8.9 magnitude earthquake in Japan

[StevePerryHair]

We just blackballed the Japanese over the Toyota recall issue which, when after all the U.S. investigations were done found the problems to be not with the cars but with the drivers themselves. Of course the results were announced in a very low key manner and the damage to Toyota had already been done so why should a lack of American empathy in this situation be any surprise?

Do you think all is not truly forgiven, even though an ally, after WWII? My 11 year old daughter, who is the overly caring type normally. Normally emotional, about everything, asked me why our country is helping them, when they bombed Pearl Harbor. Because I guess they had learned about it in school. Which I explained it all to her. Not to mention the fact there are probably more Japanese in Hawaii now, than Americans or native Hawaiins. But I wonder, is this an American mentality in the adult world too? Or are there other reasons? Because it's not like they don't help any Asians. Look at Indonesia.

If anything, the Japanese should hate your fucking guts. Sure, they bombed Pearl Harbor. What you guys did was taking it to a whole new level. Fatman over Hiroshima and as well as a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki and not to mention the bombings of Tokyo. It did win the pacific wars though, but the bombings was a gay move.

I thought we showed a tremendous amount of civility, humanitarianism and tolerance by not wiping them off the face of the Earth. But I don't expect someone from France to understand anything ... you probably ripped off your first fucking diaper and started waving it.

I get that. The whole soldier thing - man vs man. But it's not that funny or easy when you see kids having their legs thorn off or women getting raped to death, because some morons with poorly fitting suits and big ties, think war is a necessity. It always hurts the civilians the most.

Not unlike this, where most of the hit has been on poor people, who don't have the money or means to secure their buildings e.g.

Who EVER said that war is funny or easy

[StevePerryHair]

Oh geez ...!! Japan is one of our strongest allies!!

Yeah, but tell that to some old WWII vets! They may have been forced to forgive in some cases, but they didn't forget. .

We probably wouldn't either if we had been there ...or lived it!!
I remember hating Vietnam as a youngster and not really knowing/understanding why?!

I imagine it would be really hard. Though some did better in the forgiveness department than others. I know I've seen some really touching specials, on vets from both sides, gathering to talk about the war. It was really touching. And to see these elderly grown man cry. Something so long ago, still evoking such emotion in them. I can't imagine.

And I DID teach my daughter, along with my husband's help, that they ARE one of our biggest allies,and that they are peaceful. And that it was the past. Don't worry! I was just SHOCKED that she took that stance on it! It never even entered my mind, and here is my little 11 year old, all upset over it! Obviously learning about Pearl Harbor had some sort of impact on her, that I was not aware of!!

[RocknRoll]

Another interesting fact. There has been no looting in Japan during the horrific event, where during Katrina everyone was out to get whatever they could!!

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/edwes ... -in-japan/

Why is there no looting in Japan?
By Ed West World Last updated: March 14th, 2011

Respect for property even in the middle of disaster (Photo: EPA)
The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.

And solidarity seems especially strong in Japan itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is its social strength, with supermarkets cutting prices and vending machine owners giving out free drinks as people work together to survive. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.

This is quite unusual among human cultures, and it’s unlikely it would be the case in Britain. During the 2007 floods in the West Country abandoned cars were broken into and free packs of bottled water were stolen. There was looting in Chile after the earthquake last year – so much so that troops were sent in; in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina saw looting on a shocking scale.

Why do some cultures react to disaster by reverting to everyone for himself, but others – especially the Japanese – display altruism even in adversity?

[StevePerryHair]

Another interesting fact. There has been no looting in Japan during the horrific event, where during Katrina everyone was out to get whatever they could!!

Why is there no looting in Japan?
By Ed West World Last updated: March 14th, 2011

Respect for property even in the middle of disaster (Photo: EPA)
The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.

And solidarity seems especially strong in Japan itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is its social strength, with supermarkets cutting prices and vending machine owners giving out free drinks as people work together to survive. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.

This is quite unusual among human cultures, and it’s unlikely it would be the case in Britain. During the 2007 floods in the West Country abandoned cars were broken into and free packs of bottled water were stolen. There was looting in Chile after the earthquake last year – so much so that troops were sent in; in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina saw looting on a shocking scale.

Why do some cultures react to disaster by reverting to everyone for himself, but others – especially the Japanese – display altruism even in adversity?

