Nuclear-weapons treaty the right way forward, Joel Bransky, Duluth News Tribune
The treaty has already strengthened peace and safety in 50 countries.
By: Joel Bransky, Feb 25th 2021 Fifty nations just outlawed nuclear weapons forever. The international Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, or TPNW, came into force on Jan. 22 after the 50th country, Honduras, ratified it. The people of these countries will never have to worry about cancer-causing weapons tests or pay for the secretive governmental nonsense required to manufacture and store nuclear warheads.
The treaty’s entry into force comes at a critical time. Just three years ago, while living in South Korea, I watched our president joke about the size of his launch button and challenge a volatile dictator to a game of nuclear chicken. Congress held hearings on how a nuclear strike would be carried out. The world was one miscalculation away from nuclear war, it seemed — yet many people have already forgotten. The enormity of the problem makes it seem unsolvable.
But we can solve this problem, and TPNW maps the path to nuclear disarmament. The treaty has already strengthened peace and safety in 50 countries. This is remarkable, given the opposition to the treaty from the U.S. government and weapons manufacturers. It shows that a nuclear-free future is coming. In fact, for the citizens of those 50 countries, it is already here.
I am tired of our government wasting taxpayer money on weapons that are never used and that, if used, would kill us through incineration, radiation poisoning, or starvation. We must tell our government that this is absurd and outdated. Now is the time. Please call or email your U.S. senators and representative and tell them you support the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/opinion/letters/6901468-Readers-View-Nuclear-weapons-treaty-the-right-way-forward
The president shows courage in a willingness to rejoin the deal with Iran.
Feb. 19, 2021, Re “U.S. Is Moving to Renew Deal With Iranians” (front page, Feb. 19):President Biden shows courage in indicating his willingness to rejoin the nuclear deal with Iran. Such an effort is urgent, because Iran, too, has its hard-liners, as well as coming elections, and diplomacy’s advocates must outpace the hawks on both sides.
The nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, is the only way to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon as well as a disastrous war with Iran. President Biden needs to know that an engaged public will support him working toward a nuclear-weapons-free Middle East.
He should also declare that the United States will never use nuclear weapons first and cut weapons systems designed for pre-emption. Mr. Biden could be the president who leads toward a world freed from the threat of nuclear annihilation.
Sabine von Törne14 Feb 21, What happens to Wikileaks founder and publisher #JulianAssange who remains unlawfully imprisoned at High Security Prison Belmarsh for exposing US war crimes and corruption of powerful elites matters to all of us.
Yesterday, on 12th of February 2021, the Biden administration submitted an appeal against Magistrate Baraitser’s decision to refuse extradition to the U.S. on humanitarian grounds.
This struggle is far from over. #TheWorldIsWatching with our eyes on #London. We must speak up for Julian’s human rights, for press freedom, free speech, the public’s right to know what those who govern us are up to in our name and thereby for the most basic principles of democracy. Keep fighting. We can win this. #FreeJulianAssange
On January 22, 2021, the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) became international law. More than 50 nations have already ratified this treaty, but the U.S. has not. It is my strong feeling that the new administration should make nuclear arms control and non-proliferation top priorities.
I would urge you to contact your congressional representative, Tom Emmer (202-225-2331) or Pete Stauber (202-225-6211), and our two senators, Amy Klobuchar (202-224-3244) and Tina Smith (202-224-5641), to sign the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear weapons pledge (ICAN) to work for the ratification of the TPNW in the U.S.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear weapons was the recipient of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize and is urging all lawmakers, in all countries, to support it. I hope you will, too.
Who’s next? Nuclear proliferation is not fast, but it is frightening
Experts worry about East Asia and the Middle East,
In march 1963 President John Kennedy lamented his failure to negotiate a ban on nuclear tests. “Personally,” he warned, “I am haunted by the feeling that by 1970, unless we are successful, there may be ten nuclear powers instead of four—and by 1975, 15 or 20.”
Kennedy was wrong. While many countries explored the idea of nuclear weapons from the 1950s to the 1990s, comparatively few took the next step of actually trying to develop the ability to build them (see chart). Of those few some stopped because the country itself dissolved (Yugoslavia), some because of changes to domestic politics (Brazil), some because of pressure from allies (South Korea) and some through force of arms (Iraq)….. (subscribers only)https://www.economist.com/briefing/2021/01/30/nuclear-proliferation-is-not-fast-but-it-is-frightening
Peace, justice groups stand out against nuclear weapons GreenfieldRecorder, By MARY BYRNE, Staff Writer1/24/2021
GREENFIELD — Braving below-freezing temperatures Saturday morning, members of local peace and justice groups met on the common to join others worldwide in a “standout” for nuclear disarmament.
“We all know if there’s ever a nuclear war, we would pretty much be decimated,” said Emily Greene, a member of Racial Justice Rising.
Daily Mail 22nd Jan 2021, The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons took effect Friday — but the milestone is marred by the lack of signatures from the world’s major
nuclear powers. Despite the missing participants, the occasion was marked
by praise from the United Nations and even Pope Francis.
Greenpeace 22nd Jan 2021, Nuclear arms are the most destructive, indiscriminate and monstrous weapons ever produced – but today, we can all celebrate a major milestone in the
long march towards peace: the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons
(TPNW) is now part of international law!
