its current form.
• Biden’s horse-trading on nuclear technology and fuels is an unprecedented proliferation risk. 
• Taiwan’s ‘clear and present’ spent nuclear fuel danger.

Climate. World meteorologists point to ‘vicious cycle’ of heatwaves and air pollution.

Christina notes. Social media is becoming more influential, while corporate media is more than ever in the grip of powerful government and business interests. Trying to make the best use of Substack. Continuing through the maze of social media.  About how to use Substack – (I recommend reading their instructions). The labyrinth of social media – The promise and the pitfalls.

AUSTRALIA. Educating the US Imperium: Australia’s Mission for Assange.   Lifetime War Abolisher of 2023 award to David Bradbury.  Nuclear shift and net zero feud stir Nationals’ leadership tensions.   Australia’s Navy Pursues Nuclear Submarines and AI-Powered Ghost Sharks.

ARTS and CULTURE. Exhibition for nuclear-free world opens online.

CLIMATE. The Bugey and Saint-Alban sites could reduce their production due to the heat. The Pentagon is the Elephant In the Climate Activist Room.

ECONOMICS. Today Hinkley C contract would cost £180 per MWh around 3xs the cost of offshore wind. “A Good Investment”: The Ukraine War and the US Arms Racket

EMPLOYMENT. Unite urges employer to pay a fair wage and avoid nuclear plant shutdown. Health and safety concerns raised with Dounreay management.

ENERGY. How a nuclear disaster spurred Fukushima to become a renewables leader. Could new nuclear kill one of the world’s most promising offshore windmarkets?

ENVIRONMENT. Disproportionately High Contributions of 60 Year Old Weapons-¹³⁷Cs Explain the Persistence of Radioactive Contamination in Bavarian Wild Boars.

ETHICS and RELIGION. Senators brag that only Ukrainians die in US proxy war against Russia. Act, or die: the climate and nuclear juggernaut.     The Four Billionaires Who Want to Control the Universe.      If Everyone Understood That The US Deliberately Provoked This War.    Japan’s Insane Immoral, Illegal Radioactive Dumping.

HEALTH. Radiation. Important new British Medical Journal article increases our perception of radiation risks.

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. Nuclear Waste Dump Threatens Kichi Sìbì (Ottawa River). The deep roots of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste fight — and why it continues to this day.

LEGAL. RADIOACTIVE TSUNAMIS: NUCLEAR TORPEDO DRONES AND THEIR LEGALITY IN WAR. Japan’s nuclear-contaminated water discharge should consider hazard accountability and compensation mechanisms.        Vinci and Bouygues among six firms fined €31m for bid rigging in nuclear work.        Residents file suit to halt wastewater release from Fukushima plant.

MEDIA. US Intelligence Official: Media Misleading Americans About Ukraine’s Battlefield Success.

PERSONAL STORIES. Ukrainian POWs Say Families of Dead Denied Compensation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn_671tZmLQ

 POLITICS.  Illinois legislators have a lot to learn about nuclear power.   Nuclear energy touted at West Virginia Chamber forum, but key cost, oversight and waste management questions linger. Oregon hasn’t said never to nuclear power, but it should.

Guam nuclear energy ban focus of hearing. Japan announces emergency relief for seafood exporters hit by China’s ban over Fukushima water. Public opinion. USA & NATO responsible for Ukraine war, German & French public say in poll. Ukrainian Dissident Resists NATO’s Proxy War.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

• Ukraine war: Kyiv denounces G20 declaration. 
• Poland begins to extradite to Ukraine men who left it after February 24, 2022. 
• Germany, Italy highlight growing European nuclear divide. Eastern European NATO Countries Fear Peace Talks Between Ukraine and Russia. Fyodor Lukyanov: Why the ‘world majority’ sees the Ukraine conflict as an example of declining European and North American power. 
• Why Swiss Neutrality is essential for American national security. 
• The West’s blueprint for goading China was laid out in Ukraine.

PROTESTS. South Korea: Mass protests continue against Fukushima nuclear waste dumping.

SAFETY. IAEA warns of nuclear safety threat as combat spikes near Ukraine power plant. Ukraine war realises predictions of nuclear power plant threat, says Leicester civil safety expert.    Nuclear reactors: Malaysia lacks maintenance culture. Generators of Kudangulam nuclear power plant stuck in sea.

SECRETS and LIES. Russian hackers suspected to have leaked sensitive UK military and defence material on the dark web including information about nuclear submarine base and chemical weapons lab.    Ukraine wasted $17 million on faulty drones – media.

URANIUM. Does Europe need Niger’s uranium?

WASTES. UK and Japan’s governments funding research on problem of nuclear waste. Plutonium. UK / ‘No Easy Options’ For Disposal Of Plutonium Stockpile, Says Report

WAR and CONFLICT. America is not worried about the huge losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine . Nation-States as “Business Models”: Ukraine as Another Neoliberal Privatization Exercise. Scott Ritter: A comprehensive Ukrainian defeat is the only possible outcome of its conflict with Russia. NATO isn’t able to help Ukraine win. Ukraine – health care women compulsory military service.      Counter-offensive threatened by slow Western aid – Zelenskyy.

NATO Chief Openly Admits Russia Invaded Ukraine Because Of NATO Expansion. Slow mindless grind towards nuclear Armageddon?

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. 

• Saudi Arabia could build a nuclear bomb, experts say – and the US might help it. 
• US to Arm Ukraine With Toxic Depleted Uranium Ammunition. Depleted Uranium Won’t Bring Peace to Ukraine. Russia says US supplying depleted-uranium shells to Ukraine could lead to war between nuclear powers. Ukraine used cluster munitions against civilians – Human Rights Watch. 
• 22 Years of Drone Warfare and No End in Sight.
•  Ukraine’s ‘Biggest Arms Supplier’ Orchestrated 2014 Maidan Massacre, Witnesses Say. Is Ukraine’s new long-range missile technology bringing us closer to WW3?
• Russia warns return of US nuclear weapons to UK would be seen as escalation.
•  Senators raise concerns over US missing nuclear submarine target. 
• US Air Force tests nuclear-capable long-range missile.

September 11, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

to 4th September – nuclear news this week

Some bits of good news. How UNESCO is supporting Afghan girls and women with literacy classes.    Wind-powered shipping is back as a quiet revolution sweeps the seas.  Plant-based filter removes up to 99.9% of microplastics from water.

TOP STORIES. 

Australian Teachers in boycott of nuclear submarine project. 

US Victim of Own Propaganda in Ukraine War. Sen. Blumenthal: US Getting Its ‘Money’s Worth’ in Ukraine Because Americans Aren’t Dying.    Nuclear “lobbying” blurs into bribery

Climate. The extreme summer weather that scorched and soaked the world.

Nuclear and war. Over the years, I have been surprised, and encouraged, at the interest that people have shown in stories about ETHICS.  Some pretty shocking stories about Ethics have come up this week –  the number of influential politicians and journalists who actually rejoice in the carnage of the Ukraine war –  because it’s all making money for American shareholders while cleverly organised not to risk any American lives – only Ukrainian ones – who apparently don’t matter.

AUSTRALIA. Only Idiots Believe The US Is Protecting Australia From China. Challenging Australia’s blind allegiance to USA against China.

Nuclear power is no alternative.     Australian Financial Review gets it not quite right about why nuclear power is the wrong solution.  ‘Big question-mark over new nuclear’: German utility CEO.  NUCLEAR WASTE – PLANNING RESPONSIBLY FOR THE FUTURE.  Allowing Tassie to host nuclear vessels would make state a ‘target’: Woodruff.

CLIMATE. Chinese government acknowledges problems for nuclear power due to climate change.

ECONOMICS. 

• Nuclear discharge leading tourists to rethink travel plans. 
• US Doubles Imports of Russian Uranium to Largest Amount Since 2005. 
• Nuclear is the new green – (Really?) 
• Tax-payer funding to develop small nuclear reactor business? Easy, get Defense and the Air Force to buy them. New small nuclear reactor company merges with a dubious ‘special purpose acquisition’ company, -reactors for use by USA Air Force in Alaska. 
• UK government announces a further £341m to speed up Sizewell C development.
•  Georgia Power customers could see monthly bills rise to pay for the Vogtle nuclear plant.
• New Brunswick Power has its head stuck in uranium.

ENERGY. The UK Government’s seventh Energy Secretary in the space of four years has “a huge amount of catching up to do” to kickstart a renewables revolution.     Focus on renewables, not nuclear, to fuel Canada’s electric needs

ENVIRONMENT. Radiation. Fukushima floodgates: dilution of the wastewater will not alter the total amount of radionuclides released. Brink of catastrophe: Japan as Pacific polluter. The Fukushima Nuclear Disaster Still Casts a Shadow Over Japan. We are all Hibakusha- the global footprint of nuclear fallout.

Nuclear weapons testing cause of radioactivity in wild boars, study says.

ETHICS and RELIGION. US Officials Keep Boasting About How Much The Ukraine War Serves US Interests. Rocket-Launching Billionaires Promise a New Pie in the Sky. Archbishop Caccia recalls harm done by nuclear energy.

LEGAL. Federal appeals court blocks plan to ship nuclear waste to West Texas. Top prosecutors back compensation for those sickened by US nuclear weapons testing.

 MEDIA. Why is The New York Times Burning Peace Activist Jodie Evans at the Stake?        Critics Picked Up on Oppenheimer’s All-Too-Timely Warning on Nuclear War. ‘Then the black rain fell’: survivor’s recollections of Hiroshima inspire new film.

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Hinkley Point C Nuclear Station will need daily 4,200 Olympic swimming pools’ amount of cooling water.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . A bottomless pit of public money for the UK government’s nuclear vanity project.          ‘Unrealistic and irrational’: Government announces Sizewell C nuclear station £341m speed-up despite local backlash in Suffolk.    Anger over claims RAF Lakenheath could host US nuclear weapons.

POLITICS. An Argument for the Relevance of RFK, Jr.       ‘Peaceful Atom’ Sparks Fierce Debate In Kazakh Village Slated To Host Nuclear Power Plant.         German Chancellor Scholz speaks out against new nuclear power, Deutschlandfunk reports. Chancellor Scholz dismisses talk of keeping nuclear energy option open in Germany.

UK Government’s investment in Sizewell C nuclear plant passes £1bn. Money thrown at Sizewell C to win hearts and minds.. South Koreans worry about Fukushima water: more disapprove of President Yoon.      Peace a winning strategy for Democrats in ‘24.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

• There should be no Saudi uranium enrichment. Saudi Arabia’s Nuclear Ambitions Have Put The U.S. Into A Bind.
• Young Vietnamese Diplomat, Lê Nguyen An Khanh, Envisions Nuclear-Free World. 
• Rush to accept Ukraine into EU could spell ‘disaster’ – Austrian FM.  Ukraine war: how China can get the world to step back from nuclear Armageddon.
• China Outlines ‘Obstacles’ to Resuming High-Level Military Talks With U.S. 
• The State of Nuclear Instability in South Asia: India, Pakistan, and China. 

SAFETY. Atomic Blackmail: Ukraine war realises predictions of nuclear power plant threat, says Leicester civil safety expert.     Over 100 security incidents at UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) nuclear weapons body.      USA Nuclear Regulatory Commission ready to remove “barriers” so as to speed up licensing of new untested nuclear reactors.

WASTES. Germany facing up to its nuclear waste problem.