Wow!! Well, they truly are a different culture. Even their respect for the elderly, far surpasses anything in this country. I think the answer to that is just a culture of respect. Something that countries such as ours, just continue to decline in, sadly.

[Rhiannon]

Oh geez ...!! Japan is one of our strongest allies!!

Yeah, but tell that to some old WWII vets! They may have been forced to forgive in some cases, but they didn't forget. .

We probably wouldn't either if we had been there ...or lived it!!
I remember hating Vietnam as a youngster and not really knowing/understanding why?!

Because LBJ wanted a war.

[I]t is not simply that there is a different story as to what happened; it is that no attack happened that night. [...] In truth, Hanoi's navy was engaged in nothing that night but the salvage of two of the boats damaged on August 2.

(From a declassified document in 2005 by the NSA's archives regarding the Gulf of Tonkin incident that gave LBJ carte blanche to go to war.)

[Deb]

Miracle of the baby girl plucked from the rubble: Four-month-old reunited with her father after incredible rescue

Thank you, I think I needed to read that. I saw on the news last night, them talking to a mother that lost her daughter in the rushing water, she had her by the hand/wrist, but physically could not hold on any longer and she washed away.......it just broke my heart. Couldn't even imagine losing my daughter that way.

[Rick]

Man, they're saying this nuclear episode over there could easily be worse than Chernobyl. Especially worse for the U.S. because the jet stream will carry the radiation right to us.

I'm not worried - it's just a little ass tickling, according to Parfait...

Seriously, fucked up how fragile everything is...

Yeah, and we did this one to ourselves.

Are you saying we shouldn't be using nuclear power?

I don't think we should be using it if it can't be used safely. But I just read where a nuclear expert in San Diego said that this event will not be anything like Chernobyl. Chernobyl didn't even have a containment structure in place, and when it went off, all of that stuff was just shot into the atmosphere. He's saying the situation in Japan isn't like that. So hopefully they have it contained, and it does look like there are new safeguards in place.

[Don]

China and India will be expanding their nuclear power programs regardless as they just have too many people that need electricity. Other countries like Japan, The U.S., Canada and many in the EU are slowly trying to switch to alternate sources like Wind and Solar but it's still quite expensive, though the cost is SLOWLY coming down.

[SF-Dano]

Another interesting fact. There has been no looting in Japan during the horrific event, where during Katrina everyone was out to get whatever they could!!

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/edwes ... -in-japan/

Why is there no looting in Japan?
By Ed West World Last updated: March 14th, 2011

Respect for property even in the middle of disaster (Photo: EPA)
The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.

And solidarity seems especially strong in Japan itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is its social strength, with supermarkets cutting prices and vending machine owners giving out free drinks as people work together to survive. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.

This is quite unusual among human cultures, and it’s unlikely it would be the case in Britain. During the 2007 floods in the West Country abandoned cars were broken into and free packs of bottled water were stolen. There was looting in Chile after the earthquake last year – so much so that troops were sent in; in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina saw looting on a shocking scale.

Why do some cultures react to disaster by reverting to everyone for himself, but others – especially the Japanese – display altruism even in adversity?

Not sure what the penalty is for looting in Japan . I am sure it is worse than here in the US. (Death?) I would think this is a major factor also in why there may not be any looting going on. If you are caught on tape somehow or proved to be a looter, I am sure the penalty is pretty harsh there.

[brandonx76]

Probably because they're not degenerate scum bags...

[Don]

Another interesting fact. There has been no looting in Japan during the horrific event, where during Katrina everyone was out to get whatever they could!!

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/edwes ... -in-japan/

Why is there no looting in Japan?
By Ed West World Last updated: March 14th, 2011

Respect for property even in the middle of disaster (Photo: EPA)
The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.

And solidarity seems especially strong in Japan itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is its social strength, with supermarkets cutting prices and vending machine owners giving out free drinks as people work together to survive. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.

This is quite unusual among human cultures, and it’s unlikely it would be the case in Britain. During the 2007 floods in the West Country abandoned cars were broken into and free packs of bottled water were stolen. There was looting in Chile after the earthquake last year – so much so that troops were sent in; in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina saw looting on a shocking scale.

Why do some cultures react to disaster by reverting to everyone for himself, but others – especially the Japanese – display altruism even in adversity?