David Lowry’s Blog 10th Jan 2021, A paranoid president and 7,000 plutonium warheads. Of all the issues raised by the Trump boycott of the inauguration of Joe Biden as President on 20 January, the issue of how the codes that control the launch of US nuclear weapons is the most pressing and terrifying. Here are several articles addressing this problem: Here’s what happens to the ‘nuclear football’ if Trump skips Biden’s inauguration.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah chief says nuclear button with “crazy fool” Trump, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-crisis-hezbollah/lebanons-hezbollah-chief-says-nuclear-button-with-crazy-fool-trump-idUSKBN29D2OQ BEIRUT (Reuters) 8 Jan 21, – Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday recent events in the U.S. would have global repercussions and prayed that God protect the world until Jan. 20 when President elect Joe Biden is inaugurated.“The nuclear button is in the hands of a crazy fool called Trump,” Nasrallah said in a televised address.
Nuclear in France: why bother? Les Echos, The energy produced from the atom is much less competitive than that from wind turbines and solar panels, assures Julien Tchernia, ekWateur president. So let’s stop supporting a sector that no longer keeps its economic promises, he writes.
By Julien Tchernia (president and co-founder of ekWateur) Jan 7, 2021 An article or post published on renewable energy always gives rise to a series of derogatory comments from nuclear advocates. Even if the content does not mention or refer to nuclear, its aficionados take to the pen to denigrate renewable modes of production and make the article of their favorite mode of production.
Rex Newman, 6 Jan 21, Trump did not just leave a hawkish nuke weapons problem. The evil, dumb son of a bitch was going to start testing nuclear weapons again. Tactical nukes. All treaties abrogated. Exploding nuclear bombs to stop hurricanes. He was aiming to use tactical nukes. Space wars. He has made a nuclear accident, a hundred times more likely. He has done it by deregulatings nuke reactors supervision so stupidly and capriciously post Fukushima. By not setting up programs to make reactors infratrucure more safe, since fukushima.
Especially in the face of increased earhquake and hurricane activity. San louis obisbo. S carolina for earthquakes. 23 coastal reactors for hurricanes.
The nuclear reactor corruption in ohio, three reactors with holes in their heads ready to blow kept open w ratepayers subaidizing them. Came from the disgusting repuklikans and trump.
The second plutonium pit factory. One man nuclear obliteration of the world. 3 more nuke catastrophes inl woolsey brunswick. Hawkish is a terrible euphemistic understatement for trumps nuke policies though i have heard it before. Probly one or more of the 94 shitty old nuclear complexes will blow w nuclear waste fuel fires. 20 pounds of hi level nuke waste from a nuclear reactor, w cs137 plutonium st90 co60 in it will kill a person in 20 minutes who is 15 ft from it. The reactors make tons of that shit every year. 100 billions of a gram of any of that shit especially polonium and cesium will murder a person. A diver i knew was exposed to an open box of iridium used to check ship hulls. 100 grams of the shit destroyed half the divers body and killed his diver mate, 50 feet under water.
Dont expect so much better from biden as he reappoints victoria nuland ,who put the neonazis in power in ukraine. There will be onw or two nuke catastrophes in the usa and ukraine the media cant hide like inl brunswig and woolsey. The economy will continue to go to shit. There will be an uprising against biden. Hopefully a bunch of trump nazis will be wiped out.
Nuclear waste to be dumped in landfills nothing done about hanford or los alamos or san onofre at san diego tens of thousands of tons of the worst hilevel nuke waste possible store above ground in flimsy cannisters in new mexico texas az idaho, wash, san onofre that will exlode catch fire and poison the usa. Americium241 as poisonous as plutonium cheap smoke detectors full of that shit poisoning ladfills across the usa. Depleted uranium everywhere. Dozens of nuclear meltdowns. The artic is full of millions of tons of nuclear waste from old american russian french and uk nuke subs. From reactors dumped into the sea.
90 thousand acres of nuclear waste and nuc reactor garbage and nuke fallout from two meltdowns burned into the air at the idaho national lab fire. 70 years with 60 reactors and thousands of tons of the worst radioactive crap possible burned.into the air, in 2018 under trumps watch.
Greentech Media , 5 Jan 20, “………..Despite the encouraging noises emerging from government agencies, it is still far from clear how SMRs will overcome many of the challenges that are causing mainstream nuclear to suffer in markets such as the U.S. and the U.K.
“No new nuclear power plant is viable in the U.S. now,” said Edward Kee, CEO and principal consultant at the Nuclear Economics Consulting Group, in an email.
“Existing merchant nuclear power plants are closing early because they cannot cover cash-generating costs with sales into the electricity markets. [It’s] hard to see how a new nuclear power plant of any design could recover investment in this market.”
As it stands today, the only country in the world that can claim to have a viable SMR industry is Russia. The country’s first SMR, deployed as a floating power station aboard the Akademik Lomonosov barge, was commissioned in 2020.
In November the World Nuclear Association reported that Russian state corporation Rosatom is planning to build another SMR in Yakutia, in the far eastern part of the country.
Spurning the advanced designs favored by Western developers such as NuScale and Rolls-Royce, Rosatom is building its SMRs with reactors that it has been using in nuclear icebreakers for years, the association said.
Asahi Shimbun 30th Dec 2020, Exceedingly high radiation levels found inside crippled reactor buildings
at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant were labeled by nuclear regulators as an “extremely serious” challenge to the shutdown process and overall decommissioning of the site.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) said a huge amount of radioactive materials apparently had attached to shield
plugs of the containment vessels in the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors. Radiation levels were estimated at 10 sieverts per hour, a lethal dose for anyone who spends even an hour in the vicinity, according to experts.
The finding would make it exceptionally difficult for workers to move the shield plugs, raising the prospect that the plan to decommission the reactors will have to be reassessed.