WAR and CONFLICT. Ukraine’s army is running out of men to recruit, and time to win. Ukraine conflict may be lengthy – Canadian PM. The Economist says West enables Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian civilian targets. NATO’s ‘proxy war’ blues: How the US-led campaign to use Ukraine to ‘cripple’ Russia has failed. 

Report: US, Israel to Conduct Joint Drills Simulating Attacks on Iran. Living on a War Planet.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. 

• Kazakhstan’s 40-Year History of Nuclear Testing: Call to Action for Nonproliferation Education. 
• Vivek Ramaswamy: Cut funding for Ukraine or face ‘post-Zelensky warlord’. Why Ukraine’s Western backers are happy to feed Zelensky’s fantasies about American F-16s. Russia puts advanced Sarmat nuclear missile system on ‘combat duty’. Ukraine war: the implications of Moscow moving tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. 
• US fighter jets capable of nuclear bombing to be based in UK. 
• North Korea says it has simulated a nuclear missile attack to warn US of ‘nuclear war danger’.

September 4, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

Week to 28 August – nuclear news

A bit of good news.  Welcome to the world’s first zero-waste island.  Ecuador voted to just stop oil.

TOP STORIES

At Fukushima Daiichi, decommissioning the nuclear plant is far more challenging than water release. Fukushima waste-water decision disregards scientific evidence, violates the human rights of Pacific region communities.

Lauding Lise Meitner, Who Said ‘No’ to the Atomic Bomb. #StepUp4Disarmament on International Day against Nuclear Tests. NASA joins the lunatic fringe.              Elon Musk’s Shadow Rule

Ukraine Providing an Important Testing Ground For Space-Based Weapons.         Sustainability has lost its meaning as the nuclear lobby triumphs.

Climate. Why Scotland must get real on climate crisis: The time has passed for protecting the public from reality. China’s summer of climate destruction.

Nuclear. I felt a bit desperate, watching all the rejoicing about India sending a rocket to the moon. Don’t people realise that all this space research, (at tax-payers’ expense) is geared towards weaponry in space?  Another upsetting news item today – intrepid journalist Ronan Farrow, in a terribly long article, explores and exposes the powerful influence of Elon Musk over the American government.  It is a scary thought.

Christina notes. The nuclear lobby is gearing up for a takeover of COP 28.

AUSTRALIA. Rex Patrick demolishes Richard Marles’ slick lies about AUKUS and the nuclear submarines. All the way with Anthony A – Labor locks in AUKUS support despite union opposition. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MlVW8qJ-TEACHERS ACT AGAINST SCHOOLS NUCLEAR SUBS PROGRAM.

Green light for nuclear ships, submarines in Tasmanian port. South-east Australia marine heatwave forecast to be literally off the scale.

Coalition’s campaign for nuclear energy implausible, experts say. Ontario nuclear model may not suit Australia. Australian Financial Review’s sloppy journalism makes a nonsense of its case for nuclear SMRs.

ARTS and CULTURE. What ‘Downwinders inherited at Trinity.

CLIMATE. EDF Warns of French Nuclear Output Cuts in Weekend Heat Wave. France issues ‘red alert‘ over heatwave in south. France heatwave curbs cooling water supply to St Alban nuclear plant.

ECONOMICS. French Winter Power Twice as Pricey as Germany’s on Nuclear Woes. Georgia’s new nuclear reactors a cautionary tale. Why the US and Europe Still Buy Russian Nuclear Fuel.

China bans Japanese seafood after Fukushima wastewater release.

ENERGY Degrowthers Gain Support as Planet Cooks. Power-starved North Korea turns to solar energy to keep the lights on. French energy regulator: Nuclear alone not enough for carbon neutrality

ENVIRONMENT. Japanese fishing industry leader is “greatly concerned” over the pending disharge of Fukushima radioactive water into the ocean. Japan’s nuclear wastewater – should we be worried?. ‘Animals could become MUTATED’ from the 1.3 million tons of radioactive waste dumped from Japan’s nuclear power plant in the Pacific. Endless fallout: the Pacific idyll still facing nuclear blight 77 years on. Marshall Islands sea turtle found to have nuclear contamination.

Hinkley Point C: Millions of fish under threat after permit change.

Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety Urges State Legislature to Protect the Española Aquifer from LANL Pollutants.

ETHICS and RELIGION. Nuclear deterrence is a dangerous fraud . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH6xkjMNdnk&t=116s

HEALTH. Exposure to Low-Dose Ionizing Radiation Linked to Solid Cancer Mortality.

LEGAL. Texas nuclear waste storage permit invalidated by US appeals court.

MEDIA.   Chicago Tribune should support Vivec Ramasramy’s call for end to perpetual war in Ukraine 

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY.       The ageing nuclear reactors. How to keep them going for decades, (best to forget coming climate extremes). On the warpath: AI’s role in the defence industry.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . Fukushima: What are the concerns over waste water release? For the sake of Suffolk, Nuclear Free Local Authorities urge Centrica to ‘Say Non to Sizewell C’. Calls for West Sussex to be made a nuclear free zone.

PERSONAL STORIES. Respect for hibakusha, and hope in younger generations

POLITICS.  Much hype, enthusiasm, tax-payers’ largesse, for Britain’s “new nuclear”. (What could possibly go wrong?)  The role of nuclear in the UK’s energy mix. Sizewell C project descends into farce. Kudankulam Nuclear plant will destroy Southern Tamil Nadu, warns Vaiko.

Senate extends nuclear liability-limiting law without public scrutiny. Here’s why we should care.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY.

• China outraged at water release from wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant. Seafood war looms after Japan releases nuclear plant water. 
• Bibi Isn’t Serious About Preventing a Regional Nuclear Arms Race. Saudi Arabia weighs nuclear power offers from China and France in bid to sway US.  Israel will not agree to Saudi nuclear program: Netanyahu. 
• UK financially props up Ukraine’s nuclear industry, while renewable sources there grow. 
• The Last Time A Foreign Military Threat Was Placed Near The US Border, The World Almost Ended.

SAFETY. French nuclear watchdog ASN issues first lifespan extension to 40-year-old reactor. Cattenom nuclear plant reports ‘significant safety event‘.

SECRETS and LIES. Why we cannot trust the International Atomic Energy Agency.

SPACE. EXPLORATION, WEAPONS. Threat from the skies: India steps up the fight against a major space danger.

WASTES. The Fukushima nuclear plant will start releasing treated wastewater. Here’s what you need to know.. Fukushima: wastewater from ruined nuclear plant to be released from Thursday, Japan says. Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station is still continuing to release radioactive materials. More nuclear challenges await Japan after Fukushima water release. More countries take actions to handle Japan’s nuclear-contaminated water dump, while US ‘double-standard exposed hypocrisy’.

North County Report: What’s the Deal with San Onofre’s Nuclear Power Plant? . Decommissioning. Dismantling of deactivated Fort Greely nuclear power plant to resume.

WAR and CONFLICT. US derides wimpy Ukrainians that have become ‘casualty adverse’. US and Ukraine ‘at odds’ over counteroffensive tactics – WSJ .  Ukraine’s Counteroffensive Has Failed—It’s Time to Reevaluate.

Ukraine will ‘capitulate unconditionally’ – Scott Ritter. Zelensky Cracks Down on Draft Dodgers, Forces Men to Fight & Die in This War . German officials believe Ukraine destroyed Nord Stream – media. UN warns Ukraine over attacks on Russian civilian targets.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Biden’s rival, Robert F. Kennedy Junior, labels F-16s for Ukraine ‘a disaster for humanity’. ‘Powerful’ Ukrainian brigade loses US-made demining vehicles – Forbes, (but plenty more available) US to reduce military aid to Ukraine in 2024 – WSJ.

End Nuclear testing Forever, Says Secretary-General in Message for International Day. Neocon Dark Money Front Launches Desperate Ad Blitz, as Support for Ukraine Forever War Craters. Japanese students urge end to nuclear weapons in 1st visit to U.N. Geneva in 4 years.

August 28, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

Week to 21st August – in nuclear news

A bit of good news. Montana Rules a Healthful Environment Is a Constitutional Right.

TOP STORIES 

Nuclear Power Plants as Targets of War — A New Worry?.

Ukraine likely to fail in key counteroffensive aim, says US intelligence. Amid ‘staggering’ Ukrainian toll and souring US polls, Biden seeks billions more for war. Why the Glut of ‘Wonder Weapons’ to Ukraine Won’t Make a Difference. 

Huge study of nuclear workers in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States confirms low dose radiation as a cause of cancer. Risk of cancer death after exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation underestimated, suggests nuclear industry study.

Climate.  Climate Scientists warn nature’s ‘anaesthetics’ have worn off, now arth is feeling the pain, as ocean heating hits record.

Nuclear.  You’d think that the  fact that the Ukraine ‘counter-offensive’ is stalling might induce a Western mindset more favorable to the idea of a negotiated end to the war.  Not so  -the US-NATO plan is for more, and more lethal weapons.  It might even put off the idea of a war against China. But no  -and sadly, in Australia the mood among the “top people” is all for throwing $billions at preparing for the China war.  (The bottom people aren’t consulted) 

Christina notes. Bribery and Blackmail: these are the tools for continuing success of the nuclear industry.  Perfecting “planned obsolescence” – how the USA and its allies’ taxpayers are locked into perpetual buying of useless weapons.

AUSTRALIA. 

• Assange Be Weary: The Dangers of a US Plea Deal.   For What Crime? – Good Journalism?.     An Assange Plea Deal? A profound change’: AUKUS debate looms for Labor’s rank and file. 

• So much Labor hope is riding on an empty vessel. Albanese defends against attempt to strike nuclear submarines out of Labor platform. AUKUS a cover for the Coalition’s nuclear power agenda. ‘Unbelievable’: Defence spends $8.5m on consultants for AUKUS nuclear regulator.  The Australian Government, especially Defence Minister Richard Marles, move to squash Labor Party dissent about AUKUS and nuclear submarines.
•  Why the Coalition backs nuclear.  Stop renewables and wait for nuclear: Nationals stunning rejection of science and industry. Gina Rinehart: Australia’s wealthiest person uses Bush Summit speech to push for nuclear power. 
• Game changer: defence industry ‘revolving door’ database to be created.

CLIMATE. The nuclear icebreakers enabling drilling in Russia’s Arctic .

ECONOMICS. 

• How the “Nuclear Renaissance” Robs and Roasts Our Earth. Nuclear power plants will mortgage all future generations, says expert.
•  Japan’s controversial nuclear waste water plan could impact the UK’s decarbonisation agenda. 
• US tightens export controls of nuclear power items to China. 
• The nuclear industry needs to show it can deliver economically viable big reactors in time and on budget. 
• Finland’s OL2 nuclear reactor off grid; power prices rise.

ENERGY. US climate law introduces billion-dollar ‘game-changer’ for nonprofits.

ENVIRONMENT. Anger as Hinkley Point C allowed to discharge sewage into Bristol Channel and drop fish protection.

ETHICS and RELIGION. The Oppenheimer Imperative: Normalising Atomic Terror. Japanese and US Bishops pledge partnership for a nuclear-free world. Poisoning the planet. Big Brave Western Proxy Warriors Keep Whining That Ukrainian Troops Are Cowards.

HEALTH. Japan mothers’ group fears Fukushima water release could revive health concerns.

LEGAL. Marshall Islands reacts to US expansion of nuclear compensation.

