How the USA Hollywoodised the bombing of Hiroshima
The Hollywoodization of the bomb had begun. Even in minor details, the film now justified the bombing…….. the White House demanded further changes; among them, deleting a reference to morally concerned scientists who favored demonstrating the bomb for Japanese leaders in a remote area before dropping it on a city……
WHITE HOUSE COVER-UP: How Truman Edited Hollywood’s First Movie About the Atomic Bomb, The Nation, Greg Mitchell and Robert Jay Lifton, 4 August 2010, “……Here’s a close-up look at the “coverup”–led by the Truman White House–of the first “Hiroshima movie,” some of it based on material we were first to discover at the Truman Library in Missouri. Continue reading
Sickly financial results for uranium miner ERA
Energy Resources of Australia – ERA – Intelligent Investor 2 Aug 10 By Gaurav Sodhi Sickly uranium prices and an unusually poor operating performance at the Ranger uranium mine contributed to a dramatic fall in Energy Resources of Australia’s (ERA) half year profits. For the half year ended July 2010, ERA made just $22.7m, compared with $176.1m for the same period last year. Energy Resources of Australia – ERA – Intelligent Investor
Maralinga Aboriginal victims call on Australian govts for help
“When you’ve got families that lose their sight or they’ve got crippling and terminal cancers because of these tests, you know you’ve got fundamental problems,” he said.
“We can’t continue to only give access to justice for non-Aboriginal people.”
Indigenous group still fighting for Maralinga compo, ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) 3 August 2010, The Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement says it needs $500,000 to continue its fight for compensation for Aboriginal people affected by British nuclear tests at Maralinga in the 1950s and 1960s. Continue reading
Solar feed in tariff for Western Australia
The scheme, which will run for 10 years, is available for new and existing solar power systems, wind and micro-hydro systems that are owned by the resident, including those at rental properties that have tenants.
Western Australia Launches Solar Feed In Tariff And Wind Farm : Renewable Energy News, 4 August 2010, Energy Minister Peter Collier announced on Monday the official start of Western Australia’s residential net feed-in tariff. Continue reading
Greens garnering electoral support against nuclear waste dump
“If people vote for the Greens, they will have a voice against a nuclear waste dump, and a very rigorous one at that, in the national Parliament,” Senator Brown said.
Greens leading the Nats, says Brown, The Age, LINDSAY MURDOCH, August 4, 2010 BOB Brown flew to the marginal Top End seat of Solomon yesterday claiming the Greens vote is rapidly increasing across regional Australia and is now “way ahead of the National Party” Continue reading
Radioactive wastes could truck through Riverina, NSW
“We’re talking about literally hundreds and over time thousands of trucks of radioactive waste passing through these transport corridor communities.”
Residents warned of radioactive transport corridor, ABC Riverina NSW – Australian Broadcasting Corporation August 3, 2010 The group Friends of the Earth has warned that the city of Wagga Wagga could be affected by Commonwealth plans to move nuclear waste from Lucas Heights to a new dump in the Northern Territory. Continue reading
Australia gambles on the dodgy uranium industry
You do wonder where Australian politics is heading. Clearly the big uranium miners BHP, Rio Tinto, ExStrata, are now dictating Labor policy on mining tax. (They have always dictated Liberal policy). Some ambitious union leaders are also hand in glove with those big miners, as are the South Australian and Western Australian governments.
Those States, and the Northern Territory are crawling with uranium explorers, and uranium mining is being hyped in the media. Yet uranium prices fall, and the nuclear industry stalls in USA, Europe, Britain.
Australia pitches its glowing uranium prospects on China. China is notorious for corruption, including in the nuclear industry, it has dubious safety and nuclear waste management, and a keen nuclear weapons program. But apart from all that – China might wake up to the financial and environmental negatives of nuclear power.
While China itself, and Europe, and soon, even USA, show the way on 21st Century renewable energy technologies, Australia is gambling on a very dodgy future of uranium sales.
Uranium miners stack Australia’s group for mines tax policy
the policy-transition group will be headed by former BHP chairman Don Argus and Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson.
