nuclear-news

TODAY. Suicide of our species? Ignoring global heating is the way there.

Look – this site is dedicated to exposing the lies of the nuclear industry, and to hastening its closure. as it continues its terminal decline.

At the same time, a space alien, laughing at our nuclear folly, must be even more amazed that the elderly white men who run the world continue to promote and pour money into the fossil fuel industries that are over-heating our planet.

While black, brown and yellow people will cop the brunt of what the white nations have caused – heck, global heating is even hitting the white nations now.!

Bad enough that China and North Africa get prolonged droughts, that a third of Pakistan is under water, but Europe and USA have had record heat, and gosh – it’s getting harder to ski in Switzerland, as glaciers melt!

These events are reported as separate ‘national’ issues, – but they’re really just one big planetary event.

The only known planet that can support human life is being trashed as we all support the industries that are doing the trashing, including the ridiculous wasteful, and very polluting space industries that apparently are designed to rescue us from our damaged planet.

September 2, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

TODAY. What ? Shut down an important big nuclear station? Heresy!!

But but – we all know that nuclear power is so safe! So clean! It’s the answer to climate change!

And the USA government is going allout to promote the nuclear industry. Hell – It’s in the The Inflation Reduction Act. It is our duty to promote it.

Now – it’s only because the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is in a war zone, that the USA is panicking and wants a  ‘Controlled Shutdown’. The rest of the world’s nuclear reactors are safe.

And we want to sell nuclear reactors to Saudi Arabia, and the rest of the Middle East, and to African countries. It’s not as if there’s any danger of wars there – now is there?

August 31, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 1 Comment

Nuclear news – week to 29 August

Some bits of good news  –   With all the various omnicidal threats to our planet, it’s a temptation to just give up.  But giving up is just not an option. This week, there’ve been two reminders -powerful messages of why we can still hope, and more importantly, still act – in a myriad of ways.   Radio Ecoshock replayed  It’s wrong to wreck the world. In this broadcast,  Kathleen Dean Moore  delivers an artful talk about our attack on Nature, and hope of reviving love instead. Alex Smith comments:  “Morality” sounds boring. This speech surprised and moved me. It will do the same for you.”Then there’s Dr Jane Goodall – still hopeful about the Earth’s future.

Coronavirus. No it hasn’t gone away – a slight drop in cases and deaths  world-wide.

Climate change.  The climate crisis is a hunger crisis.

The only thing keeping US and China from war is running dangerously thin.

The West’s false narrative about Russia and China.         The blind side to western wars and western war crimes. Civilian casualties in Ukraine-5,000? In Yemen-380,000? But Western Media tells a different story!      Ukraine and the Politics of Permanent War – Permanent war requires permanent censorship.

Are Russia and NATO trying to destroy the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty?. Meeting on Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty ends in failure, as Russia blocks final draft.

Commemorate August 29: International Day against Nuclear Tests .

Astronauts Going to Mars Will Receive Many Lifetimes Worth of Radiation.

Busting the absurd pro-nuclear spin of “Ecomodernism”.

Digital damage: Is your online life polluting planet?

UKRAINE.

  Russia-Ukraine war latest: what we know on day 186 of the invasion.     Imperiled Ukrainian nuclear power plant has the world on edge – a safety expert explains what could go wrong. The cost of Ukraine’s de-Russification. The Hidden Truth about the War in Ukraine, and about Crimea and Donbass – Jacques Baud.   

 Russia-Ukraine war: Ukraine announces mandatory evacuations .     Fears of ‘radiation cloud through Europe’ if Ukraine plant blows.     Fears of a radiation leak mount near Ukrainian nuclear plant’.    Anti-radiation-sickness pills given out amid shelling near Ukrainian nuclear station. UN chief demands halt to “nuclear saber-rattling” at Ukrainian nuke plant.     Russia says it destroyed howitzer used to shell Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. 

Zelensky ‘troubled’ as he questions inner circle’s loyalties – Erdogan.      Zelensky warns “no more peace talks”, if Donetsk People’s Republic prosecutes captured Neo Nazi fighters for war crimes. ‘We should kill as many Russians as we can’ – Ukrainian envoy.     Ukrainian Hit List – targets Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, Daria Dugina, Kissinger and 1000s of journalists. ‘Peacemaker’ of death: This Ukrainian website threatens hundreds of thousands with extrajudicial killings — some are Americans. 

EUROPE.NATO Abandons Diplomacy, Says No Longer ‘At Peace’.

FRANCE. French nuclear woes stoke Europe’s power prices.   Nuclear: EDF extends the shutdown of four reactors for several weeks. “It is really urgent” to “get out of this dependence on the nuclear fleet which is weakening us more and more”

JAPAN. The legacy of Shinzo Abe: a Japan divided about nuclear weapons. The government is planning to “promote” nuclear power plants…but there are so many difficulties to overcome before this can be realized, and there are doubts about the assurance of safety and security. 

Fukushima.    Tepco delays removing Fukushima nuclear debris. Robot issue delays fuel removal from Fukushima nuclear plant. More data needed before ocean release of Fukushima water. The number of evacuees from Fukushima Prefecture due to the nuclear power plant accident.

PAKISTAN. Pakistan’s desperate plight after monster flooding.

