Re: Nuclear issues and role of public opinion thread

Along the lines of Stewart Farber's comments, I got an interesting insight

into public opinion from an attorney friend. He contends that policy

decisions -- and opinions, if you will -- become divorced from any rationale

that may have spawned them. He contended further that his anti-nuke

colleagues really don't concern themselves with facts once they have made up

their minds to support a particular policy. In sum: they are anti-nuke

because it's part of their political viewpoint (my friend does not support

this, by the way).

I think there is a lot to this. Moreover, it tells me that no matter how

much we trumpet the safety, etc. of nuclear power, the fallacies of the LNT,

or the advantages of nuclear medicine, or how dumbed-down our explanations

are, it is not going to make any difference to people who take an essentially

political or policy position and then proceed to ignore facts that contradict

that position. (hey out there, if the shoe fits...)

A policy position not grounded in reality is irrational, as is "risk

perception" that is not grounded in some real-life estimate of risk.

Decisions made on the basis of such policy are generally bad decisions. We

can all think of non-nuke examples.

I submit we should quit pandering to the anti-nukes and those who blindly

subscribe to an anti-nuke agenda, we should stop "feeling their pain," stop

"trying to explain in words you lay people understand," and just say bluntly

that the anti-nuclear leadership ignores facts and is deliberately

disingenuous in order to support a policy decision. Incidentally, I have

tried this, and people listen. I am truly a liberal in everything but

radiation and hazardous chemical issues, and perhaps that gives me

credibility with certain people.

Finally, I deplore making a partisan political issue out of the nuclear

endeavor. Science and engineering should not be partisan issues.

Short rant -- I hope.

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