MEDIA. The Connection between Oppenheimer and Gentilly-2: Edward Teller and the H bomb

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Risks of further delays at Hinkley Point C, EDF warns. Even the UK’s very first small nuclear reactor could  could not be decided upon until 2029   . Nuclear Fusion: Energy Breakthrough or Ballyhoo?.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . South Korea’s opposition party to file UN complaint against Japan over nuclear waste .

PERSONAL STORIES. The Financial Legacy of the Nuclear Tests on Bikini Atoll/

POLITICS. 

• Biden should promote peace over war in Ukraine for 2 good reasons. 
• Pritzker was right to keep moratorium on new Illinois nuclear plants.  
•  New York governor blocks discharge of radioactive water into Hudson River from closed nuclear plant. 
• Zelensky holds court with Ukraine’s most notorious neo-Nazi.
• UK ‘s Minister for Nuclear and Networks very upbeat about nuclear energy’s future.
•  OPPENHEIMER AUTHOR ENDORSES NORTON BILL –  Nuclear Abolition and Conversion Act, H.R. 2775  .

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

• NATO Official Suggests Ukraine Could Cede Territory to Russia to Join Alliance. Lukashenko shares thoughts on future of Ukraine. 
• Iran says it is committed to resolving nuclear dispute through diplomacy. 
• Tussle in Europe as France succeeds in getting nuclear energy accepted\ as a ‘”transitional” technology for EU’s green taxonomy . 
• Fukushima water release poses test for Japan-South Korea unity. 
• France and Russia co-operate on developing a plant in Russia for processing depleted uranium .     French cruise ship makes rendezvous with Russian nuclear icebreaker near North Pole.
• Austria cautions against nuclear power in the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

PROTESTS. Gwynedd anti-nuclear march ‘sent powerful message’. Japanese citizens’ group protests nuclear discharge.

SAFETY. 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Risky Rule Change Ignores History. More Nuclear Emergency Planning Needed, Not Less. 

Power-Line Cut Raises Alarm Over Russian-Held Nuclear Plant In Ukraine, But Expert Says Little Has Changed. Russia And Ukraine Trade Blame Over Outages At Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant.

SECRETS and LIES. Most ‘experts’ pushing for endless conflict in Ukraine share a common benefactor.

WASTES. Japan’s nuclear plants are short of storage for spent fuel. A remote town could have the solution.

WAR and CONFLICT. Ralph Nader: Develop an Exit Strategy for the Endless War in Ukraine. The Inevitable Defeat: Retired US Colonel Speaks Candidly On Ukraine’s Losing Battle Against Russia. Back in another quagmire – in Biden’s relentless “Big Muddy” of Ukraine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXnJVkEX8O4   US, Finland Negotiating Defense Agreement That Would See Deployment of American Troops.

Niger is Far From a Typical Coup.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. 

• Lethal weapons to Ukraine – endless war prioritised over diplomacy: Address to United Nations Security Council. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS44mvuo7Ow        Germany will ‘never’ place troops in Ukraine – Scholz. 
• Over Budget and Delayed—What’s Next for U.S. Nuclear Weapons Research and Production Projects? The Pentagon Is Spending $1 Billion a Year on ‘Directed Energy Weapons’. 
• What Happened When the US Set Off Nuclear Weapons in One of the Most Geologically Active Places on Earth?

August 21, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

This week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news:  For Outdoor Workers, Learning About Heat Protection Is a Lifesaver.    Climate leaders on what brings them hope.  A rare monkey came back from the brink.

TOP STORIES

Atomic Bombing of Japan Was Not Necessary to End WWII. US Gov’t Documents Admit It.       Racism and the choice to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Target China

US/France Threaten Intervention in Resource-Rich Niger: Fears of War in West Africa.

Counting the dead at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The terrible emptiness of “Oppenheimer”.

 Climate,   July was world’s hottest month on record, climate scientists confirm. Four fifths of humanity ‘hit by heat linked to climate change’ in July. 

Virtually certain’ extreme Antarctic events will get worse without drastic action, scientists warn.    Antarctica ‘suffering’ because of burning fossil fuels, say scientists. Antarctica could become ‘global radiator’ if ice loss continues at the current rate . 

Nuclear.  “Oppenheimer” continues to make its impact. The USA pulls quite a swiftie on Australia. as the AUKUS ‘Security’ deal quietly organises for American nuclear submarine’s highly toxic radioactive wastes to be dumped on Australia, (just as Aboriginal group has won a legal battle against nuclear waste dumping). Racism is becoming a more obvious feature of the nuclear industry worldwide.

Christina notes. The “modern” nuclear industry manages its radioactive sewage in a medieval way. The Australian Labor Party embraces militarism– has it lost its soul?

AUSTRALIA. 

• Suggestions that Julian Assange might be returned to Australia, with a “plea deal”.
• Melissa Parke to spearhead International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, as Oppenheimer thrusts issue into spotlight. 
• Marcus Strom: AUKUS is a mad, bad and dangerous war policy, Labor Against War. 
• The US grip on Australia keeps tightening. Can we break free and avoid war? 
• Yes in my backyard: Nationals happy to go nuclear. The Coalition’s likely embrace of nuclear energy is high-risk politics. Why the nuclear option is clever in opposition but a nightmare in government. Coalition’s aim for nuclear energy criticised by the Australian government. How will they explain themselves to their grandchildren? 
• Nuclear waste dump plans scrapped for South Australia. Barngarla’s voice is heard as the Federal Government abandons Kimba nuclear waste dump. Australia’s peak environmental body welcomes ‘king hit’ for nuclear waste dump at Kimba. Government abandons plan to dump nuclear waste near Kimba, sparking new hunt for dump site.

CLIMATE. Is it “Hello” or “Goodbye” to Great British Nuclear Power?

CIVIL LIBERTIES. McCarthyism Is Back, and It’s Coming for the Peace Movement.

ECONOMICS. 

• How the “Nuclear Renaissance” Robs and Roasts Our Earth. 
• Uranium profits in Niger. France is grabbing it all. 
• War is a Racket… U.S. and NATO Arms Industries Make Record $400 BILLION in Sales from Proxy War With Russia. Ukraine biggest recipient of US aid since WWII – Washington Post.   Biden to ask congress for an additional $13 billion for Ukraine – total aid given would soar to $113 billion.
• UK government backs Sizewell C nuclear, but their target investors are backing away. 
• Nippon Life bans investments in nuclear arms firms, tobacco companies. 
• Redundancies made as loss-making nuclear services firm sold for just £3 enters administration.  Company involved in decommissioning of the Dounreay nuclear plant has gone into administration.   Plush new building for UK’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) .
• Should You Sell Nuscale Power Corp (SMR) Stock Wednesday Morning? Small Nuclear Reactor (SMR) Stock Analysis Overview. 

EDUCATION. United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) held a public youth pitch event “‘Peace & XX’ Ideation – Nuclear Disarmament and Sustainable Futures”

EMPLOYMENT. Hinkley nuclear site workers win after unofficial walkouts. Hinkley Point C unrest continues as steel erectors down tools.

ENERGY. TVA should focus on a better grid and renewable, not nuclear, energy .

ENVIRONMENT. Fish Hell – impacts of sea water nuclear cooling systems . Agency to test for tritium in fish after Fukushima water discharge,

ETHICS and RELIGION. ‘Oppenheimer’ depicts a man becoming powerful—and irrelevant. Nuclear weapons since Oppenheimer: Who’s in control?. 

U.S. group marks 1945 atomic bombings, at interfaith service in Hiroshima, urges abolishing nuclear weapons and building better world. Sombre ceremony outside Manitoba Legislature illuminates push to eradicate nuclear weapons.

HEALTH. Reducing the risks of nuclear war — the role of health professionals. Medical Journals Issue Urgent Call for Elimination of Nuclear Weapons. Carcinogens found at Montana nuclear missile sites as reports of hundreds of cancers surface. Radiation. Additional information on tritium. Still more information about Tritium .

MEDIA. Nevada’s atomic fallout: How nuclear explosions in the Silver State reverberate through lives today. The Illusory Truth Effect And The “Unprovoked” Invasion Of Ukraine. YouTube Deletes military analyst Scott Ritter’s Channel.  Famed director Oliver Stone gets it so very wrong about nuclear power . 

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Nuclear fusion – a step forward, but is it in a sensible direction? Small Modular reactors– a US view.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . 

• As Japan set to dump nuclear-contaminated wastewater in late August, Japanese nuclear expert vows to ‘fight it to the end’. 
• Bringing the Pacific people together in solidarity to address nuclear legacy issues in the Pacific – Lesuma. 
•  #3DNukeMissile on Hiroshima/Nagasaki Days:A reminder of increased nuclear threats  –And a call to the NPT Prep Com.  Oppenheimer, Japan bombings put nuclear energy in a harsh light.
• Background to  Proposed radioactive waste dump in Deep River -opposition from indigenous and non-indigenous groups. Proposed radioactive waste dump in Deep River met with opposition at final hearing. 
• Welsh groups call on the National Eisteddfod to reject funding from USA nuclear and arms company Westinghouse. 

POLITICS. Democracy Needs Healthy Debates About War And Peace. Poll Shows Majority of Americans Oppose Further Aid in Ukraine. 

 Biden vows to compensate New Mexico residents sickened by nuclear weapons radiation after 1945 testing. Illinois Gov. Pritzker vetoes bill that would have allowed new nuclear construction. 

Sweden to clear obstacles for new nuclear reactors. Sweden criticised over plan to build at least 10 new nuclear reactors.

Public participation for the Flamanville EPR reactor commissioning project (INB 167).  Philippines House panel OKs bill outlining nuclear damage compensation.  Who decides whether Bataan should go nuclear?.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. As Threat Remerges, Global Community Must Speak as One, Commit to Nuclear-Free World, Secretary-General Says on Anniversary of Hiroshima Bombing. The BRICS Revolt: How Ukraine War Eroded U.S. Authority.

PROTESTS. Demonstrators protest development of nuclear weapons in Oak Ridge. Ten arrested at protest against nuclear weapons at Volkel airbase. Anti-nuclear protesters at Faslane charged after blocking entrance. In South Korea, activists march against Tokyo’s waste plan.

SAFETY. Dounreay inspectors raise further red flag about sodium storage. Ukrainian Minister Warns Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant ‘One Step Away’ From Blackout. Ukraine: Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant initiates reactor shutdown following water leak, reports IAEA. 2 minor earthquakes strike near North Korea’s nuclear test site.

SECRETS and LIES. Zelensky Fires All Military Enlistment Office Chiefs Over Corruption Allegations. Secret Pakistan cable documents US pressure to remove Imran Khan. Sweden’s “Energiforsk” should remove misleading reports on nuclear power”.

WASTES. Scottish ministers test attitudes to building radioactive waste facilities near homes. Hearing on the Chalk River Megadump . Theddlethorpe nuclear waste site: Public to vote by 2027. 

Chinese UN mission releases working paper on Fukushima nuclear-contaminated wastewater issue, urging Japan to discharge in responsible manner. Concrete tomb filled with deadly nuclear waste is leaking as it’s starting to crack.

WAR and CONFLICT. Ukrainian counteroffensive ‘highly unlikely‘ to succeed, US officials tell CNN.   Ukraine fights narrative battle as counteroffensive stalls – NBC.       Zelensky fears peace pressure from West – NYT.    Ukraine facing ‘difficult’ autumn – foreign minister. Poland admits Ukraine’s counteroffensive won’t succeed.