CHINA. The Chinese non-threat. China’s record-breaking heatwave, threatening water resources. China deploys ships and jets near Taiwan — Taipei.   Chinese people are not enthusiastic about the nuclear industry

SOUTH KOREA. Resistance by local population thwarts the development of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD). S Korea signs $2.25 billion deal with Russia nuclear company.

SAUDI ARABIA. The Saudi path to nuclear weapons.

USA.

• America must consider the risk a war over Taiwan could go nuclear. Bruce Gagnon Interview: An Objective Look at U.S. Foreign Policy. Worst Places to Be If There’s a Nuclear Attack on America. Biden Pledges Nearly $3 Billion To Ukraine In Largest U.S. Military Aid Package Yet.
• The US Navy is looking at scrapping the ‘Big E,’ the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, at a private shipyard.
• How the USA climate bill will promote the nuclear industry.
• USA still importing uranium from Russia -(the nuclear industry rules!) but planning to look for alternatives – in the future.

Rethink Research throws cold water on the Nuclear Energy Institute’s enthusiasm for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).

• All About Groundwater– Hanford Parts 1 and 2.
• A Uranium Ghost Town in the Making.

UK

• Stop the Extradition! #FreeAssangeNOW. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange files latest appeal in bid to stop extradition to United States.
• Emotionless Liz Truss says she would unleash nuclear annihilation if necessary. Liz Truss commits to keeping Trident nuclear weapons on the Clyde, despite Scottish opposition to them . 
•  Boris Johnson told: “It’s time to deliver justice for Britain’s nuclear test veterans“. 
•  Sacre Bleu: EDF Energy talk of lower bills, whilst planning to generate Britain’s most expensive electricity.
• Tory leaders oppose policies that would encourage people to conserve energy. 
• Boris Johnson plans to sign off on new £30bn nuclear plant in his final week in power. 
•  The long process of shutting down Hunterston B nuclear power station.

RUSSIA. Russia To Raise Dugina Assassination At Emergency UN Meeting. The murder of Daria Dugina- by a Ukrainian neo-Nazi operative? A nuclear showdown? One of the greatest ‘realist’ fears about the Russia-Ukraine conflict is actually groundless, and here’s why.

IRAN. A Crucial Week For The Iran Nuclear Deal. Iran’s UN envoy slams Israel refusal to join NPT, urges nuclear-weapon-free zone in Middle East.

FINLAND. Finnish energy company to take Russia’s nuclear giant to court.

MIDDLE EAST. Why the Middle East may be too hot to live in by the end of the century

NEW ZEALAND. The world stands on a nuclear precipice – we must avoid catastrophe- Jacinda Ardern.

HUNGARY. Hungary approves construction of two Russian-built nuclear reactors.

AUSTRALIA.  Australia and China policy- David Bradbury interviews strategy expert Hugh White – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eT8bbdOAog8 .     Australian government working with pro-nuclear zealot Jonathon Mead to plan US/UK nuclear submarines for Western Australia. 

August 29, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

TODAY. Constant wars are essential to keep America’s only big industry (weapons sales) going

Arundhati Roy says, “Once weapons were manufactured to fight wars. Now wars are manufactured to sell weapons”

But what would Arundhati Roy know about anything?

After all – she’s only a woman. And she’s a brown person, not white. But, most damning of all – she’s not a weapons expert – i.e in the pay of America, corporations, military, or government.

Bruce Gagnon comments about –

“we won’t make ‘consumer products’ anymore because it was cheaper to send those jobs overseas. Our role in the US, Barnett said, would be ‘security export’. Thus it should be no surprise that the #1 industrial export product of the US today is weapons. When weapons are your #1 industrial export product, what is your ‘global marketing strategy’ for that product line?“

The USA doctrine of endless war is a bipartisan economic plan. Washington and its NATO allies are now planning for war with Russia and China.

August 26, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Nuclear news – week to 23 August

A bit of good news – Antibody “master key” discovery could neutralize all COVID variants.

Climate change-  The Social, Cultural, and Economic Implications 

Nuclear. A strange contradiction going on – with double messaging coming from the nuclear lobby and IAEA. We must bear in mind that the goal of the IAEA is to  “assist  its Member States, in the context of social and economic goals, in planning for and using nuclear science and technology for various peaceful purposes, including the generation of electricity, and facilitates the transfer of such technology and knowledge in a sustainable manner to developing Member States” – in other words – to promote nuclear power.

So -we are being told that the safe way towards climate action is nuclear power, and especially now , as we need to avoid Russian gas.  (Apparently Russian uranium is OK. ) At the same time, the IAEA is warning that the presence of the Zaporizhia nuclear plant in a military zone is a threat to European, even global safety.  So – nuclear reactors are safe, but in some circumstances, very unsafe.

The Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is a fraud as the nuclear Mafia continue to spend $billions on their nuclear arsenals

” The New Space Race is Going Nuclear”.           As Threat of Militarisation Rises, International Community Races to Set Standards for Responsible Behaviour in Outer Space. (without much luck!)

Arctic is warming nearly four times faster than the rest of the world – new research. ‘Off the charts’: Glaciers in Europe experience extreme melt.

UKRAINE.

