[ RadSafe ] The Campaign to Keep People Ignorant of Naturally Occurring Radiation Continues

Wed Jan 3 15:18:39 CST 2018

Perhaps better to discuss strategies for dealing with the public who are
afraid of what they do not understand/know more so than simply sharing
"this person sucks" stories?  It's not like they aren't spreading more
misinformation of a sort that isn't already fairly prevalent as it is (most
of what I've seen, I've already seen somewhere spread across the disturbing
"real news" of Facebook as "Terrifying!  Click or Die!!  Will we all be
dead soon!?!?" type nonsense (which may be where a lot of these folks are
getting their "factual information" to then go out and spread their
"informed" and "factual" information to the masses in order to "help" and
"make a difference" and "be a hero").

I've tried reporting the worst and most egregious offenders to FB, but that
gets me almost nowhere (freedom of speech is a-ok for completely false and
even potentially harmful and dangerous to the public information, unless
they say mean things about someone of a "protected identity," apparently,
according to the only actual human I was able to get in touch with, because
I cannot conclusively prove that their false information will cause
*quantifiable* physical harm).

On Wed, Jan 3, 2018 at 4:12 PM, Jason Meade <meadeja at vcu.edu> wrote:

> I apologize.  I misunderstood.  Been seeing these spreading everywhere,
> and they get on my nerves considerably.  I don't need to see them here as
> well.  They all seem to be the same old, same old misinformation (or at
> least the similar distract/distort tack).
>
> Have enough trouble playing "wack-a-mole" as it is.  Just seemed like I
> found another mole popping up where I least expected/wanted one.
>
> On Wed, Jan 3, 2018 at 3:04 PM, Delvan Neville <dnevill at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> It isn't. Its just Roger forwarding on these sorts of blog posts, and I
>> believe he intends to stop. He's been sharing them because he is outraged
>> by them, not endorsing them, and thought they would foster discussion
>> here.
>>
>> On Wed, 3 Jan 2018, 6:02 am Jason Meade, <meadeja at vcu.edu> wrote:
>>
>> > When did this group become a rabid anti-nuclear and F everyone who
>> tries to
>> > bring perspective into the discussion listserv?
>> >
>> > On Thu, Dec 21, 2017 at 4:01 AM, Roger Helbig <rwhelbig at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>> >
>> > > Jim Green exposes the nuclear lobby’s lies about bananas
>> > >
>> > > by Christina MacPherson
>> > >
>> > > “The more the nuclear industry claims eating plutonium, strontium,
>> > > cesium, iodine and other fuel and fission products is OK because
>> > > bananas exist and because the potassium is a needed nutrient, the more
>> > > I consider them to be blatant liars.”
>> > >
>> > > The Banana Equivalent Dose of catastrophic nuclear accidents, Jim
>> > > Green, Online Opinion, 20 December 2017,
>> > > http://onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=19475&page=0
>> > >
>> > > The ‘Nuclear for Climate’ lobby group recently attended the United
>> > > Nations’ COP23 climate conference armed with bananas, in order to make
>> > > specious comparisons between radiation exposures from eating bananas
>> > > and routine emissions from nuclear power plants.
>> > >
>> > > One of the reasons the comparison is specious is that some exposures
>> > > are voluntary, others aren’t. Australian academic Prof. Barry Brook
>> > > said in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster: “People don’t
>> > > understand that they live in an environment that is awash with
>> > > radiation and they make decisions every day which affect their
>> > > radiation dose ‒ they hop on an airplane or eat a banana or sit close
>> > > to the TV.” True ‒ but people choose to hop on an airplane or eat a
>> > > banana or sit close to the TV, whereas radiation doses from nuclear
>> > > plants and nuclear accidents are usually involuntary.
>> > >