‘Oppenheimer’ the movie versus our nuclear reality. A warning from the Caribbean – none of us is safe from nuclear disaster. At Nagasaki Memorial, Guterres Cautions of Nuclear Disaster Risk .

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Rapid Dragon: the US military game-changer that could affect conventional and nuclear strategy and arms control negotiations.     We don’t need nuclear cruise missiles at sea.     Another Washington declaration: U.S. nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula, Egypt rejects multiple US requests to arm Ukraine: Report.

August 14, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

To 7 August – nuclear news this week

A bit of good news – The largest landfill in Latin America has now been restored into a thriving mangrove ecosystem.

TOP STORIES

Wilfred Burchett: The Atomic Plague,

Those who will fire the nuclear weapons are thoroughly trained to have no hesitation. We must stop them.

US rejects Australian plea to drop Assange case.

UK government must come clean, to tax-payers and consumers, on the financial figures before signing up to new nuclear programme. ( Full report. See in particular paras 41 -44)

Senate passes $886 billion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA): No audits necessary.

Dangers of Tritium.

Aggressive U.S. Push for Military Supremacy in the Arctic Could Trigger Nuclear War.

Climate. A Vital Atlantic Ocean System Could Collapse Sooner Than Previously Thought . The Chilling Truth: Antarctica Just Lost an Ice Mass the Size of My Country .

Nuclear. Well – It’s been THAT memorable week – the 78th anniversary. I can’t add to the many fine stories this week. Except to note that all nuclear-weapons nations are sticking to their policies, and the nuclear industry is enthusiastically propagandising -because we all know that small nuclear reactors etc have nothing to do with military use, don’t we?.

 Christina notes. Forget Oppenheimer. The real nuclear hero is Joseph Rotblat.     The persecution of Wilfred Burchett and Julian Assange  .

 AUSTRALIA. 

• Australian MPs Blast Blinken Over Assange.        
•  Building for War: The US Imperium’s Top End Spend. USA flexes its belligerent muscles in Western Australia, showing off its nuclear submarines.      AUKUS, Australia and the drive to war. A Client State.       U.S. aggression against China ignores lessons of Hiroshima.      The Day Australian Sovereignty Died. 
•  Parramatta Labor Party’s FEC unanimous anti-AUKUS motion. 
•  Nuclear issues turn Radio-Active dial up.

CLIMATE. Nuclear war would be more devastating for Earth’s climate than cold war predictions – even with fewer weapons. What you won’t learn about in Oppenheimer: the potential effects of a nuclear winter.

ECONOMICS. How the “Nuclear Renaissance” Robs and Roasts Our Earth.       First new US nuclear reactor in 3 decades may well also be its last.          Nuclear power’s landmark project stumbles across the finish line. The unpalatable facts of the costs to consumers of electricity from new nuclear power. The High Costs and Failures of Nuclear Reactors.

ENERGY. The digital data industry is an energy-and-water-guzzling climate disaster. For Scotland, energy is our best argument for independence.

EMPLOYMENT. Hinkley Point scaffolders begin industrial action over pay and shift patterns.

ENVIRONMENT. Environment Agency allows Hinkley Point C permit variation to remove fish deterrent system. Nuclear Weapons: Devastation Inside the U.S. Do right by the whales.           Water. Water Wars: Cooling the Data Centres. Environment Agency grants contentious Hinkley C water discharge permit.

ETHICS and RELIGION. Scared to Death! Oppenheimer and the threat of nuclear destruction. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xthzy1PxTA&t=5s

HISTORY. Western Media Has Falsely Presented the Donbas’ Drive For Autonomy as Being Instigated By Moscow.

LEGAL. Judge tosses charges against executive in South Carolina nuclear debacle, but case may not be over.

MEDIA. Like ‘the tolling of a distant temple bell’, Ibuse Masuji’s Black Rain remembers the horrors of Hiroshima and warns of the inhumanity of war. ‘Barbenheimer’ highlights U.S. ignorance of nuclear reality.        Greg Mitchell on “Oppenheimer” & Why Hollywood Is Still Afraid of the Truth About the Atomic Bomb.      Why no Hollywood movie on Nagasaki A Bombing? Humans Might Be About to Break the Ocean? Don’t Stop the Presses.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . Campaigners against Sizewell C nuclear plan welcome call for financial clarity from Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.       

Together Against Sizewell environmental group angry at the coming destruction of marine life, as acoustic fish deterrent will not be installed at Hinkley Point C nuclear.         Pacific anti-nuclear groups condemn Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka for backing Fukushima wastewater stance.

PERSONAL STORIES. Oppenheimer’s nuclear fallout: How his atomic legacy destroyed my world.

POLITICS.

• Why The Niger Coup Has Sparked Concerns About Nuclear Power.
• BRING IT HOME-Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
• UK has no coherent plan to develop nuclear energy . Ambition alone will not build UK nuclear power. Another kick in the teeth for UK taxpayers as EDF pockets another £170m of public money for their Sizewell C White Elephant. Ministers diverted £136m from electric car fund to Sizewell C nuclear project despite infrastructure concerns.
• Sweden’s Nuclear Power Ambitions Quashed.
• Why is Ontario Government bent on building a new nuclear reactor, at a much greater cost than solar or wind technologies? New Brunswick Power is kicking the can down the road while the planet burns. ADVANCE Act on nuclear sends us backwards.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

•  Requiem for NATO’s Nightmare – the Vilnius summit. Mexican president urges end to ‘irrational’ Ukraine war, wants Russia at peace talks. CIA Director Affirms U.S. Regime Change Strategy in Russia in Address at British Foundation. 
•   United Nations wants to resurrect a global disarmament mechanism last used in the 1980s. 
•   Saudi Arabia could convert civilian nuclear to military, Israeli expert warns. 
• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is reiterating his call for the case against Julian Assange to be dropped. 

PROTESTS. Protests held in Tokyo against nuclear water discharge,

SAFETY. UN nuclear watchdog finds no explosives at Zaporizhzhia plant.       Russia’s Kola nuclear power plant turns 50. That is not necessarily something to celebrate.        Non-compliant fire program halts decommissioning of Whiteshell Nuclear Laboratories.

URANIUM. Niger stops uranium and gold export to France.

WASTES. 

•   Niger’s 20 million tonnes of radioactive waste. 
•  The nuclear arms race’s legacy: Toxic contamination, staggering cleanup costs and a culture of government secrecy. 
•  Sellafield seeks partners for £4.8bn nuclear decommissioning works. UK’s Radioactive Waste Management holds meetings in Lincolnshire, seeking a location for nuclear waste dump

WAR and CONFLICT    When facts cut through the fog of war.       Is the US preparing to dump the proxy war in Ukraine so it can start another in Taiwan?     Nuclear catastrophe threat is ‘great and growing’, warn over 100 top medical journals.      Veterans, descendants of nuclear testing era urged to apply for British medal.      

 Decades Later, the U.S. Government Called Hiroshima and Nagasaki ‘Nuclear Tests’, Japan marks 78th anniversary of US atomic bombing on Hiroshima, calls nuclear deterrence ‘folly’. Japan condemns Russia nuclear threat on Hiroshima anniversary.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES

The Sky’s the Limit on Nuclear Weapons Spending, But What Does It Really Get Us? US cluster munitions will bring more pain and death to Donbass civilians, and Washington doesn’t care. Kiev’s broken record: no matter what advanced weaponry the West sends, there is no magic wand to conjure a Ukrainian victory. Military Initiative by Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States (AUKUS) is Another Major Step in Prospective War on China. How Have Nuclear Weapons Evolved Since Oppenheimer and the Trinity Test?  

August 7, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

TODAY. Forget Oppenheimer. The real nuclear hero is Joseph Rotblat

If only other scientists had followed his example.

If only scientists could learn from Joseph Rotblat, and abandon their dogmatic belief that science is “neutral”

To the end of his life, he believed scientists have personal responsibility for their inventions.

Yeah – you’ve never heard of him, have you? That’s because we have all been brainwashed, in the patriarchy, into believing that heroes are brave tough guys. Joseph Rotblat was brave, but, alas, not a tough guy. So – he don’t qualify.

Robert Oppenheimer might have regretted it later, but he was in favor of using the atomic bomb, seeing it as a terror weapon, that would need to be used only once

Leo Szilard was a “wimp” who did not want the atomic bomb to be dropped on Hiroshima.

But Joseph Rotblat went further than Slizard. In 1943, when it was clear that Germany was not developing atomic weapons, Rotblat saw the danger of atomic warfare, and risk of a nuclear clash with Russia. Rotblat abandoned his role in the Manhattan Project, and left America. USA army intelligence tried hard to depict Rotblat as a Russian agent

After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Rotblat was determined to prevent the development of future nuclear weapons. He devoted the rest of his life to protesting nuclear testing and weapons production.

During the post-war period, Joseph Rotblat did an enormous amount of work in the cause of peace, dialogue and disarmament through the Pugwash movement, with which he shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995.

Joseph Rotblat passed away on August 31, 2005. To the end of his life, he believed scientists have personal responsibility for their inventions. Rotblat implored: “Above all, remember your humanity.”

August 3, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

Nuclear news – week to 31 July

Some bits of good news –   Syrian refugees in Jordan empowered through heritage restoration work, employed by UNESCO.     “A Thousand Colours”  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz4pLmi6tDY   This new UNESCO-Khalili Foundation film “A Thousand Colours” aims to humanize the notion of cultural diversity. Why is cultural diversity important? What are some of the current challenges that undermine it? And what can we do to protect and promote cultural diversity? These are some of the questions addressed by the short film, which gathers testimonies from a number of key global actors including UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors and advocates.  Saving the world is cheaper than ruining it.

TOP STORIES

If Albanese’s such a buddy of Biden’s, why is Assange still in jail? Australia Agrees To Build US Missiles; US Dismisses Australian Concerns About Assange.

William Hartung, Cashing in on a Perpetual Nuclear Arms Race.

Why investing in new nuclear plants is bad for the climate. Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) are supported by ideology alone.

Aboriginal Australians defeat nuclear dump,

Western media as cheerleaders for war.

Climate. ‘Era of global boiling has arrived,’ says UN chief . ‘Project 2025’: plan to dismantle US climate policy for next Republican president.

Nuclear. Militarism rules – not always nuclear-related, but pretty much so. I am currently feeling overwhelmed by the speed of my own country, Australia, in its hurtling rush to be a servant of the USA’s NUCLEAR-MILITARY-COMPLEX. No voice from the people – just a straightout government sellout.

Christina’s Notes. Jobs! jobs! jobs! – IN THE DEATH INDUSTRY.  Aliens in outer space – a little sad on watching earthlings.

CIVIL LIBERTIES. AUSMIN and Assange: The Great Vassal Smackdown

ECONOMICS.   Money talks: 109 global institutions restrict investments in nuclear weapons.        There’s no such thing as a new nuclear golden age–just old industry hands trying to make a buck. Keeping contentious nuclear plant open could cost Californians $45B: report.        As UK’s Hinkley nuclear plants costs rise to £32 billion ($41.5 billion) EDF Sees Higher Risk of Delays.  Government must back Rolls-Royce on nuclear, says ex-boss Sir John Rose.

EDUCATION. University of New Mexico Course Expands Understanding of Nuclear Impact.

ENERGY. Oppenheimer and nuclear energy: Is India and the world moving away from this power source? Old Nuclear Weapons Sites Targeted for Clean Energy Projects.