•   Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant: Analysing safety of nuclear power in conflict zones.       Is Ukraine ready for another Chernobyl-like catastrophe? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGxQBeQp0FQ        Ukraine nuclear accident fears heightened.        IAEA reiterates need for all military action to stop near Zaporizhzya Nuclear PP.         Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Macron that Ukrainian shelling of Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant risks disaster.     Russia agrees to allow investigators to inspect Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
• Ukraine using very advanced long range rockets to strike Russian air base in Crimea? Why Crimea matters. Russia shoots down Ukrainian drone over Crimea. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6rwj_Qk6ws 
• Russian Military From Nuclear Plant Showing Signs Of Radiation Sickness – Paramedic. 
•   Why Am I Banned in Ukraine? 
•   War Propaganda About Ukraine Starting to Wear Thin. 
• Putin Claim U.S. Is Dragging Out War Isn’t Crazy, Military Expert Says.

PACIFIC ISLANDS. Pacific Alliance of Municipal Councils starts Petition against dumping nuclear wastewater in Pacific.

EUROPE. Europe Gutted Own Security to Funnel Kiev Weapons, Expert Says.

JAPAN. Kishida, ‘PM from Hiroshima’, is Shifting Japan’s Long-Standing Pro-Nuclear Weapons Posture.  Fukushima Daiichi NPS Accident Compensation: Citizens are paying more while NPP operators have had their share reduced!      Dumps and Museums, the Legacy of a Nuclear Disaster.   

INDIA. Centres to be set up for people exposed to chemical, nuclear attacks,

RUSSIA. Russia admits that explosions in Crimea were the work of Ukrainian saboteurs.

GERMANY. Germany rules out delay to nuclear phaseout.

USA. 

• CIA spying on Assange “illegally” swept up US lawyers, journalists: Lawsuit.
•   US supports Ukraine attacking Crimea – Politico. US Deploys Its B-52 Nuclear Bombers At Russia’s Doorsteps As Tensions Soar Between Moscow & Washington. US launches nuclear-capable Minuteman III in routine test. 
• More tax-payer money to USA’s nuclear industry with INFLATION REDUCTION ACT OF 2022. 
• Bill Gates’ nuclear startup wins $750M, loses sole fuel source . 
•  Disarmament is the only cure for nuclear weapons.
•  Nuclear weapons: Demand action Nuclear waste ravaged their land. The Yakama Nation is on a quest to rescue it.  
• California nuclear power plant extension challenged in legislative proposal.

UK.

• We must never forget the risks nuclear stations pose to us all in conflict situations.
• Boris Johnson has secretly committed Britain to costly tax-payer funding for Sizewell nuclear plant . Sizewell C nuclear plant funding approved despite Tory split. The £billions cost of the Sizewell nuclear plan becomes an issue in the fight for the role of Prime Minister.
• Expert forum Claverton Energy Group concludes that renewable energy +battery storage can meet UK’s needs – nuclear is not needed.
• Nuclear Free Local Authorities support dry storage for safety at Hinkley plant.
• Twelve months, one meeting – the complete lack of accountability on nuclear in Copeland.

FRANCE. Counting the cost of cracking at EDF’s nuclear reactors.

SINGAPORE, Singapore’s next prime minister warns U.S. and China may ‘sleepwalk into conflict’

MALAYSIA. Malaysia’s Mahathir says US seeking to provoke war in Taiwan.

SOUTH KOREA . Thousands of South Korean unionists protest US-South Korea war games.

PHILIPPINES. Nuclear power not a realistic option for the Philippines, given the seismic and other disaster risks.

SOUTH AFRICA. South Africa’s nuclear sector has failed its test: the Koeberg nuclear plant life extension.

PANAMA. Islanders in Latin America face relocation, because of climate change.

AUSTRALIA. Gem Romuld – ‘Reject the deadly logic of nuclear deterrence’.  Richard Marles reaffirms Australia’s commitment to the one-China policy and ‘stabilising’ Canberra-Beijing relations.

August 22, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

Nuclear news this week

Some bits of good news –  100% renewables is feasible worldwide at low cost.  

A big increase in numbers of the beautiful chameleon-like  giant cuttlefish (above). The Spencer Gulf is home to the only known large breeding colony of Giant Australian Cuttlefish. The increase is due to the re-imposition of a temporary fishing ban in the area . But in 2012, the federal government subtly  changed law to enable BHP to expand its uranium mine, and to build a desalination plant that would alter the breeding area, and eliminate this species. Work of the Conservation Council of South Australia, a public outcry, and a petition, helped to prevent the extinction of this species

Covid-19 .  It’s not as if the pandemic has gone away –   does anybody care any more? How COVID-19 is affecting the globe.

Climate change hasn’t gone away either. It is here world wide. Red Cross and Red Crescent care.

 Attacking a nuclear plant ‘suicidal,’ UN chief tells journalists in Japan.

Nuclear war between two nations could spark global famine.    The Lessons We Haven’t Learned.      Connecting Toxic Memories: Hiroshima and Nuremberg.

Storage of nuclear wastes and of dead nuclear reactors is becoming a political nightmare.

Risk of death rises as climate change causes nighttime temperatures to climb

MARS ASTRONAUTS WOULD GET HORRIFYING DOSE OF RADIATION, STUDY FINDS.

UKRAINE. 

