OH DEAR: Second Explosion At Japanese Nuclear Power Plant
Good morning, everything is terrible! With reported deaths climbing steadily after the awful 3/11 earthquake, Japanese authorities are frantically trying to prevent a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. A second explosion at the plant blew the roof off a containment building, and the cooling systems are inoperable at a third reactor. To prevent a Serious Meltdown, Japanese reactor operators have employed an "emergency cooling process," which involves "flooding two stricken reactors with seawater" and then "periodically releasing radioactive steam." The Japanese insist that containment walls have prevented widespread contamination, but U.S. aircraft carriers are apparently detecting low levels of radiation more than 100 miles away. Also, food shortages have been reported in Tokyo. This is the worst.TRAGIC UPDATE via Reuters/ CNN: "About 2,000 bodies were found on Monday on two shores of Miyagi prefecture in northeast Japan." [ NYT / BBC ]
Our corporate-controlled media had a friendly bull session with Barack Obama at the annual Gridiron Club/ Operation Mockingbird snob potluck. At least someone's having fun! [ The Caucus ]
A top State Department spokesman resigned after calling the treatment of Bradley Manning "counterproductive and stupid." [ McClatchy ]
Notorious conspiracy crank Alex Jones offers this advice: <i>Because of the fear that the radiation from the Japanese nuclear meltdowns will hit the Western United states (see this and this), potassium iodide has sold out in most health food and supplement stores in many California, Oregon and Washington locations. But taking potassium iodide when there is no radiation can actually damage the thyroid gland &hellip; at least in some individuals. A doctor told me that potassium iodide is given to people with hyperthyroid disease in order to partially kill the thyroid &ndash; i.e. to lower thyroid function.</i>
And buy gold. And ammo. And vegetable seeds.
Remember how Geraldo bust into some gangster&#039;s tomb/hiding place? We should do something similar with O&#039;Queef...like lowering him into the containment vessel from a helicopter.
That&#039;s the hard-hitting, cutting edge journalism we need today.