High Levels of Radiation Detected in Vegetables, Unprocessed Milk, Water, and Soil Unnecessary Radiation Exposure Imposed Due to Japanese Government’s Lack of Evacuation Plan and “Declaration of Safety”
Subjects Archives: Ecology
Marxist Ecology, Environmental Science and Ecological Crisis
We Demand Rapid Evacuation of People Threatened with Radioactive Materials from Fukushima Nuclear Plants
March 20, 2011 We Urge the Japanese Government to Take the Following Actions Regarding the Crisis at the Fukushima Nuclear Plants: Despite strenuous efforts, there is an increasing danger that large amounts of radioactive material might be released from Unit No. 3, which is loaded with fuel containing plutonium. We are particularly concerned about […]
Monday Update on Fukushima Reactors
As of 11:30 pm EDT Monday 3/14/11 Three of the six reactors at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear facility were operating at the time of the earthquake — Units 1, 2, and 3. The reactors shut down when the earthquake hit, but even after they stopped producing power, the reactor cores were very hot and […]
On the Blast at the Fukushima Plant Seen on YouTube
Corrected Comments on Fukushima Please note that my comments on 3/12, yesterday, were significantly in error as noted below: 1. The gases released in the YouTube video are steam. 2. This steam is not from a secondary water loop because these plants are not designed as pressurized water but are the boiling water type. […]
On the Nuclear and Earthquake Disaster Unfolding in Japan
The Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) is deeply concerned for the health and safety of the people affected by the earthquakes and tsunamis that have struck Japan over the last two days. We are particularly concerned for the people in the vicinity of nuclear power plants, including workers who are trying to minimize the […]
福島原発: チェルノブイリなら、２０キロ圏では不十分
日本政府は「１０キロ圏出れば大丈夫」だと今日まで言いはっていた。日本のマスコミもそう報道していた。政府とマスコミは、今になってやっと「２０キロ圏」と言いはじめている。国際メディアでは、科学者たちは福島原発の安全策不発の報道後直ちにスリーマイルや チェルノブイリのような事故の可能性を指摘していた。日本国民はどっちを信じるべきか？ 世界の科学者？ それとも金権主義の政治家と官僚と彼らの言いなりになる日本のマスコミ？ チェルノブイリなら、２０キロ圏では不十分。ソ連は３０キロ圏の住人を避難させたが、それでも不十分だったのだ。 「ソビエトの科学者の報告によると、28,000km2が185kBq/m2を超えるセシウム-137に汚染した。約83万人がこの区域に住んでいた。約10,500km2が555kBq/m2を越えるセシウム-137に汚染した。このうち、ベラルーシに7,000km2、ロシア連邦に2,000km2、ウクライナに1,500km2が属する。約25万人がこの区域に住んでいた。これらの報告データは国際チェルノブイリプロジェクトにより裏付けられた。」 福島はチェルノブイリよりも危険だろうという声もある。 日本政府と日本のマスコミが言ってることを丸呑みにしないで。チェルノブイリを考えて、市民で助け合って、避難したほうがいい。 古橋芳恵はMRZineの編集長。 Cf. Nuclear Information and Resource Service, “Fact Sheet on Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant” (11 March 2011); Union of Concerned Scientists, “Nuclear Crisis in Japan: What We Know” (11 March 2011); Philip White, “On the Nuclear and Earthquake Disaster Unfolding in Japan” (12 March 2011); Edwin […]
Fact Sheet on Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant
Excerpt: Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center, a Japanese environmental group, has documented previous safety problems and cover-ups by Tepco at the Fukushima reactor complex: cnic.jp/english/newsletter/nit92/nit92articles/ nit92coverupdata.html Full Text: * * * MRZine Editor’s Notes Update 1 The evacuation area around the Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant has now been expanded to a 10 km radius […]
The World Food Crisis
While the advanced capitalist countries are hit by an acute crisis of recession and unemployment, the developing world is facing, apart from the fallout of this crisis, an acute food crisis. Hunger afflicts the developing world today with a virulence not seen in decades. World food prices, not just in nominal but in real terms […]
Interview with John Tully, Author of The Devil’s Milk: A Social History of Rubber
Why, of all possible commodities, did you choose to write a book on rubber? The Devil’s Milk: A Social History of Rubber” width=”260″ height=”393″ border=”0″ title=”BUY THIS BOOK”>THE DEVIL’S MILK: A Social History of Rubberby John Tully BUY THIS BOOK The Devil’s Milk: A Social History of Rubber Book Launch with author John Tully Tuesday, […]
Egypt’s Uprising: Not Just a Question of ‘Transition’