Ukraine Plant Under Fire Showcases ‘Dangerous’ Nature of Nuclear Power, Experts Say.

More shelling near Ukraine nuclear plant. Very high radiation risks amid shelling at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Ukraine calls for demilitarised zone around the shelled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. Ukraine and its Western backers should be held accountable for the ‘suicidal’ attack on Europe’s largest nuclear powerplant.  Russia summons session of UN Security Council over nuclear emergency.    Ukraine targets Russian soldiers accused of threatening nuclear plant.    70% of Western weapons sent to Ukraine don’t reach troops – CBS.

EUROPE. Moldova ships in radiation pills as fighting rages near Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Climate change: Drought highlights dangers for electricity supplies from nuclear, hydro, fossil, and solar sources.

JAPAN. Nagasaki urges the elimination of nuclear weapons as city marks 77th A-bomb anniversary . Nagasaki A-bomb survivor told German foreign minister to spurn ‘nuclear umbrella‘. 

The shadows grow longer in Fukushima.    More Cases of Stomach Cancer in Fukushima Prefecture .    Japan’s unilateral decision of dumping nuclear-contaminated water into ocean not responsible: Chinese ambassador for disarmament affairs .   “Legal Battles Continue over TEPCO and Fukushima Nuclear Disaster Cause”  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WGUVYHtMdg    Respite for Japan as radioactive Fukushima water accumulation slows. 

Hisashi Ouchi Suffered an 83-day Death By Radiation Poisoning.

SOUTH KOREA. Fukushima water dumping plan triggers fresh anger from South Korea.

UK. 

•  Nuclear to be branded green to lure investors. Rishi Sunak, UK Tory leader a keen supporter of the nuclear industry, 
•   Britain’s electricity needs for winter cannot depend on France’s unreliable nuclear power. 
•  Sizewell C nuclear station approval faces legal challenge. 
•  UK tax-payers face £billions of costs for the indefinite future in the clean-up of closed Hinkley Point B nuclear power station. 
•  Nuclear Free Local Authorities Briefing to Local Councils – Energy Minister responds to NFLA concerns over Nuclear Liabilities Fund.
•  CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament) oppose plans for a nuclear fusion plant in North Ayshire, on environmental and other grounds.

FRANCE. 

•  France’s government determined to expand nuclear power, oblivious to environmental, safety, and cost ill-effects.  Nuclear reactors at Bugey, Blayais, Saint-Alban-Sanit-Maurice, Golfech and Tricastin allowed to release hotter water into rivers. Further cuts in output predicted, from France’s nuclear reactors as heat wave continues. With its failing nuclear industry, France now an importer of power, no longer an exporter.

•  Electricite de France (EDF) nuclear corporation is headed for bankruptcy – that’s why France’s government is nationalising it. EDF sues French government for €8.4bn after Macron forces it to sell energy at a loss . EDF’s lawsuit against Macron government.

NORWAY. Uranium Film Festival for the first time in Norway- 24 – 25 August.

USA. 

• US ‘on brink’ of war with Russia and China – Kissinger. 
•  President Biden’s new weapons package for Ukraine is the largest one yet, Pentagon says. 
•   Archbishop Wester apologizes for harms caused by nuclear weapons industry.
•   Governor of California proposes to extend life of last nuclear plant at cost of $1.4 billion. 
• The Diablo Canyon nuclear plant: assessing the seismic risks of extended operation . 
•  The Watchdog: Nuclear Regulatory Commission flunks this public records test. 
•   Yucca licensing a waste of money and won’t solve nuclear waste issues. New Mexico’s ’s nuclear waste dump could be open ‘forever’ despite 2024 closure date. 
•   “Shell” companies purchase radioactive materials, prompting push for nuclear licensing reform. 
• How Safe Are Nuclear Power Plants?   
• Inside Lockheed Martin’s Sweeping Recruitment on College Campuses

CANADA. New Liberal leader questions small nuclear reactors Nishnawbe Aski Nation opposes possible site for storage of nuclear waste. Ontario nuclear waste site selectors delay announcement until 2024.

IRAN. U.S. says ready to quickly conclude Iran nuclear deal based on EU text.

GERMANY. Germany continues to close down its last remaining nuclear reactors. Utility company Eon talks about possibility of delaying the closure of Germany’s last nuclear reactor.  

AUSTRALIA. Taiwan not worth a mushroom cloud.      How even small nuclear war would kill billions in apocalyptic famine.    Bob Carr puts Peter Dutton on the spot -calls for detail on Dutton’s plans for nuclear power in Australia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaJLF7co5Q8    Nuclear power – never a realistic option for Australia.

Nuclear bomb tests at Maralinga triggered Hedley Marston to study fallout over Australia.

August 16, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment

TODAY. Russia and Ukraine blame each other. Whom to believe?

My natural inclination is to not believe either of them. They’re both putting out propaganda, sure to include many lies.

The big issue right now is the danger around the Zaporizhzhia (or Zaporozhye) nuclear power station – the largest in Europe, which is being shelled by artillery. The Ukrainians say that Russia is doing this. The Russians say that it’s the Ukrainianians.