Not sure what the penalty is for looting in Japan . I am sure it is worse than here in the US. (Death?) I would think this is a major factor also in why there may not be any looting going on. If you are caught on tape somehow or proved to be a looter, I am sure the penalty is pretty harsh there.

That is entirely not it. Japan mirrors the US with a lot of laws as their constitution was put together by an American to begin with (MacArthur). It's more about the way they have been brought up. Looting is about the individual and doesn't help the group or society in any way. Japan has been having a rebirth of nationalistic pride over the last few years. For many of them their patriotism is even greater than what we as Americans like to boast about so doing something like looting (which is still occurring over there, I'm sure, just not on a large scale) would bring a lot of shame to whoever got caught doing it. Most of the Japanese people WON'T turn a blind cheek to it, unlike here where if it's not our stuff being stolen, we could care less.

[Saint John]

Wow!! Well, they truly are a different culture. Even their respect for the elderly, far surpasses anything in this country. I think the answer to that is just a culture of respect.

... and no black people.

[S2M]

China and India will be expanding their nuclear power programs regardless as they just have too many people that need electricity. Other countries like Japan, The U.S., Canada and many in the EU are slowly trying to switch to alternate sources like Wind and Solar but it's still quite expensive, though the cost is SLOWLY coming down.

The problem with wind and solar is it really only helps the immediate area of the solar arrays, and the wind farms...

[Clasicrockldy]

Oh geez ...!! Japan is one of our strongest allies!!

Yeah, but tell that to some old WWII vets! They may have been forced to forgive in some cases, but they didn't forget. .

We probably wouldn't either if we had been there ...or lived it!!
I remember hating Vietnam as a youngster and not really knowing/understanding why?!

There s little thing about the French being in Vietnam at one time.... and when they couldn't handle the civil unrest there, they eventually split the country when France's cracked military paratroopers surrendered. France left Vietnam in 1954..For more information, read this..





http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/vietnam.htm

[S2M]

Governor of Tokyo says that disaster is a Punishment from Heaven for being too greedy..... He can't be serious.

[brandonx76]

Governor of Tokyo says that disaster is a Punishment from Heaven for being too greedy..... He can't be serious.

I saw that on the ticker line on faux news during Glen Beck which I never watch (I was at the gym, and, though I tried to listen, I watched Glen detailing the inner workings of a reactor on his trusty chalkboard of truthiness), I'd like to suggest that statement is verified - and not grossly misinterpreted..The Japanese language doesn't typically translate word for word...It was only a matter of time before someone would claim God's wrath..

[brandonx76]

Re: That picture which shows fall-out blowing to the West Coast appears to have been debunked...

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badas ... tronomy%29

[Voyager]

Re: That picture which shows fall-out blowing to the West Coast appears to have been debunked...

Wall Street Journal - March 14, 2011

Supplies of potassium iodide, a preventive against radiation poisoning of the thyroid gland, are running low at some manufacturers, as Americans seek protection amid fears that radiation from Japan could head to the U.S., according to the companies.

One leading supplier, Anbex Inc., quickly sold out of its supply of more than 10,000 14-tablet packages on Saturday, said Alan Morris, president of the Williamsburg, Va., company.

He said the closely held firm was getting about three orders a minute for $10 packages of its Iosat pills, up from as few as three a week normally.

"Those who don't get it are crying. They're terrified," said Mr. Morris. The company tells callers that the likelihood of dangerous levels of radiation reaching the U.S. is low, but some callers, particularly on the West Coast, remain afraid, Mr. Morris said.

Interest is also high at Fleming Pharmaceuticals, a St. Louis County company that makes potassium iodide in liquid form. "It actually has been insanity here," said Deborah Fleming Wurdack, a co-owner.

The company hasn't accounted for all the recent orders, but Ms. Wurdack estimates the firm is getting dozens of calls an hour, along with emails, requesting the 45-milliliter ThyroShield bottles, which sell for $13.25 each.

Fleming Pharmaceuticals still has supply, but it expects to run out this week, Ms. Wurdack said. It is already planning to make a new round of the bottles, and to order the eyedroppers needed to dispense the solution.

Radioactive iodine can be accidentally released from a nuclear reactor.

Infants are especially at risk of injury, as are young children and people with small amounts of iodine in their thyroid.