ENVIRONMENT. Failed Fukushima System Should Cancel Wastewater Ocean Dumping.

HISTORY. St. Louis link in ‘Oppenheimer’ is latest reminder of city’s nuclear legacy. Oppenheimer sent ‘chilling message’ to Jawaharlal Nehru about US building a deadly weapon, ‘begged’ him not to give access to raw material available in India.

LEGAL. Key British Assange supporter says Wikileaks founder could cut deal to secure freedom.

MEDIA. Oppenheimer’s Long Shadow- Reads on the atomic bomb and its creator. Nauseating subservience of Australia’s media and politics to American militarism. Readers disgusted with pro militarism report on Australia getting a “missiles industry”.    Australian media’s alarm over Chinese spy ship highlights stark double-standard.   

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. To avoid nuclear instability, a moratorium on integrating AI into nuclear decision-making is urgently needed: The NPT PrepCom can serve as a springboard

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . 90 Seconds to Midnight – nuclear weapons are still a threat, not a lesson in history.

POLITICS. 

• USA. More Warmongers Elevated In The Biden Administration.     Massachusetts rejects Holtec’s request to discharge radioactive water from closed nuclear plant into bay. Past and Future Collide over Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant .  No new nuclear facilities along vulnerable coasts, Alaska regulators say. Connecticut governor should veto bill funding unneeded nuclear.       
•  UK.  UK govt to pour another £170million of taxpayers’ cash into planned Sizewell C nuclear plant: is it value for money? UK’s nuclear power ambitions for 2050 lack clear plan, say MPs. UK Government’s infrastructure advisors cast doubt over UK’s biggest energy projects including nuclear clearup. Now, not in 15 years’: Call for public vote on Theddlethorpe nuclear waste dump. Cumbria set for more nuclear reactors as questions are raised over why land isn’t being used for renewable energy. 

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY.

• Japan Doesn’t Want to Fight for Taiwan and Neither Do Other US Allies. Will the small states of Oceania be able to maintain their independence in the face of a new Sino-American Cold War?
• Russia prepared to seek diplomatic solution in Ukraine, NATO refuses to talk. The coming Russian-Polish war.
• Iran says ready to settle remaining dispute with IAEA over nuclear program. Rising Global Interest to Join Nuclear Damage Compensation Treaty.

SAFETY. The misguided push to weaken nuclear safety standards is gaining steam. The Global Crisis at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Site Demands Immediate United Nations Intervention. Will this experimental nuclear reactor escape federal scrutiny? Aware people in Suffolk are astonished that very few people or organisations are consulted about changes to Sizewell C Nuclear’s Emergency Plan.

SECRETS and LIES. UPDATE – The Zaporozhiya Nuclear Plant: Zelenskiy’s Next Simulacra? CIA-Linked Security Company Targeted Former Ecuador President Who Granted Assange Asylum.

SPACE. EXPLORATION, WEAPONS. NASA solving climate crisis by facilitating escape to Mars? Funny How The UFO Narrative Coincides With The Race To Weaponize Space. Legal action over dangerous crowding of satellites and debris in space. NASA is planning to use nuclear power for the first human trip to Mars. Military interest in nuclear-powered space travel, but solar-powered is just as good, -and safer.

WASTES. IAEA report on Fukushima waste-water is wrong – nuclear scientist. Not in our backyard: Securing a referendum over Canada’s plan for a nuclear waste dump. AUKUS nuclear dump deal decades in the making by nuclear evangelists with prescience.

WAR and CONFLICT. Overnight drone attack on Moscow injures one and temporarily closes an airport as Russia suffers ‘consequences’. US admits to pushing Ukraine into a fight it can’t win .     Discarding Illusions, Ending Wars.       Nuclear weapons on the table if Ukraine counteroffensive succeeds: Russia’s Medvedev.       Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow is ‘international terrorism’ – Russia’s Foreign Ministry. 

 70 Years Later, The Korean War Must End. Washington’s looming war against China. The vanishing profession of preventing nuclear war.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Trident nuclear project can’t be delivered, says watchdog.      Bombs away: Confronting the deployment of nuclear weapons in non-nuclear weapon countries.         Following the pattern of weapons to Ukraine, Pentagon to send $1billion of weapons to Taiwan .        What would George Washington do? He would have audacity to end nuclear weapons.

August 1, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

TODAY. Jobs! jobs! jobs! – IN THE DEATH INDUSTRY

Quite suddenly, any vestige of Australia being an independent country has disappeared overnight.

An entire continent has been handed over to the American military machine, by Australia’s cowardly and self-serving politicians.

And the Australian media exultantly choruses “ Jobs! Jobs ! Jobs! “

I have often wondered why that chorus is repeated endlessly – in awed, religious, joy?

If you work in a caring industry, or in nurturing animals, plants, the environment, in growing food or in one of the many jobs that support life – you can derive some pride in your work. It’s good to be paid some money, but it’s especially good to be able to derive some dignity, self-respect, genuine joy, in knowing that you are genuinely contributing to well-being – to the common good.

It’s a matter of integrity – dare I mention this? – some spiritual satisfaction. You can hold your head up high.

Where is the integrity in making killing machines, things for massacring thousands of people, destroying the land and animals?

And just to make sure that the Americans really mean it, we have the odious Antony Blinken now emphasising that the USA will certainly punish our courageous Australian truth-teller Julian Assange.

PM Albanese, and wimp Foreign Minister Penny Wong just kow tow and agree!

July 30, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

It really IS a climate emergency – but here is nuclear news, anyway

What went right this week: the good news you should know about.   A pathway emerged to an Aids-free future,  Deforestation fell in the Colombian Amazon.   California Military Base is Being Transformed Into one of the Largest City Parks in the U.S.

TOP STORIES

If Everybody’s Going to Join NATO, Then Why Have the United Nations?

The Empire Knows It’s Pouring Ukrainian Blood Into An Unwinnable Proxy War.

The Forever Dangers of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors.

‘Artificial Escalation’: Imagining the future of nuclear risk. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9npWiTOHX0

Nuclear trash on indigenous land ?- a court decision puts Australia in a very difficult spot.        UK campaigners call on Australian PM to withdraw Kimba nuke dump threat.

CLIMATE. Heatwaves are new normal as 50C hits US and China – UN.  How deadly are these heatwaves – and how hot will they get? (nb. kids under 5 especially endangered)          Europe heatwave: EU sends planes to Greece as thousands flee fires.      Highof 48C expected on continent as red spreads across the European weathermap. From body bags of ice to pavement burn: US grapples with new extreme heat reality. Rain fury: Floods batter North Indian states – nearly a foot of rain in 14 hours recorded.

Christina notes. Is it now OK to talk about ethics again?    We need decision-making by women, if we’re going to survive in this nuclear age.

Nuclear. Again – it really is the climate that is the overwhelming news this week –   while global leaders busily focus on new ways to plan to kill each other’s populations .

AUSTRALIA.

• Prime Minister Albanese must abandon South Australian nuclear waste dump.     Examining the impact of the legal decision against the planned Kimba nuclear waste dump. Court rules in favour of Barngala people, preventing nuclear waste facility in Kimba. South Australian Greens Welcome Court Decision to Stop Nuclear Waste Facility in Kimba. Start from scratch call as nuclear dump plan shelved. Time for dump to be dumped for good.
•   Black mist memories.
•   AUKUS’ nuclear waste dump is the secret no-one talks about. So what’ll it cost? Congressional Concerns: Stalling Nuclear Submarines for Australia.
• Dutton’s Nuclear Folly: Small Modular Reactors a political mirage.  Brisbane 2032 Olympics boss Andrew Liveris says nuclear power must be in the mix to make the Games ‘climate-positive’.
• Nevil Shute’s ‘On the Beach’ warned us of nuclear annihilation. It’s still a hot-button issue with a new play at the Sydney Theatre Company. 

CLIMATE. “Nuclear Power Is Already a Climate Casualty”

ENERGY. Does Nuclear slow down the scale-up of Wind and Solar? France and Germany can’t agree.

ECONOMICS. Is the UK Government unable to fund its promised nuclear renaissance? These are the companies that will get the British government’s nuclear bribes. US Asset Managers Have ‘Significant Investments’ in Nuclear Weapons and Cluster Bombs: Analysis.          France needs to invest 25 billion euros ($28 billion) each year to maintain its nuclear energy programme.     The Big Problem With Small Nuclear Reactors.

ENERGY. Not nuclear, but wind and solar still cheapest – CSIRO

ENVIRONMENT. Cesium 180 times limit found in fish at Fukushima nuke plant 12 years after disaster. Hong Kong tightens radiation inspection of Japanese seafood imports.

ETHICS and RELIGION. Will we ban nuclear weapons, or will Biden and Putin get us all cremated equally?

HEALTH. Nuclear power: Is it safe to use nuclear energy ?- there are the health risks with it.

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. Nuclear Projects Torment Life on Earth.

MEDIA. The Nuclear Age Grimly Descends in “Oppenheimer”.       ‘Oppenheimer’ is a pitch-dark American nightmare. We cannot look away. What We Can Still Learn From J. Robert Oppenheimer.      Anti-nuclear groups welcome Oppenheimer film but say it fails to depict true horror.    The Dynamics of War Insanity: NATO’s Ukraine Roulette.

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. UK nuclear future: “China is the world leader in renewables” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob0R-h4GV8s         Repeating This Nuclear Power Mistake Will Be Catastrophic For Artificial Intelligence – Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen.     Oppenheimer biographer supports US bill to bar use of AI in nuclear launches.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR . Best foot forward: Campaigners are marching again for a Nuclear Free Wales. Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) condemns additional billions for Britain’s nuclear arsenal.     Scottish CND hit out over ‘nuclear threat‘ in MPs’ military report.          Putting the Nuclear Genie Back in the Bottle.

PERSONAL STORIES. Karina’s father went blind at Emu Field. Now, she’s fighting for a treaty on nuclear weapons.

POLITICS. UK government launches”Great British Nuclear” with big bribes, and big promises, for the “small nuclear reactor” industry.         Don’t believe the UK government’s hype about small nuclear reactors and Great British Nuclear.       Tory nuclear expansion programme.     

Council defers decision over Test of Public Support on the issue of disposal of high level nuclear waste. Ontario – Ford government’s electricity plan takes wrong approach. Ontario opts for high-risk nuclear over low-risk energy sources.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY.

• Disunity in NATO? Only neutral countries can bring peace to Ukraine – Brazil. NATO Is a Warfare Alliance, Not a Force for Global Peace or Stability.
• Why EU sanctions don’t include Russian nuclear industry
• US Republicans threaten to block AUKUS deal.
• UN proposes elimination of all nuclear weapons as first step under new agenda for peace. The Elders publish new policy paper on nuclear weapons.
• NewsReal: As Ukraine Counter-Offensive Fails, Putin Warns Warsaw Against Joining War.

RADIATION. Science and Global Security Maps Radioactive Fallout from U.S. Nuclear Weapon Tests, Beginning with July 1945 Trinity Test. Backgrounder on health consequences of nuclear radiation fallout and the Anthropocene. China’s blanket radiation testing could spell trouble for Japanese seafood imports.

SAFETY. Safety lapses at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Incidents. A 90 million gallon nuclear tragedy. The US should end its use of nuclear power plants – the intractible problem of dangerous spent fuel rods. An inherent potential for catastrophe.

SECRETS and LIES. Europe’s black hole: How much of the more than $185 billion given by the West to Ukraine has been stolen?         Corruption In Ukraine & The U.S. Mutually Rewarding.