Of course, we being good Anglophone news absorbers, we are obliged to believe that the Russians are shelling Zaporizhzhia , a place where they are now in control. We have to believe that it is always the Russians’ fault, otherwise we are pretty much traitorous, (and our publications like this one, will be censored and erased from Google Search)

The picture above shows the Zaporizhzhia NPP and its huge collection of nuclear wastes. No wonder that Mr Grossi, head of IAEA security is tearing his hair out in anxiety over this perilous situation.

Now I, (treacherously) think that it is the Ukrainians who are shelling the nuclear station. They do have a motive, as they are desperate to get it back under Ukrainian control. But why would the Russians want to attack the place, where they’re already in control? “In order to discredit Ukraine” – say Zelensky and co. Gimme a break. The Rusians may be awful etc etc, but they;re not stupid.

August 10, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 1 Comment

The past week in nuclear news

Some bits of good news Needles of Hope in the Ukraine War Haystack. Renewables are booming – REN21 Global Review.

The pro Trump forces are going allout to blame and damage Joe Biden and his administration. I keep getting stuff from the non-corporate media. And some of it is in colourful and extreme language. And I know that some of it is from the Trumpians.    My problem is that in some of the Trumpian propaganda – the facts have a disturbing habit of sounding like they’re true. No – I do not want to support Trump’s ambitions. But yes, I do want the truth to come out. Especially about Ukraine and Taiwan. And the West is hiding it.

Why Is There More Media Talk About Using Nuclear Weapons Than About Banning Them?

The lost nuclear bombs that no one can find.

Poland rewrites or obscures the history of the Russians’ liberation of Auschwitz.

Anti-Nuclear Protest at U.S. Mission to United Nations.

Is nuclear disarmament possible? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsz5fQm00Qs World one misstep from ‘nuclear annihilation’: UN chief. Biden, Putin strike conciliatory tones as nuclear arms talks start at U.N. If we are to survive…we must change course.

Nuclear weapons will not bring peace or security, only dangers.

The Anti-China Brainwashing Is Working: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix. Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan Visit Stoked Tensions With China. What Comes Next?

Washington Is Making the Same Blunder Regarding Taiwan That It Did in Ukraine.

Russia’s very profitable nuclear industry – NO SANCTIONS on that!

Small nuclear reactors produce more radioactive trash than large ones do – American Academy of Sciences

Nuclear energy vs renewables: which is the best solution for the climate crisis? It’s all about public perception. Can the crooked nuclear industry convince the world?

‘Climate endgame’ warning: Scientists warn global warming could trigger nuclear war, financial crisis or an extinction-level pandemic. Climate Endgame: Risk of Human Extinction ‘Dangerously Underexplored’ .Climate breakdown is super-charging extreme weather.

UKRAINE. 

• Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station “completely out of control” – IAEA Parts of Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant damaged when struck by shelling. Evacuation would be almost impossible in the event of an accident at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. IAEA alarmed at danger to Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant as shelling continues in Ukraine war. Russia and Ukraine accused each other of shelling Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant in the Zaporizhzhia region. 
• Only 30% of the Weapons Are Even Making it to the Frontlines. 
• Ukraine wants to export nuclear-generated electricity to European states – but is that safe? 
• A French volunteer described how he witnessed the dramatizations in Bucha Amnesty has stuck by its report that Ukrainian forces endangered civilians.Door-to-door searches are being conducted to find pro-Russian “collaborators” in Nikolaev, a local official has said. Ukraine turns Donetsk into a minefield using banned ‘butterfly’ mines. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6wJbPJv0kk 
• Russia the most popular national destination for  refugees from Ukraine.
• Whitewashing Ukraine’s Corruption and Authoritarianism.

POLAND. Poland’s double standard on how it treats refugees, and the prospect of exhaustion by those housing Ukrainians.

TAIWAN. Is Taiwan’s Independence Worth War?

JAPAN. Hiroshima marks 77th anniversary of atomic bombing amid nuclear threat. 

Fukushima Prefecture seeks government help in preventing reputational damage to its marine products. Construction begins at Fukushima plant for water release. Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant “Treated Water” Discharged TEPCO Announces Undersea Tunnel Construction to Begin in 4 Days “Already Started? Citizens were in a state of exasperation.   Ironic for Tokyo to caution others on nuclear issue despite Fukushima plan.

USA. 

• Chinese expert from Peace Centre points out America’s hypocrisy, double standards, on Nuclear Non Proliferation. USA hostility to China on yet another front – India. Joe Biden offers to negotiate a new arms control framework with Russia to replace New START. 
• Senator Manchin Democrats Bill to give $30 billion lifeline to save America’s moribund nuclear industry. Why investors should be wary of NuScale’s small nuclear reactors. Nuclear energy for Colorado? The cost is one very big obstacle. US regulators approve small nuclear reactors – BUT – costs, delays, too late for climate help. 
• Beatty Nevada Nuclear waste explosions, in the desert. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VHylGDOvwU  Prairie Island Indian Community planning to set up large renewable energy project, keen to be rid of nuclear power plant and nuclear wastes. Nuclear waste isn’t an isolated problem with nuclear power. 
• “Unprecedented:” US Senate passes landmark bill to tax billionaires to fund clean energy.

CANADA. Lantern ceremony in Winnipeg calls attention to threat of nuclear weapons.

UK.

