Japan has certainly taken one on the nose, and just about everywhere else, it would seem. Our hearts, thoughts, help and best wishes must go out to that nation, especially to all those directly affected. But do these catastrophes that came so rapidly, one after the other, form a lesson to be learned for all humankind?
When it comes to know-how and leading edge technology, Japan is all the way up there, at the top. It boasts some of the most eminent scientists in the world. Yet, as can be clearly seen by the nuclear power station disasters, they are no match against what Mother Nature can throw when she chooses to be evil. You can bet every safety device they could think of was built into those nuclear power plants. Nevertheless, they succumbed.
From the massive earthquake, the rapidly following tsunami, and those resultant failing power stations, we shall in the course of time hear many stories of bravery and heroes. It is also likely in the course of time we shall see some of these people dying dreadful deaths for their heroic actions.
Out of the seven hundred or so workers at the power plants, so far (as I write this) five have been killed, two are missing, and twenty-one have been injured. From the skimpy information released, it seems that at any one time there are fifty workers putting their lives on the line by trying to regain control of the horrendous situation – one, we should remember, not classed as a worse case scenario. The long-term fate of these heroes remains unclear, but after being bombarded in an hour with the amount of radiation expected in a year, it is not likely to be good. There may easily be women on the countdown to an early widowhood.
So, when we are told this unforeseen disaster is not as bad as it could have been, I have to ask: just what price are we prepared to pay for ‘clean’ energy?
Some politicians and scientists will tell you nuclear power is the only sensible way forward, but is that true? Why do we need it? The answer is easy, and indisputable. We need it to cope with the overpopulation the planet suffers – we could do with an extra third of the planet for the number of us already. It is also some of the reason for global warming and all of the reason why we need to consume food laced with chemical additives. Simply, there are too many people!
Millennia ago it started with the warring religions (still accountable for most deaths on Earth) encouraging huge families to bolster the numbers of their believers. The practice was soon taken up by tribal leaders (kings and emperors, if you like) to increase their strength and conquering capabilities, and then, as humankind became more ‘civilised’, by politicians. Still today, governments the world over encourage people to breed by paying them allowances. To see how ridiculous that is, maybe we need to stand back and take a long hard look. Plainly, today the need is to recompense those who do NOT breed! But, if it is that simple, why don’t we do it? The answer is equally as simple. Capitalistic societies rule the world, and capitalism can only survive in an ever-growing market.
We face a dilemma, and unless we can surmount it, as bad as Japan’s troubles are today, they will be as nothing to what our grandchildren will one day be confronting. I don’t claim to know the answer to our problems, but one thing is for sure: man is not king of this planet, to do with it as he will. Maybe when he realises that, lives as nature intended and only takes his rightful share of it, our prospects will improve. If we could only return to the population levels of little more than a century ago, with the technology around today, we could avoid the perils of nuclear power, feed the world better food, and any fears of climate change attributable to man would very soon disappear.
How do we get there? Answers on a coffin or a condom, please. The choice is yours.