SPACE. EXPLORATION, WEAPONS. SpaceX Starlink satellites had to make 25,000 collision-avoidance maneuvers in just 6 months — and it will only get worse. US DOE delivers plutonium-238 for NASA missions.

SPINBUSTER. UK government announces fantasy small modular reactor programme as a cover for Sizewelll C failure.       Great British Nuclear: High on hype, Low on substance.

WASTES. Dumping doubts: Releasing Fukushima’s wastewater.      To the Pacific islands, the West’s support for Japan’s Fukushima nuclear waste ocean dumping is hypocrisy.        The dilemma of continuing to produce nuclear trash which will remain harmful for millennia.       Feds digging up nuclear waste in Los Alamos for disposal at Carlsbad-area repository.

WAR and CONFLICT. Ukraine’s Lack of Weaponry and Training Risks Stalemate in Fight With Russia.    Ukraine Again Bombs Crimean Bridge.     Kiev strikes ammunition depot in Crimea – official. Architect of Annihilation: Oppenheimer’s Deadly Legacy of Nucle ar Terror.      Putin warns of Poland’s intentions in Ukraine and Belarus.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Nuclear Notebook: French nuclear weapons, 2023.     US turning Ukraine into ‘burial ground’ for lethal waste – Russian envoy.      In Ukraine, US Adds to Barbaric Cluster-Bomb Legacy.     USA government – more money, $19 billion, grant for making deadly plutonium.    The True Symbol Of The United States Is The Pentagon.

WOMEN. Brussels: Global Women For Peace United Against NATO Meet With EU Parliament, NATO Representatives.  

July 24, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

This week’s nuclear news, but climate is a bigger story

Some bits of good news:  Positive tipping points could save the climate – this man is showing us how.   Deforestation rates plummeted in Brazil.

Last week it was a “watershed week”.   And it seems that this one is also, – though for a largely different reason.  The Ukraine-NATO thing is a mess.  The Western media continues to religiously recite the story of Ukraine’s successful “counter-offensive”. But there’s whisper of dissension in NATO, and even some whispered criticism of  Volodymyr Zelensky .

 But really –  the big watershed thing is global heating. At last, the media seems to be abandoning the pretense that global heating effects happen to hit one country, then another –  sort of separately. It is becoming obvious that global heating is a global event  –  at least now enveloping the Northern part of the globe. (We in the cooler South are still comfortably preoccupied with sport, as the major event)

Climate. Temperatures above average almost every day this year. UK to see biggest increase in ‘uncomfortably hot’ days in the world as climate change bites. More than 113 million Americans under extreme heat alerts as relentless temperatures continue. The US says it will not “under any circumstances” pay reparations to developing countries hit by climate change-fuelled disasters. Greenpeace: Asset managers are ‘ignoring’ climate impact of bitcoin.

Christina notes. “As long as it takes” – WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?   Zelensky mania! – But are cracks appearing in NATO?Nuclear power is SO IRRELEVANT – to climate! It’s almost funny, -but it’s NOT funny.

TOP STORIES

Julian Assange Is “Dangerously Close” to Extradition for Revealing US War Crimes.

Climate Change Threatens U.S. Nuclear Strike Capability.

A Scott Ritter Investigation: Agent Zelensky – Part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLeBb6hPUC8      Will the Ukraine war be the undoing for the European Union?

IN KOSOVO, NATO ALLIES BLAME DEPLETED URANIUM FOR CANCER CASES.

Cuba condemns US deployment of nuclear submarine in its waters.

Failed Fukushima Fixes Falling Like Dominoes.

‘Atomic Fallout’: Records reveal government downplayed, ignored health risks of St. Louis radioactive waste for decades.

AUSTRALIA. 

• Labor must hear Indigenous voice against Kimba nuclear site. 
• NATO’s talk of further Asian engagement should be feared by Australia. Supporting US military against China could draw Australia into nuclear war, expert warns. 
• USA cannot sell nuclear submarines to Australia. Australia on track for exemption to accelerate AUKUS nuclear subs deal.  Australia needs a nuclear power school to develop AUKUS capability: Navy chief. .
• Nuclear power too expensive and slow to be part of Australia’s plans to reach net zero, study finds. 
• Merri-bek City Council is a Nuclear-Free Zone. 
• Dutton wants Australia to join the “nuclear renaissance” – but this dream has failed before. Taiwan solution is diplomacy rather than nuclear hell.

CLIMATE. Extreme weather increasingly disrupted generation of nuclear power in last 30 years: State of the Climate in Europe 2022. Heatwaves: Why this summer has been so hot. High river temperatures to limit French nuclear power production. France Cuts Nuclear Output as Heat Triggers Water Restrictions. How much water do French nuclear plants use? Hungary’s nuclear power plant reduces output due to the hot weather.

ECONOMICS. UK govt discusses sale of Wylfa nuclear site. Michigan ratepayers will foot the bill for Resuscitation of Palisades Nuclear Reactor.  Small nuclear reactor industry in big trouble? France to decide on nuclear financing by end of 2024.

EMPLOYMENT. Nuclear safety staffing in the United States: a crisis with no easy fix.

ENERGY. The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hTjLH4T6X8 Welsh campaigners call for Wylfa to be at heart of Ynys Mon ‘green energy’ island.

ENVIRONMENT. Oceans ‘Grave concerns’ as Japan’s plan to release Fukushima wastewater to the Pacific. Safe or septic – Japan’s nuclear wastewater dumping. Dumping Doubts: Releasing Fukushima’s Waste Water. 12 years on, Fukushima’s citizen-scientists continue to test local fish for radioactive substances.. Nuclear bomb plutonium fallout marks dawn of new epoch in which humanity dominates planet.

ETHICS and RELIGION. Archbishop to denounce nuclear arms on Trinity test’s 78th anniversary.

HEALTH. Nuked blood: PM Rishi Sunak is urged to uncover the truth on veterans’ missing health records. Radiation. New Evidence on Tritium Hazards How the world’s most radioactive man cried blood while his skin melted as he was kept alive in 83-day nightmare after horror accident at Japanese nuclear power plant.

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. Nuclear waste issue must be resolved before new facility can be explored, says Saugeen Ojibway Nation.

LEGAL. Sizewell C faces fresh legal action in fall out over water supply. 

MEDIA.  Terrible truths about nuclear energy exposed. The War on journalism: the Case of Julian Assange. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90OIGGpfHDo&t=366s Oppenheimer: what you need to know before watching. A Pro-Nuke Snoozer.

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Small size, big problems: NuScale’s troublesome small modular nuclear reactor plan. An Unholy Alliance: billionaire technocrats delight in planning Artificial Intelligence to run nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons!

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR. Kenya has restated its commitment to ensuring nuclear energy and nuclear weapons are not used in the continent. Postpone plans for Kilifi nuclear power, Kenya. Protests stopped nuclear waste dumping at Bradwell in the 80s, and now will likely do so again. Nuclear power is still an option at Comanche 3. These Pueblo activists want to change that. France detonated nearly 200 nuclear ‘tests’ in French Polynesia — now this activist is calling for accountability. 

PERSONAL STORIES. Listening to Oppenheimer, Seven Decades Later. Oppenheimer’s tragedy — and ours.

POLITICS. 

• U.S. Congress votes down amendment to block cluster bomb shipments to Ukraine. Rep. Gaetz Says He Will Co-Sponsor Amendment to Block Cluster Bombs to Ukraine. BRING IT HOME- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Kennedy accuses Biden of preparing for ‘war with Russia’. 
• What to expect from NATO Summit 2023. 
• UK delays ‘Great British Nuclear’ launch. Rolls-Royce, mini-nuke sector left in dark as Great British Nuclear launch delayed.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

• Cracks in NATO’s Ukraine Project. “War Effort In Shambles As Hawks Turn On Each Other” At NATO Summit.  NATO to keep Ukraine at arm’s length. Zelensky slams Biden’s ‘unprecedented and absurd’ stance on NATO membership. SCOTT RITTER: NATO Summit, a Theater of the Absurd. The Dissolution of NATO May Be the Only Way to Prevent WWIII. Nato isn’t defending Ukraine. It’s stabbing it in the back. The Biden doctrine: “As long as it takes,” or “No matter how many die”. 
• An Accident Waiting to Happen: NATO Looks to Asia.   Biden Keeps Lying About The US “Not Trying To Surround” China. NATO is ‘malicious poison’ – former Australian PM, Paul Keating, (some agreement with this, in Paris)      N Korea slams US move to deploy nuclear submarines to peninsula. Asia is rowing about Fukushima nuclear wastewater.

SAFETY. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is a ‘dirty bomb’ waiting to happen – a nuclear expert explains. Security concerns for Britain as China might be controlling its nuclear power stations. Incidents. Novouralsk Nuclear Plant Blast—What We Know, as Russians Rushed to Hospital. Russia says West is sponsoring ‘nuclear terrorism’ after Ukrainian drone strike.

SECRETS and LIES. White House opposes independent oversight of Ukraine aid.    FBI colluded with Ukraine in social media crackdown – lawmakers.   China says Japanese govt’s fund subsidizing local fishing industry ‘hush money’.

SPACE: EXPLORATION, WEAPONS. SpaceX’s Starlink satellites are leaking electromagnetic radiation that’s ‘photobombing’ our attempts to study the cosmos.

SPINBUSTER. Exposing the lying claims of pro nuclear shill Zion Lights.

URANIUM. CANATOMIC: Canada’s Neglected Uranium History.

WASTES. Global Impact: Japan, nuclear watchdog under intense scrutiny over discharge of Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water. Dumping Doubts: Releasing Fukushima’s Waste Water. Japan to Release 1.3 Million Tonnes of Water Used During Fukushima Nuclear Accident.  US could stop Ukraine conflict instantly – Hungary. 

Takeaways from AP’s examination of nuclear waste problems in the St. Louis region. Canada’s Civil Society Groups Call for Public Debate on Radioactive Waste Management Strategy.

WAR and CONFLICT. NATO fails to reduce nuclear risks at Vilnius Summit. The NATO ultimatum to Ukraine – invitation to win by winter or die . Ukraine admits responsibility for terror attack on Crimean bridge. Drone crashes in Russian ‘atomic city’ – governor. Russia prevents Ukraine attack on Crimea’s Sevastopol. Need more cannon-fodder: Ukraine stepping up mercenary recruitment effort . Ukraine’s chances of victory in 2023 are ‘vanishingly small’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH2mmqhTpi8

Crimea invasion to cost Kiev 200,000 soldiers: Ex-Zelensky aide. WHY ARE AMERICAN SOLDIERS IN UKRAINE? Indonesia Warns Nuclear Weapons Put Southeast Asia a ‘Miscalculation Away’ From Disaster.White House: Ordering the Selected Reserve and Certain Members of the Individual Ready Reserve of the Armed Forces to Active Duty.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. 

• U.S. Cluster Bombs Have Arrived in Ukraine. Cluster Bombs for Ukraine? A Warning From Kosovo. Germany Rejects Cluster Bombs For Ukraine As Clip Surfaces Of Biden Admin Previously Calling Them A ‘War Crime’. 
• 20% of Ukrainian weapons destroyed in just two weeks – New York Times.
•  France to supply Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles with the ‘capacity to strike deeply’. 
•  Peace Boat arrives in Albany to raise awareness of dangers of nuclear weapons. 
• US to deploy 3 armored brigades to Poland and Romania, positioning B-52s in Alaska, closer to Russia. 
• Russia’s Northern Fleet will not send nuclear sub to main Navy parade.