• A worsening situation of cracks in Britain’s ageing nuclear reactors. 
• Hinkley Point B leaves radioactive waste to be expensively managed for many generations to come. 
• Over 50,000 petition against seismic testing to find ocean nuclear dump site. Damage to marine life from seismic testing, and from dumping of radioactive waste. A fake ‘community partnership’ on ocean nuclear waste dumping. To join UK’s Nuclear Waste ‘Community Partnership’ one is required to have a ‘commitment to exploring development‘ of an ocean nuclear waste dump. 
• Danger of nuclear weapons convoys on the UK’s M6.
•  Peace campaigners gather in Aberdeen on anniversary of Hiroshima nuclear bombing.

FRANCE. Reduced electricity output from France’s nuclear reactors due to high temperatures. EDF cuts output at nuclear power plants as French rivers get too warm. Bad luck for the river environment – nuclear reactors allowed to release hotter water. France importing power, as nuclear stations cut output because of global heating, Drought may force nuclear power production cut. France’s problems with nuclear corporation EDF.

RUSSIA. No one can win a nuclear war: Putin.

ISRAEL. Israel, secretly having nuclear weapons, will not join the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty.

IRAN. Iran says ‘optimistic’ after EU proposal for nuclear deal. Eu, Iran Russia optmistic.

AUSTRALIA. Australian Prime Minister Albanese refuses to meet with Assange’s family . Hard-Wired for Corruption -The arms trade and Australia’s lax monitoring regimes. Does Australia actually need nuclear submarines?

August 8, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

TODAY. My Trumpian dilemma

Here’s my dilemma.

The last thing I want to do is to promote the cause of Donald Trump

BUT – on some matters -the Trumpians might be right, and telling the truth!

We are now brainwashed by the corporate media into a religious belief that Ukraine and Taiwan are good, and Russia and China are evil.

Anyone who says otherwise is a stooge of Russian and Chinese ”disinformation. Right?

The pro Trump forces are going allout to blame and damage Joe Biden and his administration. I keep getting stuff from the non-corporate media. And some of it is in colourful and extreme language. And I know that some of it is from the Trumpians.

My problem is that in some of the Trumpian propaganda – the facts have a disturbing habit of sounding like they’re true.

No – I do not want to support Trump’s ambitions. But yes, I do want the truth to come out. Especially about Ukraine and Taiwan. And the West is hiding it.

August 8, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

TODAY. All the fuss about Taiwan doesn’t make sense. Has anyone noticed?

Since 1979, USA, and its minions like Australia, have recognised that Taiwan is part of the Republic of China, and is NOT an independent nation.

Since 1997 USA and its minions have recognised that Hong Kong is part of the Republic of China and is NOT an independent nation. When China cracked down on the Hong Kong administration, USA, Australia tut-tutted, and there was no suggestion of doing anything about it – let alone go to war.

Now, we’ve got Nancy Pelosi, the Congress Speaker, leading the push to provoke the Chinese government to a militaristic response.

Now you might wonder why on Earth countries so far way, USA, Australia would want to invite nuclear war and destruction if China cracks down on the Taiwan administration.

I can’t see China wanting to invite nuclear war and destruction if USA cracked down on Hawaii, or Australia on Tasmania.

But of course, I forgot – American authorities are in the grip of Pentagon war hawks, and of Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Boeing – and all the rest of the weapons corporation. And they just gotta have a war – or at least – an enemy to get to the brink – and keep the profitable business going.

The whole apparently unstoppable procession towards war makes no sense. But that doesn’t matter – the mindless corporate media loves it. Roll on – Ukraine catastrophe – and then we’ll move on to Taiwan catastrophe!

August 4, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

Nuclear news this week

I had trouble finding “good news” for today. So, I’ll put in a thought of my own. My own country, Australia, today gives some hope, For the first time, we have a government really trying to include our First Nations people in decision-making. Not only is Australia headed for a referendum to bring indigenous voices into our Parliament – with hope to redress the wrongs of 200 years, but also the hope that indigenous knowledge and culture will advise and further the mighty task of healing our damaged environment.

Coronavirus and Climate –  it’s all drastically bad- the mind boggles –  best for readers to do their homework on these.

Nuclear.  Ironically, as nations ramp up their nuclear weaponry – comes the anniversary of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZSENcK-en4      At some commemorations. survivors like Setsuko Thurlow will be speaking.  Like the survivors of Auschwitz, these first witnesses may not be with us much longer. It is all-important that their message is remembered, and that denialism of these truly awful horrors does not prevail.

The World Does Not Want a Global NATO.

Deterrencelessness: Nuclear threats neither credible nor viable.

UN Nuclear Review: a prime time to stop the new arms race. Ukraine War Hangs Over UN Meeting on Nuclear Treaty’s Legacy.  U.N. nuclear conference to start Monday as Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya plant in “alarming” state, watchdog says.

For Warmongers It’s Always 1938.      US airman who rescued film of A-bomb horrors is honoured at last.

Small nuclear reactors will bleed us dry and won’t solve climate change – unfounded promises.

The future of global catastrophic risk events from climate change.

UKRAINE. Russia accused of waging war out of working nuclear power plant in Ukraine. How professional lobbyists have worked to generate enthusiasm in Washington for a long proxy military conflict in Ukraine. High risks at Chornobyl.