>> > > Another reason why the comparison made by ‘Nuclear for Climate’ is
>> > > specious is that it ignores spikes in radioactive emissions during
>> > > reactor refueling. Radiation biologist Dr Ian Fairlie notes that when
>> > > nuclear reactors are refueled, a 12-hour spike in radioactive
>> > > emissions exposes local people to levels of radioactivity up to 500
>> > > times greater than during normal operation. The spikes may explain
>> > > infant leukemia increases near nuclear plants − but operators provide
>> > > no warnings and take no measures to reduce exposures.
>> > >
>> > > The comparison between bananas and nuclear power plants also ignores
>> > > the spike in emissions and radiation doses following catastrophic
>> > > accidents. So, what’s the Banana Equivalent Dose (yes, that’s a thing)
>> > > of the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters?
>> > >
>> > > According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the
>> > > collective effective dose from Chernobyl was 600,000 person-Sieverts.
>> > > The UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation
>> > > estimates radiation exposure from the Fukushima disaster at 48,000
>> > > person-Sieverts.
>> > >
>> > > Combined, exposure from Chernobyl and Fukushima is estimated at
>> > > 648,000 person-Sieverts. Exposure from eating a banana is estimated at
>> > > between 0.09-2.3 microSieverts. Let’s use a figure of 0.1 microSievert
>> > > per banana. Thus, exposure from Chernobyl and Fukushima equates to
>> > > 6,480,000,000,000 Banana Equivalent Doses ‒ that’s 6.48 trillion
>> > > bananas or, if you prefer, 6.48 terabananas or 6,480 gigabananas.
>> > >
>> > > End-to-end, that many 15-cm (6-inch) bananas would stretch 972 million
>> > > kilometres ‒ far enough to reach the sun 6.5 times over, or the moon
>> > > 2,529 times over.
>> > >
>> > > Potassium cycle
>> > >
>> > > Another reason the comparison made by ‘Nuclear for Climate’ is
>> > > specious is explained by Dr Gordon Edwards from the Canadian Coalition
>> > > for Nuclear Responsibility:
>> > >
>> > > “[T]he body already has a lot of “natural” potassium including K-40
>> > > [which is unavoidable], and any new “natural” potassium ingested is
>> > > balanced by eliminating a comparable amount of “natural” potassium to
>> > > maintain the “homeostasis” of the body. In other words the body’s own
>> > > mechanisms will not allow for a net increase in potassium levels – and
>> > > therefore will not allow for an increase in K-40 content in the body.
>> > >
>> > > “Here’s what the Oak Ridge Associated Universities has to say; (ORAU
>> > > was founded in 1946 as the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies.):
>> > > ‘The human body maintains relatively tight homeostatic control over
>> > > potassium levels. This means that the consumption of foods containing
>> > > large amounts of potassium will not increase the body’s potassium
>> > > content. As such, eating foods like bananas does not increase your
>> > > annual radiation dose. If someone ingested potassium that had been
>> > > enriched in K-40, that would be another story.’
>> > >
>> > > “The same argument does not work for radioactive caesium, or for any
>> > > of the radioactive pollutants given off by a nuclear power plant,
>> > > because most of these materials do not exist in nature at all – and
>> > > those that do exist in nature are not subject to the same homeostatic
>> > > mechanism that the body uses to control potassium levels. Consequently
>> > > any foodstuffs or beverages containing radioactive caesium or other
>> > > man-made radioactive pollutants will cause an additional annual dose
>> > > of ionizing radiation to the person so exposed.”
>> > >
>> > > Likewise, Linda Gunter explained in a 16 November 2017 article:
>> > >
>> > > “At the COP23 Climate Talks currently underway in Bonn, a group
>> > > calling itself Nuclear for Climate, wants you to slip on their false
>> > > banana propaganda and fall for their nonsensically unscientific notion
>> > > that bananas are actually more dangerous than nuclear power plants! I
