Of Disasters, Natural and Otherwise
Another anniversary...
I'm not sure why, but I have been very in tune to anniversaries of bad things lately. I remember Oklahoma City to the day and the most recent hit me on the subway yesterday. I was thinking of oil prices, energy costs and things related to that, and all of the sudden I remembered that Chernobyl happened in late April. "Could it be today?" I asked myself, because that would be weird. Turns out it was not yesterday, BUT 20 years TODAY. Really wacky.
So, while I'm here, some thoughts on this devastating disaster. The reactor explodes and sends radioactive fallout over a large part of the then Soviet Union - now Ukraine. I read a while back that people left their homes, possessions, pets and everything behind, hoping that they would one day be able to return to their lives. There is also apparently a kindergarten that is essentially "frozen in time". Dolls and toys left untouched for 20 years. No, people were not allowed back to towns like Pripyat, where many Chernobyl workers lived. It is a widely held belief that those type of towns will not be inhabitable for centuries. Centuries...
Two thoughts enter my mind now. First, as devastating and tragic as Katrina was here in the US, the area is not contaminated. It will take a great deal of time and money to bring it back to life, but this is America, the land of the impossible dream. A levee system like the one in Holland and we're set. I firmly believe that there will be a full population in that area long before the end of even this century.
Second, we need to explore all alternative energy sources. Make no mistake, the earth will run dry of oil one day. I am really not sure where I stand on the whole nuclear energy debate, but if we are smart enough to split an atom and contain the massive energy, we should be able to make it safe enough so that Chernobyl did not happen in vain.
I'm not sure why, but I have been very in tune to anniversaries of bad things lately. I remember Oklahoma City to the day and the most recent hit me on the subway yesterday. I was thinking of oil prices, energy costs and things related to that, and all of the sudden I remembered that Chernobyl happened in late April. "Could it be today?" I asked myself, because that would be weird. Turns out it was not yesterday, BUT 20 years TODAY. Really wacky.
So, while I'm here, some thoughts on this devastating disaster. The reactor explodes and sends radioactive fallout over a large part of the then Soviet Union - now Ukraine. I read a while back that people left their homes, possessions, pets and everything behind, hoping that they would one day be able to return to their lives. There is also apparently a kindergarten that is essentially "frozen in time". Dolls and toys left untouched for 20 years. No, people were not allowed back to towns like Pripyat, where many Chernobyl workers lived. It is a widely held belief that those type of towns will not be inhabitable for centuries. Centuries...
Two thoughts enter my mind now. First, as devastating and tragic as Katrina was here in the US, the area is not contaminated. It will take a great deal of time and money to bring it back to life, but this is America, the land of the impossible dream. A levee system like the one in Holland and we're set. I firmly believe that there will be a full population in that area long before the end of even this century.
Second, we need to explore all alternative energy sources. Make no mistake, the earth will run dry of oil one day. I am really not sure where I stand on the whole nuclear energy debate, but if we are smart enough to split an atom and contain the massive energy, we should be able to make it safe enough so that Chernobyl did not happen in vain.
posted by Jeremiah at 8:52 AM
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