Exactly as we predicted would happen, authorities have cited “miniscule” levels of radiation reaching California as an excuse with which to downplay the threat to Americans of fallout crossing the Pacific from Japan, completely ignoring the fact that the bulk of the radiation from the two blasts at the Fukushima power plant will not reach the west coast until Monday.
“Radioactive fallout from Japan’s crippled nuclear plant has reached Southern California but the first readings are far below levels that could pose a health hazard, a diplomat said Friday.”
“Initial readings are “about a billion times beneath levels that would be health threatening,”the diplomat told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because the CTBTO does not make its findings public.”
The diplomat called the level of radioactivity “irrelevant,” while another unnamed source told Reuters that the level was “very low.”
If the two individuals quoted in the reports are so confident that there is no threat, why are they so keen on remaining anonymous?
As we have emphasized, the radiation now hitting the west coast is from the early leaks suffered by the Fukushima plant after the earthquake and tsunami last Friday, which actually occurred Thursday U.S. time. These leaks were minimal in comparison to the radiation emitted after explosions on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday tore apart the buildings housing the reactors.
We will not know the true level of the threat until the radiation particles emitted as a result of the three explosions that devastated Fukushima hits the west coast over the weekend and into Monday. The fact that authorities have completely failed to point this out suggests they are actively trying to whitewash the threat that the fallout poses to Americans.In addition, the radiation currently being measured does not take into account radiation emitted by pools of deadly spent nuclear rods, which only began to emit serious amounts of radiation a few days ago.
For the sake of people in America and around the globe, we hope that levels of radiation have dissipated over the Pacific and that future generations are not made to suffer. But for officials to hastily dismiss the threat before the vast majority of the radiation has even reached the west coast, and while Fukushima is still smoking, in a stage of partial melt down, and emitting more radiation every second, is completely irresponsible and suggests a cover-up.
We heard a similar theme during Obama’s speech yesterday when he all but insulted Americans for preparing themselves for fallout by purchasing potassium iodide pills.
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and public health experts do not recommend people in the U.S. take precautionary measures beyond staying informed,” said Obama, which is precisely what those affected by both Chernobyl and the 3 Mile Island accident were told, trust your government, a mistake that led to nearly a million deaths in the case of Chernobyland a dramatic rise in cancers in the case of 3 Mile Island.
It was also what ground zero workers heard in the days after 9/11, that the air was “safe to breathe,” a contrived cover-up on behalf of the EPA and the White House that led to thousands of crippling illnesses and deaths of firefighters, police and first responders.
History tells us that government have habitually lied about radiation, air quality and the true scope of health threats to the American people. Only through the use of private monitoring stations will we be able to confidently gauge the true levels of radiation hitting the west coast, and we won’t know the full extent of the danger Americans face until Monday at the earliest.
No comments:
Post a Comment