The events of the last weeks are one of those historical moments where the lessons of many decades can be telescoped into a few brief moments and seemingly minor occurrences can take on immense significance. The entry of millions of Egyptians onto the political stage has graphically illuminated the real processes that underlie the politics […]
The Great Recession and Its Aftermath: Causes vs. Symptoms
There is much confusion about the current economic situation, among left media and organizations as well as in the mainstream media. This is certainly understandable given its complexity. But what many are referring to as causes are symptoms of a deeper underlying problem — in other words, sparks that produced the Great Recession by igniting […]
Frenzy in Food Markets
So now we are back in another phase of sharply rising global food prices, which is wreaking further devastation on populations in developing countries that have already been ravaged for several years of rising prices and falling employment chances. The food price index of the FAO in December 2010 surpassed its previous peak of June […]
The Tidal Wave of Nonsense on Demography
The debate over the demographic trends in the United States and other wealthy countries can be described a debate between those who care about our children and those who want more of them. This is apparent once a little bit of logic is applied to the tales of demographic disaster being hawked by those concerned […]
Public Works and Wages in Rural India
The “small round” surveys of the NSSO are usually not considered to be so good at capturing trends, because their smaller size makes them non-comparable with the quinquennial large surveys. However, the 64th Round was a much larger survey than normal (with a sample of 1,25,578 households: 79,091 in rural areas and 46,487 in urban […]
India: Growth for Whom?
The year 2010 would be remembered as a scam-tainted year when allegations of corruption, both public and private, were difficult to keep track of. Overwhelmed by these allegations, the government has attempted to focus on the fact that India is among the fastest growing countries in the world. But even that boastful claim has been […]
The Battle against Cholera
I am taking a second, between various important analyses that are currently taking up my time, to refer to two issues that should be known to our people. The United Nations, at the instigation of the United States, the creator of poverty and chaos in the Haitian Republic, decided to send into Haiti its forces […]
Decoding Economic Ideology
Introduction Molière’s 1670 his play, The Bourgeois Gentleman, presented before the court of Louis XIV, mocked a foolish, social-climbing merchant. In his effort to remake himself, the merchant takes lessons to help him pass as an aristocrat. In a basic lesson on language, he is both surprised and delighted to learn he had been speaking […]
The President and the Climate: Reflections on Progressive Obama Delusion and a Curious Line in Bill McKibben’s Eaarth
Just what did Barack Obama and his spinners do to the critical faculties of so many leading American progressives? Some of my regular readers might be surprised to know that I often bring a significant measure of disinclination to my recurrent radical criticism of President Barack Obama and his “progressive” defenders. The reluctance stems […]
The Twilight of Capitalism?
In recent years, radical geographer David Harvey has emerged as one of the leading theorists and popularizers of Marxian political economy in the English-speaking world. In books such as The New Imperialism and A Brief History of Neoliberalism, as well as his popular online courses in Volume I of Marx’s Capital, Harvey has articulated a […]
The Equitable Sharing of Atmospheric and Development Space: Some Critical Aspects
Excerpt: In the quest for an international agreement on actions to address the climate change crisis, three aspects have to be the basis simultaneously: The environmental imperative, to prevent the climate from changing to the extent that would have disastrous consequences. The developmental imperative, in that developing countries have the needs and goals of eradicating […]