>> > > am not making this up. Here is the picture.
>> > >
>> > > “The oxymoronic Nuclear for Climate people are handing out bananas
>> > > complete with a sticker that reads: “This normal, every-day banana is
>> > > more radioactive than living near a nuclear power plant for one year.”
>> > > …
>> > >
>> > > “If you smell something rotten in this banana business, you are right.
>> > > So let’s peel off the propaganda right now. In short, when you eat a
>> > > banana, your body’s level of potassium-40 doesn’t increase. You just
>> > > get rid of some excess potassium-40. The net dose of a banana is zero.
>> > >
>> > > “To explain in more detail, the tiny radiation exposure due to eating
>> > > a banana lasts only for a few hours after ingestion, namely the time
>> > > it takes for the normal potassium content of the body to be regulated
>> > > by the kidneys. Since our bodies are under homeostatic control, the
>> > > body’s level of potassium-40 doesn’t increase after eating a banana.
>> > > The body just gets rid of some excess potassium-40.
>> > >
>> > > “The banana bashers don’t want you to know this and instead try to
>> > > pretend that the potassium in bananas is the same as the genuinely
>> > > dangerous man-made radionuclides â€’ such as cesium-137 and
>> > > strontium-90 â€’ that are released into our environment from nuclear
>> > > power facilities, from atomic bomb tests and from accidents like
>> > > Fukushima and Chernobyl.
>> > >
>> > > “These radioactive elements, unlike the potassium-40 in bananas, are
>> > > mistaken by the human body for more familiar elements. For example,
>> > > ingested radioactive strontium-90 replaces stable calcium, and
>> > > ingested radioactive cesium-137 replaces stable potassium. These
>> > > nuclides can lodge in bones and muscles and irradiate people from
>> > > within. This is internal radiation and can lead to very serious,
>> > > long-lasting and trans-generational health impacts.”
>> > >
>> > > An unfortunate incident in Goiania, Brazil in September 1987
>> > > illustrates the hazards of cesium-137, a fission product. Two people
>> > > stole a radiotherapy source from a disused medical clinic. A security
>> > > guard did not show up to work that day; he went instead to the cinema
>> > > to see ‘Herbie Goes Bananas‘. The radiotherapy source contained 93
>> > > grams of cesium-137. It was sold to a junkyard dealer. Many people
>> > > were exposed to the radioactive cesium and they spread the
>> > > contamination to other sites within and beyond the town. At least four
>> > > people died from exposure to the radiation source and, according to
>> > > the IAEA, “many others” suffered radiation injuries. Those injured
>> > > included eight patients who required surgical debridments, amputation
>> > > of the digital extremities and plastic skin grafts. The incident was
>> > > rated Level 5 (‘Accident with Off Site Risk’) on the 7-point
>> > > International Nuclear Event Scale.
>> > >
>> > > Terrorists don’t arm themselves with bananas
>> > >
>> > > There is a long history of nuclear power plants being used directly
>> > > and indirectly in support of nuclear weapons programs. Bananas are of
>> > > no interest to nuclear weapons proliferators. There’s no Treaty on the
>> > > Non-Proliferation of Bananas, no Comprehensive Test Banana Treaty, no
>> > > Anti-Banana Missile Treaty. Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump aren’t
>> > > threatening each other with bananas; not yet, at least.
>> > >
>> > > Nuclear historian Paul Langley notes that terrorists don’t arm
>> > > themselves with bananas:
>> > >
>> > > “The potassium cycle in humans is no excuse for nuclear authorities
>> > > anywhere on the planet to claim any benefit or natural precedent for
>> > > the marketing of nuclear industry emissions contaminated food.
>> > >
>> > > “The fission products are not nutrients. Do not eat them. The nuclear
>> > > industry promises to keep its radioactive sources sealed. When the