Yet the risk is thought to be low that radiation released in Japan will reach the U.S. at dangerous levels. California and Washington state, for instance, have been reassuring residents that monitoring hasn't detected any harmful levels of radiation, and they don't it expect to.

"Japan has an evacuation area of about 12 miles from the nuclear plants. Washington state is 5,000 to 6,000 miles away from Japan," said Tim Church, a spokesman for the Washington State Department of Health.

Likewise, California's Department of Public Health has been advising residents to resist taking precautionary measures like buying potassium iodide, said spokesman Mike Sicilia.

The drug could cause side effects in people who are allergic to shellfish or suffer from thyroid problems, Mr. Sicilia said.

But the public-health agencies said they had been fielding calls from people asking if they should buy potassium iodide.

The drug information center at the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics has also been receiving inquiries today from people asking about potassium iodide, said Erin Fox, manager of the organization's drug information service.

Purchase of potassium iodide doesn't require a prescription, Ms. Fox said.

Potassium iodide is a salt that stops the body from taking in radioactive iodine that can be emitted during a nuclear emergency.

It fills up the thyroid gland, preventing it from collecting the radioactive material and reducing the risk of cancer, among other things.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission says evacuation is the best protection, since it protects the entire body, but taking the medicine is helpful if that isn't possible.

The NRC has asked states with residents living within a 10-mile radius of a nuclear-power plant to consider potassium iodide, but hasn't ordered states to make the purchases.

Fleming has received orders from some states that are worried because their stockpiles of potassium iodide will expire in the near future, Ms. Wurdack said. Also making orders, she added, were hospitals and pharmacies.

[bluejeangirl76]

Kinda funny that we're all worried about radiation wafting over from Japan... we didn't worry about in '45 when we bombed the crap out of them.

[brandonx76]

Hey Voyager - how'd you get that article from April 15th?

[Voyager]

Hey Voyager - how'd you get that article from April 15th?

Early April Fools joke. However, this doesn't sound like a joke:

The former chief responsible for the safety of reactors in the German environment department, Wolfgang Renneberg, was cited by the German news agency Dpa on Monday, March 14, that the whole of the radioactive material of the affected Fukushima I reactors could be set free due to damage done to the structures containing it,[20] which he estimated to be more than what has been set free at the Chernobyl catastrophe in 1986, but that, on the other side, no fire would probably carry these dangerous substances as high up into the atmosphere and as far away as that happened in Chernobyl.[20]

David A. Lochbaum of the Union of Concerned Scientists pointed to the fact that pools holding spent fuel rods in the top level of the reactor buildings could set free even bigger quantities of hazardous substances and blow these high up into the atmosphere, if they should not be managed to be kept cooled at their position close to the affected reactors so that the old rods would ignite.

[Voyager]

Kinda funny that we're all worried about radiation wafting over from Japan... we didn't worry about in '45 when we bombed the crap out of them.

Let's hope it's not karma sending it back.

[slucero]

Fire at 4th reactor.....

Japan: New radiation leaks harmful to health

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ap_on_bi_ge/ ... ear_crisis

43 mins ago

SOMA, Japan – Radiation is spewing from damaged reactors at a crippled nuclear power plant in tsunami-ravaged northeastern Japan in a dramatic escalation of the 4-day-old catastrophe. The prime minister has warned residents to stay inside or risk getting radiation sickness.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Tuesday that a fourth reactor at the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex was on fire and that more radiation was released
Prime Minister Naoto Kan warned that there are dangers of more leaks and told people living within 19 miles (30 kilometers) of the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex stay indoors.


THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.


TOKYO (AP) — Japan's nuclear safety agency said an explosion Tuesday at an earthquake-damaged nuclear power plant may have damaged a reactor's containment vessel and that a radiation leak is feared.

The nuclear core of Unit 2 of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in northeast Japan was undamaged, said a spokesman for the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, Shigekazu Omukai.

The agency suspects the explosion early Tuesday may have damaged the reactor's suppression chamber, a water-filled tube at the bottom of the container that surrounds the nuclear core, said another agency spokesman, Shinji Kinjo. He said that chamber is part of the container wall, so damage to it could allow radiation to escape.

