Yesterday it was reported that the earthquake that rocked Japan was larger than initially thought. It has been upgraded to 9.0 [or 9.1 depending on where you get your information], making it the 4th largest in recorded history.
It has also been reported that four explosions at the nuclear plant may have devastating consequences for the region both in the short, and long term as radiation leaking from the plant is now confirmed. Officials in Japan told the International Atomic Energy Agency the fire in the Unit 4 storage pond was sending radioactivity "directly into the atmosphere."
As the Fukushima nuclear plant continues to spew radiation clouds into the atmosphere, it is quite likely that officials downplayed the possibility for extreme environmental damage, even as they urged the surrounding community of approximately 140,000 to "stay indoors."
Meanwhile, in this country...
On Sunday's Meet the Press, Senatemember Mitch McConnell continued to defend the possibility of constructing more nuclear plants in the United States, despite information coming from halfway around the world.
Given the rapidly changing information coming from the east, perhaps we should ignore his words and err on the side of caution. This is not about the short term effect of radiation on our planet, but the long term effect that is bound to happen at some point.
As Republicans continue to castigate the president for not moving forward with plans to drill for more oil in the Gulf (look at the potential for more "accidents" in that region of the country), they will now urge him to move forward with more nuclear plants, regardless of whether it's safe to build.
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