>> > > industry invariably fails in this undertaking, it turns around and
>> > > claims that the residue of its pollution is like a banana. Crap. The
>> > > residue is like the residue of a rad weapon. Fact. It’s the same
>> > > stuff. Terrorists do not attempt to arm themselves with bananas. They
>> > > are not dangerous.
>> > >
>> > > “Radio Strontium, Radio Iodine, Radio cesium have NO PLACE in food.
>> > > Nuke is not clean, it is not green and it relies on lies it has
>> > > concocted over decades. … The more the nuclear industry claims eating
>> > > plutonium, strontium, cesium, iodine and other fuel and fission
>> > > products is OK because bananas exist and because the potassium is a
>> > > needed nutrient, the more I consider them to be blatant liars.”
>> > >
>> > > Christina MacPherson | December 20, 2017 at 9:07 pm | Categories: 2
>> > > WORLD, Reference, spinbuster | URL: https://wp.me/phgse-yJH
>> > > :
>> > > http://nuclear-news.net/2017/12/20/jim-green-exposes-the-
>> > > nuclear-lobbys-lies-about-bananas/
>> > >
>> > > Thanks for flying with WordPress.com
>> > > _______________________________________________
>> > > You are currently subscribed to the RadSafe mailing list
>> > >
>> > > Before posting a message to RadSafe be sure to have read and
>> understood
>> > > the RadSafe rules. These can be found at: http://health.phys.iit.edu/
>> > > radsaferules.html
>> > >
>> > > For information on how to subscribe or unsubscribe and other settings
>> > > visit: http://health.phys.iit.edu
>> > >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > Thanks,
>> > Jason A Meade, AS, BS, MHSA, RRPT, R.T.(T)
>> > Senior Radiation Safety Specialist
>> > Virginia Commonwealth University
>> >
>> >
>> > Sanger Hall, B2-016
>> > 1101 East Marshall St
>> > PO Box 980112
>> > Richmond, VA 23298-0112
>> >
>> > meadeja at vcu.edu
>> >
>> > 330-347-0271 cell/work
>> > 804-828-0594 office
>> >
>> > "A society grows great
>> > when old men plant trees
>> > whose shade they know
>> > they shall never sit in."
>> > -Old Greek proverb
>> >
>> > "You call this bad? I'll tell you what bad is....
>> > Bad is passing test depth at 80 feet per second with a thirty degree
>> down
>> > bubble.
>> > Compared to that, this is a walk in the park."
>> > -Carlo Ciliberti
>> > _______________________________________________
>> > You are currently subscribed to the RadSafe mailing list
>> >
>> > Before posting a message to RadSafe be sure to have read and understood
>> > the RadSafe rules. These can be found at:
>> > http://health.phys.iit.edu/radsaferules.html
>> >
>> > For information on how to subscribe or unsubscribe and other settings
>> > visit: http://health.phys.iit.edu
>> >
>> _______________________________________________
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>
>
>
> --
> Thanks,
> Jason A Meade, AS, BS, MHSA, RRPT, R.T.(T)
> Senior Radiation Safety Specialist
> Virginia Commonwealth University
>
>
> Sanger Hall, B2-016
> 1101 East Marshall St
> PO Box 980112
> Richmond, VA 23298-0112
>
> meadeja at vcu.edu
>
> 330-347-0271 <(330)%20347-0271> cell/work
> 804-828-0594 <(804)%20828-0594> office
>
> "A society grows great
> when old men plant trees
> whose shade they know
> they shall never sit in."
> -Old Greek proverb
>
> "You call this bad? I'll tell you what bad is....
> Bad is passing test depth at 80 feet per second with a thirty degree down
> bubble.
> Compared to that, this is a walk in the park."
> -Carlo Ciliberti
>

-- 
Thanks,
Jason A Meade, AS, BS, MHSA, RRPT, R.T.(T)
Senior Radiation Safety Specialist
Virginia Commonwealth University

Sanger Hall, B2-016
1101 East Marshall St
PO Box 980112
Richmond, VA 23298-0112

meadeja at vcu.edu

330-347-0271 cell/work
804-828-0594 office

"A society grows great
when old men plant trees
whose shade they know
they shall never sit in."
-Old Greek proverb

"You call this bad? I'll tell you what bad is....
Bad is passing test depth at 80 feet per second with a thirty degree down
bubble.
Compared to that, this is a walk in the park."
-Carlo Ciliberti