July 17, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

A watershed week in nuclear news

A bit of good news -The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation

It’s a watershed moment – on 2 counts:

1. Ukraine. The determination of the USA-led Western countries to bring Ukraine into NATO is a red flag to Russia, and current events, indicate that the West, and its charismatic super-star Zelensky, will not countenance any negotiated end to the war.

2. The IAEA’s Rafael Grossi has made it clear that the Fukushima nuclear wastewater MUST be emptied into the Pacific, to ensure that this practice is accepted, for the continued growth of the nuclear industry world-wide.

Christina notes. IAEA hypocrisy, and the little Fukushima nuclear radiation mill.       And the prize for HYPOCRISY goes to Rafael Grossi,Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency. No real research into the effects of releasing nuclear waste-water into rivers and seas. Oh goody! That means it’s OK, (doesn’t it?)

TOP STORIES

Ralph Nader: Reverse the Accelerating Warfare State Before It’s Too Late! Daniel Kovalik: Why Russia’s intervention in Ukraine is legal under international law. Chris Hedges: They Lied About Afghanistan. They Lied About Iraq. And They Are Lying About Ukraine.

Better, safer, alternatives for managing Fukushima’s radioactively polluted wastewater.         Cover up? Did atom bosses collude to ‘manage message’ of Japanese plan to poison Pacific? Will this whistleblower be heard by anyone? Fukushima: Anxiety and anger over Japan’s nuclear waste water plan.

An Attack on the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Could Still be Catastrophic (- nuclear promoters minimise the risk). Red alert at Zaporizhzhia? US cluster bombs deal is clear signal that war is not going well for Ukraine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpVon7R2XKo

AUSTRALIA.

• Barngarla people continue their fight against the proposed Kimba nuclear waste dump.
• Vice Admiral Jonathon Mead to be Director-General of New Australian Submarine Agency. Sinking billions: undergunned and overpriced. Inside ‘nuke school’, the elite US training ground preparing Australian submariners for an AUKUS future.
• Peter Dutton ramps up nuclear power push and claims Labor down ‘renewable rabbit hole’. Bowen: “Australia will be renewable energy superpower, not a nuclear backwater”. Nuclear: Coalition remains trapped by climate and technology denial. Queensland’s Liberal National Party leader Crisafulli rejects Dutton’s push for nuclear power.

CLIMATE. Wishful thinking about nuclear energy won’t get us to net zero. 

CIVIL LIBERTIES. Ben & Jerry’s, CodePink Co-Founders Arrested in DC Demanding Freedom for Julian Assange.

ECONOMICS.

• World’s 30 major banks are NOT investing in so-called “green” “sustainable” nuclear energy.
• Small nuclear reactors are unaffordable, and Rafael Grossi and the IAEA know this! Minireactor cost surge threatens nuclear’s next big thing,
• Holtec hogs the money, but Michigan ratepayers will foot the bill for reactor resuscitation.
• Jacobs’ nuclear spin-off raises alarm in Whitehall.

ENERGY. Germany’s power mix boasts more renewables, lower spot market prices – despite nuclear exit. Fukushima: China calls for suspension of Japanese plan to release radioactive water into sea. Russian K-278 sub sank 30 years ago but continues to leak radiation.         Historic Hanford contamination is worse than expected.

FILM. The Fukushima Disaster: The hidden side of the story, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBqk0OtlE8k

HEALTH. Workers, residents at US site that made Nagasaki A-bomb’s plutonium still suffering. U.S. senators seek expanded compensation for people exposed to nuclear fallout.

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. Local colleges train students to work in a plutonium pit factory, but at what cost?      First Nations won’t back nuclear plant expansion until waste questions are answered.

LEGAL  High nuclear crimes don’t pay.

MEDIA. Fukushima, the Hidden Side of the Story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBqk0OtlE8k . Journalists Abandoned Julian Assange and Slit Their Own Throats. Today in war propaganda.

  NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. World’s Largest Fusion Project Is in Big Trouble, New Documents Reveal.         Even the science engineering big-wigs don’t seem too enthusiastic about nuclear fusion.         Sweden goes for small nuclear reactors, dumps renewable energy plans.     Canada planning World’s Biggest Nuclear Power Plant .    UK Labour seeks pact to keep AI out of nuclear arms deployment.

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR. Huge protest against Rafael Grossi at Gimpo airport, Seoul, South Korea.       Jeju islanders protest Japan’s radioactive water discharge. UN report on Japan’s Fukushima water plans fails to placate opponents. Come and join us: Nuclear Free Local Authorities individual membership launched on Independence Day. Backlash builds as Japan prepares to release wastewater from Fukushima nuclear plant. Nagasaki to take shot at G-7 over its nuclear deterrence stance.

POLITICS. Italy’s Nuclear Energy Debate: Past, Present, and Future. US govt provides yet another round of money grants to companies, including Westinghouse, to promote nuclear power development. RFK Jr torches Biden for handing “horrific” cluster munitions to Ukraine.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. ” The future of nuclear as an alternative energy source relies on the success of the Fukushima release” – Rafael Grossi, (“problem is war, not nuclear energy”- Grossi). International community cannot tolerate Japan’s nuclear-contaminated water dumping.. Ukraine, Russia accuse each other of planning to attack Europe’s biggest nuclear plant. Russia and Ukraine step up rhetoric around Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Ukraine in talks with Bulgaria to buy Russian nuclear reactors with EU funds. N Korea slams US move to deploy nuclear submarines to peninsula.

SAFETY. Russia calls on NATO to discuss Ukraine nuclear plant. IAEA: Europe’s largest nuclear power plant regains back-up electricity feed. Especially in USA, nuclear reactors are getting very old – past their use-by dates. INCIDENTS: One of the world’s worst nuclear disasters is likely something you’ve never heard of.

SECRETS and LIES. Nuclear Contaminated Water Dumping: IAEA Concludes ‘Absolute Safety of Nuclear Contaminated Water’ – with Japanese Government Money?.   

  Despite Zelensky’s claims, there’s no evidence that Russia has rigged Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya plant with explosives, nuclear watchdog says.

SPINBUSTER. Despite Zelensky’s claims, there’s no evidence that Russia has rigged Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya plant with explosives, nuclear watchdog says. John Bolton Accidentally Explains Why US Policy On Russia And China Is Wrong.

WASTES. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi says he’s satisfied with Japan’s plans to release Fukushima wastewater. Japanese regulator greenlights discharge of nuclear waste from Fukushima plant.         What to know about Japan’s plan to release treated radioactive water from Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea. Japan Set to Pour Fukushima Water Into Pacific, Irking China. Japan’s nuclear regulator finishes inspection of Fukushima radioactive wastewater release system. Japan claims that China and South Korea both pour radioactive waste-water , worse than Japan’s, into the oceans. 

 Hanford nuclear waste site has a clean-up bill of 560 billion USD in Washington DC . Missouri S&T will ask St. Louis-area residents their opinions about nuclear waste.

WAR and CONFLICT.

• ‘Russian victory’ worse than civilian cluster-bomb deaths – says Pentagon official. American, Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians gather in Vienna to call for peace. War can be ended quickly either through peace treaty or nuclear weapons: Top Russian official. Scenario for a War in Eastern Ukraine. NATO’s Scorched Earth in Ukraine. ‘Kiev inflating regional conflict into World War III’, Russian envoy warns US.
• Charming optimism, as a Japanese non-profit group plans for bunkers for the community to be OK in a nuclear war.
• “The Doomsday Machine”: Confessions of Daniel Ellsberg, Former Nuclear War Planner.
• The ultimate technocratic fantasy: “a winnable nuclear war.”

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES.

• US Will Provide Ukraine U.N. Condemned Cluster Bombs as Part of New Weapons Package.
• Ukraine great ‘testing ground’ for Western weapons: Kiev. U.S. Depleted Uranium to Make Ukraine War Dirtier.  
• Report Shows How Military Industrial Complex Sets Media Narrative on Ukraine.
• US Nuclear-Capable B-52 Bombers Fly to Korean Peninsula in Latest Provocation.

July 10, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

Recent nuclear news

This newsletter short, as I have been ill in hospital for nearly a week. (Fine now.)   It did give me time to think. One thought: people liken the Russian advance on the Donbass, invasion of Ukraine, to the Nazis in WW2. That is so incorrect. So wrong to equate this situation to the evil philosophy of “Aryan superiority” that engulfed Germany from 1933 to 2 Sept 1945.

Climate. Scientists monitoring ‘doomsday’ glacier in Antarctic warn climate change happening faster than ever before. Ecological tipping points could occur much sooner than expected, study finds.

Christina notes. Cool thinking is needed on the Ukraine situation. Would Russia really blow up a nuclear plant that it controls? Two ruthless killer regimes, who hate each other, are now to cosy up for the benefit of the “peaceful” nuclear industry. What could possibly go wrong? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWa7BJAmzYY

TOP STORIES

European Parliamentary Assembly rapporteurs warn against extradition to the United States of Julian Assange. Biden Would Need His Pound of Flesh From Assange.

By excluding Russia from markets in Europe, USA ‘s nuclear industry plans to sell its small and large nuclear reactors to Poland,Romania, Slovakia, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Ukraine .

Daniel Ellsberg’s message to us, and to future generations.

The Silent Slaughter of the Flower of Ukraine’s Youth. 2 important Russo Ukraine war stories: 1 covered 24/7; 1 covered up.

World’s Largest Fusion Project Is in Big Trouble, New Documents Reveal.0

AUSTRALIA. Nuclear indoctrination for Australian school-children – normalising nuclear submarines. Nuclear power safer than wind, Sussan Ley tells Liberal Party meeting. The Labor Party Victorian state conference and AUKUS. Former Labor cabinet minister condemns $368b AUKUS deal.

CLIMATE. A heating world can’t afford a cold war. Nuclear-based fantasies are holding back real climate action. Diversion from urgent climate action. How the European nuclear lobby undermines the EU’s energy future.

CIVIL LIBERTIES. Zelensky bans Russian books.

ECONOMICS. Building nuclear plant would increase costs in the need for guards, police and rescue workers. Marketing. China joins the rush to market nuclear power to Turkey. United Arab Emirates keen to become an exporter of nuclear reactors and nuclear technology. Chinese Boycott Over Fukushima Nuclear Plant Water Release Sinks Japanese Cosmetics.

EMPLOYMENT. Royal Navy struggles to attract recruits for nuclear-armed subs. Big enlistment bonuses offered to UK sailors entering the nuclear field.

ENERGY. NFLA message to energy minister – ‘Community energy is great; back it’.

ENVIRONMENT. What is the new ‘returning zone’ to be created in disaster-hit Fukushima?.

HEALTH. Radiation. Chinese astronauts install radiation-exposure experiment outside Tiangong space station .

INDIGENOUS ISSUES. We need to wake up’: Algonquin leaders sound alarm over planned nuclear waste facility near Ottawa River. A nuclear site is on tribes’ ancestral lands. Their voices are being left out on key cleanup talks.

LEGAL. Judge Who Ruled Against Assange Built Career as Barrister Defending UK Government. Legal challenge against Sizewell C nuclear power plant rejected,

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY. Nuclear Fusion: A Clean Energy Revolution Or A Radioactive Nightmare?