FRANCE. French finance minister and MPs clash over future of nuclear power.  France should “rethink the temperature thresholds of rivers”.    Nuclear giant EDF and waste company Veolia continue to do business with Russia – the nuclear industry gets uranium from Russia, and sends wastes there.  Protest against radioactivity-contaminated water, at French nuclear site.

ASIA. Nuclear Weapons Policies of Japan and South Korea Challenged.

JAPAN. Backlash over dumping of nuclear waste-water to the ocean . Japan to push for nuclear arms reduction at NPT review conference. Kishida to call for nuke-free world in historic address at U.N. treaty conference.

UK. 

• Small nuclear reactors the solution to climate problems? The facts suggest otherwise.
• EDF forced to redesign UK nuclear reactors after horror leaks at Chinese sites. 
• Campaign groups in Wales join to fight nuclear power plans.
•  Scotland’s government dithering about nuclear power.
•  Rolls Royce hyping up risky and unproven small nuclear reactors.
•  Glascow City Council not informed when nuclear weapons convoys pass through city. 
• Latest Research – Baseload generators such as Sizewell C nuclear power plants are not needed in an all-renewable future and their use would simply increase costs. A new nuclear power station needs a vast supply of water. But where will Sizewell C get it from? Grief for the abuse of nature that will come with Sizewell C nuclear station. 
• Hinkley Point B nuclear power station to close permanently, due to safety concerns. UK to be left for 1000s of years with Hinkley Point B’s legacy of nuclear waste. 
• Undersea nuclear waste dump off Cumbria would imperil marine life, experts warn. Is it environmentally sound to bury a massive stockpile of nuclear waste beneath the ocean floor? Probably not

USA. 

• How Would Space Be Used In War? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng2kLh2Ez3Y
• Western states join New Mexico in resisting nuclear waste storage without state consent. Nuclear Waste Cleanup: Hanford Site Cleanup Costs Continue to Rise, but Opportunities Exist to Save Tens of Billions of Dollars. 
• Westinghouse could get a 40 year license renewal for its nuclear fuel fabrication plant , despite safety concerns. SC nuclear fuel plant gets 40-year operating license – a ‘‘license to pollute”. Dead fish near SC nuclear fuel site were an early warning. Then came the spills and accidents.

CANADA. Pickering nuclear station is closing as planned, despite calls for refurbishment.

IRAN Iran will keep IAEA cameras turned off until nuclear deal is restored. Lawmaker Says Iran Nuclear Talks Will Resume In Coming Days.

AUSTRALIA. Australia urged to prove it is a safe nuclear custodian as Aukus comes under scrutiny at UN. Fleet of nuclear submarines will be sent by Britain to Australia as a warning to China. Indonesia warns of perils of nuclear-powered submarines in submission to the UN. 

August 1, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 3 Comments

TODAY. From France – a statement that symbolises the primacy of the nuclear industry over the environment

The plants, insects, the fish, the frogs, crabs, …… they don’t get a say in these decisions.

 “we should rethink the temperature thresholds of rivers” – says the chief inspector of France’s nuclear safety authority.

In these simple, seemingly innocuous words, we get a clear look at what the powers that be in our modern world think is important, and what is not..

If the big boys decide to let hotter water into the rivers, and ruin the habitat of so many plants and animals – well, the people aren’t going to get a vote on this, and the other species sure don’t get a say.

Western culture has evolved from a world-view that Man is superior to all creation. And we’re still well and truly in that world view. Indigenous cultures might have a different view – but hell – they don’t matter, do they? After all, they’ve never invented anything really clever – like nuclear technology, with the power to kill us all.

July 30, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | 2 Comments

Nuclear news – week to 25 July

So much news, so overwhelming – the pandemic, climate extremes in China. South Asia, USA, Europe, UK.   In the middle of all the gloom, quite an inspiring article from science writer Julian Cribb,   with a method to save the world. He argues, passionately and persuasively for putting the ”weaker” sex in charge. In The Age of Women, Cribb says that If humanity is to survive the vast and growing threats it faces, women must assume the leadership of government, business, religion and social institutions around the world.

Some bits of good news –   Overwhelmed by environmental disaster? Here’s a scorecard to inspire optimism.     The bright spots in the State of the Environment report.  

State of the Environment report shows our growing cities are under pressure – but we’re seeing positive signs too

The Age of Women.

War wins the ‘big bucks’ while climate gets the ‘change’

Calling Putin ‘Hitler’ to Smear Diplomacy as ‘Appeasement’.

NATO: The Most Dangerous Military Alliance on the Planet.     Phil Wilayto column: The provocations behind the ‘unprovoked’ war.      The Biggest Lie The Hawks Ever Sold. In Ukraine, a proxy war on the planet.       US Military Analyst: West Can’t Afford Ukraine Spending, Will Run Out of Ammo to Send to Kiev.          Global action urged to block AUKUS plan on transfer of nuclear materials.

Nuclear Power Plants Are Struggling to Stay Cool.

Baseload nuclear power not needed in an all-renewable future – Claverton Energy Research Group.

Death toll rises above 1,500 as temperatures soar across Europe.

As Europe burns, the world’s climate plan, such as it is, unravels.

UKRAINE.  

