For decades, I have spent a great deal of effort warning anyone who would listen about the potential catastrophe inherent in a nuclear power plant. I have driven all over the country, spoken and presented testimony at countless hearings, public meetings, and rallies. I have been arrested and put in jail at civil disobedience actions at various nuclear facilities around the country. And for what? So that I could sit by and watch while a country is destroyed? This is truly one of the saddest things I have ever witnessed . . . This is WORSE than Chernobyl by a long shot. . .
The Japanese people have been blind-sided twice: first by Mother Nature, and second by Human Nature . . . earthquakes and tsunamis, we know how to prepare and recover from. Nuclear meltdowns, well, we don't have much experience there. You can't just shut down a nuclear reaction, and you can't sweep up and dispose of radiation.
Last year, during the Environmental Impact Statement public hearing in Jenkinsville for the proposed, new VC Summer reactors, I raised several questions about a loss of coolant accident in the spent fuel pool at the proposed reactor. My concerns were met with smirks and smiles, the kind that say "now you just go on home, little lady, and let us big boys take care of this . . . don't worry your little head." I have long felt the pools were the weak point—now we are seeing they are, indeed, at the root of the worst problem in the Japanese disaster.
The hubris being shown by the industry is remarkable. One would think that if your product was taking down a whole country, you would at least be willing to take a step back and reassess . . . not the nuclear industry. It’s still damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead on all the new reactors.
Well guess what? I don't think so. I have spent my whole life getting ready for this fight. Bring it on!
Seeing the Big Picture 