OPPOSITION to NUCLEAR. Suffolk campaigners vow to continue fighting Sizewell C. Nuclear Waste Transportation Draws Opposition in West.

PERSONAL STORIES. The Loving Truth-Teller That Was Daniel Ellsberg.

POLITICS. Humza Yousaf vows to rid independent Scotland of nuclear weapons. Starmer must drop support for flagship £20bn nuclear power station, says former Gordon Brown adviser. Sweden reverses its long-standing nuclear-free policy. Riverkeeper celebrates bipartisan Assembly passage of bill to stop radioactive wastewater discharges into the Hudson River; Governor Hochul must sign.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. Will upcoming NATO summit launch forever war in Europe? Saudi Arabia demands own nuclear program in exchange for ties with Israel. Central Europe’s nuclear plans – fraught with problems.

SAFETY. Russia asks IAEA to ensure Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant security. IAEA Director General Grossi discusses nuclear safety with Russia’s Director of Rosatom, at Zaporizhzhia, in new consultations. Watchdog group has concerns over nuclear micro-reactor plans.

WASTES. ‘Truly shocking’: UK has enough plutonium to make almost 20,000 nukes. £485m clean-up operation for UK’s 10 nuclear reactors. The Biden administration is pouring billions into the nuclear industry-the payoff isn’t certain, US navy accused of cover-up over radioactive shipyard waste. New Mexico leaders fear nuclear waste could endanger oil and gas in the Permian Basin. Is Fukushima wastewater release safe? What the science says.

WAR and CONFLICT. Key moments of aborted Wagner revolt in Russia. “Brink of catastrophe” should Wagner Group “bandits” get their hands on nuclear weapons. Ukraine sustains massive single-day losses – Russian MOD. Russian MP believes Ukrainian counteroffensive will end in July . Kiev planning strike on Russia with Western-made missiles – Moscow. Ukraine counter offensive – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76KAD8djBBg Eyewitness Donbas: Why the Majority Reject Ukraine’s Counter-Offensive. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS4DwwsSIG4Here’s how NATO trainers knowingly sent Ukrainian troops to their deaths in this month’s counteroffensive against Russia. SCOTT RITTER: On Horseradish & Nuclear War. The Reverse Cuban Missile Crisis. Khren Im – To the USA and Biden ….if this continues, it is lights out for humanity. Keep nuclear threats off the table.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. NATO arsenals ‘empty’ – Stoltenberg (need to ramp up production). Ukraine’s “spring counteroffensive not making progress: will NATO resort to deploying tactical nuclear weapons for Ukraine? Prodding the Pentagon. Is Russia planning to use nuclear weapons? Ukraine Can Develop Nuclear Weapons ‘Within a Short Time’: Ex-Zelensky Aide. 

A $31 Billion Missile Program! US Looks To Reintroduce Nuclear Sea-Launched Cruise Missile Costing Equal To 10 Virginia-Class Subs. Amid China Tensions, US Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier, USS Ronald Reagan, To Make A Rare Vietnam Port Call.

July 2, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment

Week to June 19, in nuclear news

A bit of good news .  The ‘lost’ underwater forests that came back from the dead.

Climate. Greta Thunberg: not phasing out fossil fuels is ‘death sentence’ for world’s poor…….   . Oil-rich nations dominate COP28 – now offering rich sponsorships, in the effort to silence critics. Fossil fuel lobbyists will have to identify themselves as such in registering for the UN Cop28 climate summit,

Environment.     Global biodiversity crisis

Nuclear. Russiamoved small “tactical” nuclear weapons to Belarus, sparking anxiety that the Ukraine war could “go nuclear”. Meanwhile, I have no doubt that Russia propaganda is portraying the war as being won by Russia.  And it is also patently obvious that Western media depicts the Ukraine “counter-offensive” as being a winner.  What gets me is that we – that’s the USA and all its “like-minded” hangers-on – are not actually at war against Russia. So we don’t really have to have the blanket of anti-Russian spin thrown over every news item of this proxy war, (as is the  practice in a real war)

Christina notes. Rafael Grossi – suffering a sort of “Schizophrenia” about nuclear so-called “safety?      Nuclear industry puppet France is bullying Europe into environmental destruction.   Council of Polluting Corporations COP28 – in charge of the November-December global climate talks.

TOP STORIES

The Imminent Extradition of Julian Assange and the Death of Journalism.

Milley Predicts Long, ‘Very Violent’ Ukrainian Counter-offensive.   Jacques Baud on the legitimacy and legality of Russia’s Special Military Operation in Ukraine.       The Voltaire Network on the collapse of Kiev. Ukraine -its past, and now.

EU states back nuclear energy while diluting biodiversity reforms.

USA’s Inflation Reduction Act expands tax-payer funding for nuclear power plants.

USA Majority say taking nuclear, military secrets a national security threat. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_j38JnnKxw

Fukushima waste-water plan a nuclear threat to Asia-Pacific.

AUSTRALIA.

  The AUKUS mess – false promises about Australian jobs: Richard Marles, Jonathon Mead duped? Dreadnoughts and Virginias: why is Australia paying more than twice the price for submarines?          

 Australia’s Atomic Survivors want Prime Minister Albanese to sign treaty to ban nuclear weapons. Karina’s father went blind at Emu Field. Now, she’s fighting for a treaty on nuclear weapons. 

Pro-nuclear brigade ignores inconvenient truth. Member of Parliament Ted O’Brien gets it so wrong about nuclear power.

CIVIL LIBERTIES. Democracy out the window in USA – as teachers and others punished for making pro-Russian comments.

CULTURE and ARTS.  The Fukushima Wastewater ‘Discharge’: What’s in a Name? – technostrategic language.

ECONOMICS. 

• Lawmakers seek clearer picture of nuclear command and control costs. 
• Pension funds and investment managers are not willing to take the risks on the dying nuclear industry. 
• More trouble at Vogtle. 
• Marketing. USA to market small nuclear reactors to Slovakia?  Egypt joining IAEA’s Convention on Nuclear Safety, as Russia successfully markets its nuclear industry to Egypt; Russia trying to market nuclear power stations to Sri Lanka. USA marketing nuclear power to Bulgaria.

EMPLOYMENT. Workers, residents, at US site that made Nagasaki A-bomb’s plutonium are still suffering.

 ENERGY. Expert: Germany’s energy system has coped with nuclear shutdown. 45 nations pledge to double their rate of energy efficiency improvements.        Nuclear Free Local Authorities – visiting community owned project in the UK, at the start of Community Energy Fortnight.

ENVIRONMENT   The profligate use of our stressed freshwater resource by the nuclear industry.    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogeKk9b-yjY        Macao SAR to suspend Japanese food import after nuclear-contaminated wastewater discharge.          Japan urged to halt release of toxic water.

HEALTH. Cancer patients can possibly avoid radiation. Silent Danger: Hidden Link Discovered Between Low-Dose Radiation and Heart Disease.

LEGAL. Why Biden Wants Assange in Jail: Case at the Tipping Point, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joAMokiAllk

MEDIA. “Radioactive – The Women of Three Mile Island”” is compelling viewing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iotD7_cKWfc

POLITICS. 

• Japanese government making “all-out” efforts to convince fishermen that Fukushima waste-water release is OK . 
• U.S. Congress caves in to nuclear industry pressure for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to dumb down standards, and shift fees to tax-payers. 
• Connecticut Governor Lamont should veto SB 7 that would advance dangerous nuclear power. 
• Beware: we ignore Robert F Kennedy Jr’s candidacy at our peril. 
• Why Saudi Arabia wants a ‘nuclear Aramco’. 
• Zelensky’s Swiss parliament speech boycotted by right-wing Swiss People’s Party. 
• ‘Nuclear not allowed’: Papua New Guinea’s Marape backtracks on comments about Japan’s plan to dump nuclear wastewater. 
• Independent Scotland would ban nuclear weapons in written constitution.

POLITICS INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMACY. 

•  Victoria Nuland to announce Ukraine to join NATO – the start of World War 3. In July, NATO nations will upgrade Ukraine’s status as a future member, but in a rather confusing way. Zelensky admits that there was an ongoing civil war prior to the Russian invasion, claims Russia will attack a NATO member. 

•     Iranian Supreme Leader Says ‘Nothing Wrong’ With A Nuclear Deal With West. 
• Oman facilitating Iran-US talks to replace 2015 nuclear accord. 
• EU to vote on renewables bill again after being stalled on nuclear row.  Key renewables vote in European Council postponed over nuclear spat.
• South Korea begins public briefings to address concern over Fukushima water.

SAFETY.   UN: Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s Largest, Faces ‘Dangerous Situation‘. UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi continues to have a bet each way on nuclear power “safety”. UN concerned by ‘discrepancy’ in Ukraine nuclear plant water levels after dam collapse. U.N. nuclear chief visits Ukraine nuke plant after dam explosion, to “help prevent a nuclear accident“. 

French nuclear watchdog specifies questions for EDF reactor life extensions. Safety issues for 9 French nuclear reactors make their lifetime extension doubtful. 

Nuclear Weapons Cybersecurity.   Lawmakers propose shoring up nuclear cyber standards ahead of National Defense Authorization Act markup.

SECRETS and LIES. CIA: Black Market of Arms Trade. Part 1. Israel Worries U.S. Weapons for Ukraine Are Ending Up in Iran’s Hands.

SPINBUSTER. Ukraine’s propaganda machine is vital for Zelensky: Here is how it works. Ignoring the Fiction of a Nuclear Silver Bullet. The absurdity of Western reporting on the war in Ukraine – Schrodinger’s Offensive. “Nuclear is CLEAN” Trumpets Westinghouse’s Uranium Fuel in Cumbrian Press Adverts.

WASTES. 

• Czech nuclear problem: Where to store toxic waste? 
• Ontario Government Response on Nuclear Proximity Principle Expected by Mid-October.
• Fukushima nuclear plant begins tests of wastewater release plan; fishing officials remain opposed. 
• Talks ongoing over plans for UK’s Vulcan base to move into hands of Nuclear Decommissioning Authority 
• The US Energy Department is spending $26M to help find a temporary site to store spent nuclear fuel.

WAR and CONFLICT. Zelensky Confirms Ukrainian Counteroffensive Has Started.        Kiev intends to kill as many Russians as possible – top Zelensky aide.       Moscow estimates Ukraine’s counteroffensive losses.     Why Russia must not take the Western bait, to use nuclear weapons in the Ukraine war.     Putin warns NATO over being drawn into Ukraine war.     Time to remove nuclear weapons from NATO countries, in return for Putin not putting them in Belarus? [ on nuclear-news.net]Trudeau visits Kiev to bolster US-NATO war on Russia.   Vienna Summit: Anti-War Activists From 32 Countries Call For Diplomacy to End Ukraine War. Ukraine Becomes A ‘Nuclear Battleground’ As US, UK Russia Could Unleash Their ‘Cursed Ammo’ To The Warzone. Norman Solomon: Bipartisan Obsession With War.Darkness: nuclear winter – fire, ice, famine.

WEAPONS and WEAPONS SALES. Number of nuclear weapons held by major powers rising, says thinktank. Nuclear weapons on rise in a world where ‘peace through deterrence’ is a myth. Nuclear weapons spending increases while global security decreases. Nuclear arsenals growing as chances for diplomacy shrink: report.     Tit For Tat: Putin says Russia will use depleted uranium against Ukraine if necessary.      US nuclear-powered submarine arrives in South Korea.

June 19, 2023 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews | Leave a comment