"A leak of nuclear material is feared," said another agency spokesman, Shinji Kinjo. He said the agency had no details of possible damage to the chamber.
Radiation levels measured at the front gate of the Dai-ichi plant spiked following Tuesday's explosion, Kinjo said.

Detectors showed 11,900 microsieverts of radiation three hours after the blast, up from just 73 microsieverts beforehand, Kinjo said. He said there was no immediate health risk because the higher measurement was less radiation that a person receives from an X-ray. He said experts would worry about health risks if levels exceed 100,000 microsieverts.

[Voyager]

The Wikipedia article about the Fukushima nuclear disaster is much more accurate than news reports.

Check this out... compare the Wiki articles from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and the Fukushima nuclear disaster:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_I_nuclear_accidents

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster

The Fukushima article is being updated as it happens. The similarities are freaky, and this could end up being Chernobyl times three or worse.

[Voyager]

This looks scary:



Wiki: "Doses of 200 to 1000 rems will likely cause serious illness with poor outlook at the upper end of the range. Doses of more than 1000 rems are almost invariably fatal."

[Rick]

We just blackballed the Japanese over the Toyota recall issue which, when after all the U.S. investigations were done found the problems to be not with the cars but with the drivers themselves. Of course the results were announced in a very low key manner and the damage to Toyota had already been done so why should a lack of American empathy in this situation be any surprise?

Do you think all is not truly forgiven, even though an ally, after WWII? My 11 year old daughter, who is the overly caring type normally. Normally emotional, about everything, asked me why our country is helping them, when they bombed Pearl Harbor. Because I guess they had learned about it in school. Which I explained it all to her. Not to mention the fact there are probably more Japanese in Hawaii now, than Americans or native Hawaiins. But I wonder, is this an American mentality in the adult world too? Or are there other reasons? Because it's not like they don't help any Asians. Look at Indonesia.

If anything, the Japanese should hate your fucking guts. Sure, they bombed Pearl Harbor. What you guys did was taking it to a whole new level. Fatman over Hiroshima and as well as a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki and not to mention the bombings of Tokyo. It did win the pacific wars though, but the bombings was a gay move.

Was it also a gay move when we fixed it so that you wouldn't have to speak German?

[slucero]

This looks scary:

I'm pretty sure that make is a hoax... http://focusonenergy.wordpress.com/2011 ... -map-fail/

[Voyager]

This looks scary:

I'm pretty sure that make is a hoax... http://focusonenergy.wordpress.com/2011 ... -map-fail/

You're right!

DISCLAIMER: Australian Radiation Services is aware of information about radioactive contamination being spread from the Japanese nuclear reactor incident released under the ARS logo and name. We wish to be clear that this information has not originated from ARS and as such distance ourselves from any such misinformation.

Probably some kid with Photoshop playing on fears.

[verslibre]

We just blackballed the Japanese over the Toyota recall issue which, when after all the U.S. investigations were done found the problems to be not with the cars but with the drivers themselves. Of course the results were announced in a very low key manner and the damage to Toyota had already been done so why should a lack of American empathy in this situation be any surprise?

Do you think all is not truly forgiven, even though an ally, after WWII? My 11 year old daughter, who is the overly caring type normally. Normally emotional, about everything, asked me why our country is helping them, when they bombed Pearl Harbor. Because I guess they had learned about it in school. Which I explained it all to her. Not to mention the fact there are probably more Japanese in Hawaii now, than Americans or native Hawaiins. But I wonder, is this an American mentality in the adult world too? Or are there other reasons? Because it's not like they don't help any Asians. Look at Indonesia.

If anything, the Japanese should hate your fucking guts. Sure, they bombed Pearl Harbor. What you guys did was taking it to a whole new level. Fatman over Hiroshima and as well as a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki and not to mention the bombings of Tokyo. It did win the pacific wars though, but the bombings was a gay move.

Was it also a gay move when we fixed it so that you wouldn't have to speak German?

"Vive le Deutschland! Oui! Oui!"

[StevePerryHair]

Kinda funny that we're all worried about radiation wafting over from Japan... we didn't worry about in '45 when we bombed the crap out of them.

Let's hope it's not karma sending it back.

Except NO ONE will suffer the effects of this the way the people in Japan will. They are the ones who will suffer. Not our country, whose exposure will be minimal. That's not karma. It's just sad.