• Russia is using captured Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station as a launch pad for military attacks . 
• Greenpeace radiation investigation at Chornobyl to assess accuracy of IAEA data. Greenpeace investigation challenges nuclear agency on Chornobyl radiation levels. Greenpeace experts find Chornobyl under Russian occupation – radiation levels much higher than the IAEA estimated. 
• Russia says Ukrainian drone struck nuclear plant, but caused no damage. 
• Ukraine Defense Minister Offers Ukraine as a ‘Testing Ground’ for NATO Weapons. 
• Money Pit: Zelensky govt signals intent to default on tens of billions in foreign debts.

FRANCE. Evacuation of site , as wildfires rage near nuclear power plant being decommissioned.      La Hague is still threatened by wildfires Monday afternoon: firefighters mobilized on July 18 not far from the Orano nuclear site.  Macron facing NUCLEAR nightmare as scorching heatwave cripples SIX reactors. 4 French nuclear reactors authorized to discharge hotter water during heatwave, as 29 others remain offline, (nuclear the cure for global heating?)

 Nationalisation of EDF seen as ‘inevitable’ to carry out France’s nuclear plans. France’s costly nationalisation of the nuclear industry. Employee shareholders to sue EDF over France nationalising nuclear industry .          New failure on the Flamanville EPR, the reactor control system’s malfunction. EDF to change design of EPR nuclear reactors following troubles of the China one – (making it up as they go?)  Protest against radioactivity-contaminated water, at French nuclear site.

SWITZERLAND. Swiss nuclear power plant reduces output to protect fish during heatwave.

USA. Was Obama right about Russia-Ukraine? Biden Rebuked for ‘Openly Praising War Profiteering’ at Lockheed Martin. The Great American Military Rebrand.         Leaked documents – Facebook ‘Bot’ adviser secretly in the pay of USA regime change agency.    President Biden’s $6 billion effort to save distressed” nuclear power plants is misguided. No operational need, and no climate case for the nuclear power industry -The Electricity Journal . MidAmerican shouldn’t waste money studying small nuclear reactors. The lingering horror of thorium radioactive poisoning in West Chicago .

Extreme heat warnings in effect in 28 states across US.

CANADA. Nuclear industry veteran to lead nuclear waste group’s board – ( the revolving industry-govt door)

IRAN. Iran critical of President Biden telling Israelis that USA is ready to use force against Iran . ‘Israeli cell planted explosives at nuclear facility,’ Iran media says.

JAPAN. Japan halts shipment of black rockfish caught off Fukushima over radiation. Japan’s nuclear regulator formally approves release of Fukushima wastewater to the Pacific. Japan approves nuclear-contaminated water discharge plan, may turn Japanese people into ‘sick men of Asia,’ seafood consumption and export nosedive. Stiff resistance by fishing unions to Japan’s move to dump Fukushima nuclear wastewater into the ocean.        Fukushima bosses ordered to pay billions for failing to prevent nuclear disaster.    Shinzo Abe Failed to Rearm Japan. Let’s Keep It That Way.

UK. 

• The brutal reality of the US-UK ‘Special Relationship’, and the persecution of Julian Assange. 
• British soldiers used as radiation guinea pigs in nuclear bomb tests in Australia.
• Time for the UK government to tell the truth about nuclear power, 
• Against advice of the Planning Inspectorate the UK’s interim government gives go-ahead to Sizewell C nuclear power plant. B1 Government gives go-ahead to ‘monumental modern folly’ The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) condemns ludicrous Sizewell C planning approval.  UK govt to decide on whether or not £20bn Sizewell C nuclear power plant should go ahead.
•  EDF worried that its delays in building Hinkley Point C nuclear station might lessen the huge subsidies it gets from the UK government. EDF’s new demand means that Hinkley Point C will be further delayed, with costs escalating to £34 billion. Sizewell-C. Proposed change to how Hinkley Point C stores radioactive waste. 
• Consultation on proposed changes to storage of radioactive wastes at Hinkley Point C NPP. Millom and Haverigg being conned by nuclear industry over waste dump, claims former councillor.  Anti-nuclear forces gather in Wales. Greencoat Capital Investing might be turning yellow – swallowing the climate lies of the nuclear industry. All at Sea: Energy Security Bill reveals UK government preference to dump waste offshore. Guardians of the East Coast (Gotec) fight to stop nuclear waste dumping in the sea near holiday resorts UK. 
• Nuclear regulators have found “clear breaches” of safety rules while investigating a chemical leak at the Dounreay plant .

RUSSIA. Russia’s Rosatom to take legal action against Finland company, over terminated €7 billion nuclear power plant project.

GERMANY. Germany criminalizes journalist for exposing Ukrainian war crimes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4-1qhGvbu4

AUSTRIA. Visit of the Slovak Prime Minister to Vienna: Disagreement on Nuclear Technology Issues.

RUSSIA. Russia to Scrap World’s Largest Nuclear Submarine.

ISRAEL. ISRAEL AND THE NUCLEAR NORM

AUSTRALIA.  Documents show Australian Labor government supports Assange’s extradition to the US. INSIDE LABOR’S ASSANGE GAME PLAN.

Militarism and submarines:   The tragic obsession with the Chinese threat. 

July 25, 2022 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina's notes | Leave a comment