Re: perception and reality, my foot

["Michael G. Stabin" <michael.g.stabin@vanderbilt.edu>]

> Dismissing people with concerns as stupid or inferior will only

> reenforce their fears.

> ...those who want to continue their elitist and condescending approach to

public concerns:



As noted by others, however, and I agree, the overreaction was not so much

by "the public", but by those who dispatched hundreds of emergency workers

to pick up a box of dirty tools off the roadway (thanks for the correction,

Rick). Perception is not reality by a long shot. In my post, there were only

words copied from web pages, but under those words was a reality. Two human

beings died in an inferno caused by a truck crash in Orlando and six other

human beings were crushed and mangled to death in Oklahoma by a truck

carrying peaches. These people were probably horribly frightened and

suffered pain before they died. Their families and friends had to attend a

funeral. Their beds at home and perhaps desks at work are now vacant. That's

reality. In the low level rad waste incident, absolutely no one was harmed,

but officials massively overreacted and scared the public. Then the

disingenuous politicos jumped on the situation to show how "inherently

dangerous" the whole nuclear industry is, and tried to tie it to Yucca

Mountain. Did these same critics suggest that we also shut down the

petroleum and peach industries? Noting this is not elitist or condescending,

it's just an attempt to state the point that the reactions were

inappropriate, and that things shouldn't happen that way in the future.



Mike



Michael G. Stabin, PhD, CHP

Assistant Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences

Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences

Vanderbilt University

1161 21st Avenue South

Nashville, TN 37232-2675

Phone (615) 343-0068

Fax   (615) 322-3764

e-mail     michael.g.stabin@vanderbilt.edu

internet   www.doseinfo-radar.com





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