Toro Energy CEO joins big miners in Labor’s mines tax policy team, The Australian * Rachel Pannett * From: Dow Jones Newswires * August 03, 2010
WAYNE Swan today named former and serving resource executives ……. to the government’s mines tax policy team. The policy-transition group now includes….. former Rio Tinto executive David Klingner, Erica Smyth, chairman of uranium explorer Toro Energy….. and BHP Billiton),….. Continue reading
Bob Brown scathing about the resources tax gift to the big miners
A tax on minerals like uranium should be implemented once the industry was in “boom times” he [Bob Brown, Greens leader] said.
Major parties ‘missing backbone’ on mining tax, Sydney Morning Herald, KATHERINE FENECH, August 2, “…..The CFMEU has launched the satirical ad campaign, which praises Opposition leader Tony Abbott for understanding the pressures facing “ordinary, everyday billionaires”, in response to the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies’ own advertising onslaught against the Mineral Resources Rent Tax. Continue reading
Australia’s Labor and Liberal discouraging solar power
“Australian governments have repeatedly made millions available to coal companies and car companies. Why are they so reluctant to actually properly fund world-leading renewable energy innovation, even though they are happy to claim credit for doing so? – Christine Milne
Australian Government Has Record Rate of Pulling Out Money from Solar Power, 1 Aug 2010, Canberra (mathaba) Far from their advertising slogan of ‘record investments in solar and other renewables’, the Labor government is pulling money out of solar power at a record rate, the Australian Greens said Thursday. Continue reading
Energy Resources of Australia’s 82% uranium profit loss
….Meanwhile, the net profit after tax declined by 82%,…..the global financial crisis has led to delays in nuclear reactor builds in most regions
ERA profit falls sharply, cuts FY production guidance, MINING WEEKLY, By: Esmarie Swanepoel, 30th July 2010) – ASX-listed uranium-miner Energy Resources of Australia (ERA) on Friday reported an 82% drop in half-year profit and downgraded its production guidance for the 2010 financial year Continue reading
Young activists spread anti-nuclear message across Australia
Since returning, solidarity bus riders have addressed public meetings in Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Wollongong. Several are taking part in the Friends of the Earth Nuclear Freeways tour
Protesters issue warning on Olympic Dam expansion, Green Left Weekly, August 1, 2010, By Patrick Harrison After spending over two weeks on the road together, students and activists onboard the New South Wales “Indigenous Solidarity Ride” stopped at Olympic Dam on July 15 to protest against a proposed uranium mine expansion. Continue reading
Governments shut people up about nuclear veterans
More than 20,000 servicemen witnessed hundreds of atom tests in Australia, US and South Pacific in the Fifties and Sixties – now 3,000 survivors say they are riddled with cancers.
(UK) The Ministry of Defence wants to gag MPs over scandal of Britain’s nuclear test veterans mirror.co.uk, By Susie Boniface 1/08/2010, The MoD wants to gag MPs over the scandal of Britain’s nuclear test veterans. Continue reading
Nuclear power an election issue in Australia
“A key example concerns the National Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2010. This proposed law would override the Aboriginal Heritage Act, the Aboriginal Land Rights Act, and all state/territory legislation. It would also curtail procedural fairness and appeal rights.
The Government’s draft legislation is directly at odds with Labor policy
Dr Bill Williams, and Dr Jim Green 31 July 2010, www.choosenuclearfree.net “This federal election campaign has been short of policy detail so far – “Our analysis reveals a long list of broken promises by the Labor government. Continue reading
Queensland push for climate change as election issue
Australia’s chief scientist Penny Sackett – Australia was moving too slowly to prevent the impact of climate change……Environment groups across the country agree that the key issues for this election are about effective action on climate pollution and the need to protect our natural environment from increasing threats.
Conservation groups ally for Qld – the green state, Brisbane Times, TONY MOORE, July 31, 2010 – Queensland should pitch itself as the renewable energy state and push to have a price put on carbon in the federal government’s first term, say the state’s conservation groups. Continue reading
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