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Massive earthquake in Japan
Mikezilla:
--- Quote ---What I commented on was perhaps not in good taste with regards to the loss of life of recent events. Nobody deserves to face a natural disaster, with so many innocents dead.
But it shows how powerful the planet is, and we should respect it including all its occupants.
--- End quote ---
Yeah, "perhaps" youre right. Of course it wasnt in good taste, what the hell do you think pissed everyone off? And what is this "respect the planet" mumbo jumbo youre talking about? If anyone respects the planet its the Japanese. Besides, nobody could have prepared for that kind of a quake/tsunami. You make it sound as though the planet is lashing out because we polluted it or something.
gryhnd:
Sobering: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html
Dervacumen:
When I was in the 10th grade I took a trimester class called Social Justice. I was paired up with one of my best friends to this day, who happens to be Japanese, for our class project. The subject we were assigned was studying and reporting on the bombing of Nagasaki. We then had to form an opinion: was the bombing of Nagasaki justified, and if so, on what grounds? I sent my friend an email yesterday, and thankfully most of his family lives on the Kyushu island, about as far from damage in Honshu as you can get in Japan. He does have one uncle living closer, near Yokohama, who is getting by and was not devastated to the extent you see reported in the news. My wife's aunt and uncle were recently in Tokyo and left three days before this disaster hit. I'm feel like I'm one of the luckiest people on Earth.
Howard_Casto:
--- Quote from: Dervacumen on March 15, 2011, 09:57:41 am ---
--- Quote from: ark_ader on March 13, 2011, 07:44:04 am ---I fear for any ecological damage to the area. Hopefully our use of nuclear fuel will decrease, after this disaster.
This is not just a Japanese disaster, is a pending global one.
--- End quote ---
No more so than global warming. Sadly people will use this event to thwart the revival of investing in and improving implementation of nuclear energy. If you look at current nuclear power plant technology it beats every other source of energy production in cost/benefit analysis.
That said, the scale of the current situation in Japan is very, very sad and sobering. To me at least.
--- End quote ---
While I agree with you completely, Nuclear Power is only safe if the plant is constructed in a safe location. A nation that almost entirely rests on a fault line is NOT a good place to have a nuclear power plant. Upon hearing of the reactor in Japan I thought "what kind of moron builds a reactor so close to a fault line" only to discover that 13 of the 140 or so plants in the US are built on frikkin fault lines!!! Seriously, who aproves this crap?
For Japan, a realitively tiny island nation, their energy options are sadly limited, but in the US and large countries, the obvious solution would be solar power. Putting solar panels over 3% (just 3%!!) of the Arizona desert would completely power the entire United States!
Grasshopper:
--- Quote from: Howard_Casto on March 20, 2011, 07:07:56 pm ---For Japan, a realitively tiny island nation, their energy options are sadly limited,
--- End quote ---
Indeed. You have to admire the Japanese. Fate has dealt them a very bad hand. They're stuck on an overcrowded earthquake and tsunami prone little island with few natural resources. Yet despite that, they've created what is arguably the most technologically advanced nation on earth.
However, what I don't understand is why, in a country known to be susceptible to tsunamis, so many nuclear plants were constructed on the coast. From what I gather, it was the tsunami that did most of the damage, not the earthquake.
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