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25 Mar 2011 17:35

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World: Japan Prime Minister on Fukushima: We’re not out of the woods yet

  • Don’t consider the situation at Fukushima settled just yet. That’s the message that Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, in his first statements on the matter in over a week, would like to make clear. “We are making efforts to prevent it from getting worse, but I feel we cannot become complacent,” he said. “We must continue to be on our guard.” Kan’s comments come in the wake of high instability at some of the plants — yesterday, two workers got radiation burns on their feet while working on Fukushima’s No. 3 unit, which is the most dangerous of the bunch due to its use of a mixture of uranium and plutonium. The situation led to fresh concerns about whether there might be a leak in that reactor. TEPCO officials are still looking for the cause of the high radiation levels. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Mar 2011 14:41

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World: Some uninspiring anecdotes on Japan’s nuclear record

  • one A Japanese nuclear plant had its workers mix uranium by hand in buckets, instead of using machines as it was supposed to. This somewhat predictably exposed hundreds to increased radiation, and two later died.
  • two Kei Sugaoka, now in California, used to be a plant engineer. He recalls being told to cut out video of the plant’s steam-leaking pipes before sending it for review. He told this to TEPCO, but no action was taken until he went public. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Jan 2011 10:45

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World: Ahmadinejad pretends to be willing to work on nuclear thing

  • If the other party is determined and committed to law, justice and respect, there is hope that in the next sessions good results would be achieved.
  • Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad • Blaming the people on the other side of the table for failing to make a nuclear deal happen. Because, let’s face it, he has to give a little bit of rope for the rest of the world to pull on, or they’re going to slip and fall – and never believe Ahmadinejad’s dishonesty again. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Jan 2011 11:52

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World: World diplomats don’t learn: Iran knows your silly fuel-swap games

  • then In 2009, world powers were trying to get Iran to export its supply of low-grade uranium to be turned into higher-grade fuel. Iran pretended they were into it but eventually rebuffed the offer.
  • now With a little less creativity than last time, world leaders are trying to do something similar with Iran’s now-much-larger supply (it’s like three times larger now). Iran, of course, continues to play coy. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 12:14

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World: Wikileaks, Stuxnet collide to create awesome article about Iran

  • Iran doesn’t have the bomb yet. But they’ve been trying really hard to get it, according to the latest round of data released from Wikileaks. The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, which reportedly has all 250,000 diplomatic cables, has been releasing them slowly but surely, and the latest one is kinda sorta a big deal. The cables portray it as kind of last-gasp attempt for Iran to jump-start its diplomatic prowess. “A race exists between the bomb and financial collapse,” one French nuclear expert explained in the cable. Some quick numbers:
  • 350 Iranian companies and groups were reportedly involved in the pursuit of nuclear technology
  • 30+ countries that have contacts Iran is trying to use to make this bomb thingy happen
  • no Iran doesn’t have much in the way of its own uranium, making their job tougher source
  • » Oh, and remember Stuxnet? That computer worm seemingly designed to damage Iran’s nuclear program was reportedly a American-Israeli joint, according to this here article by The New York Times. It was reportedly so effective at causing a malware ruckus that it set Iran’s nuclear program back by several years. Favorite line: “The computer program also secretly recorded what normal operations at the nuclear plant looked like, then played those readings back to plant operators, like a pre-recorded security tape in a bank heist, so that it would appear that everything was operating normally while the centrifuges were actually tearing themselves apart.” Class.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Dec 2010 10:08

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World: Iran claims to have its own yellowcake (not from a grocery store)

  • But here’s the real question: Do they have chocolate
    frosting?     Iran revealed today, ahead of a major nuclear conference in Geneva, that they’ve started producing their own yellowcake uranium, a key step in creating their own nuclear fuel. (Or, if you read into that, nuclear weapons.) The head of Iran’s atomic energy organization, Ali Akbar Salehi, claimed that the uranium was mined from Southern Iran. Also, he had this to offer up: “Again Iran has shown the ill-wishers and international criminals that we are standing up to pressures and resistance is the first lesson of our revolution and we would like to assure you that we will make you regret your devilish moves.” Uh, thanks? (This pic comes from Stuart Spivack, who we’re guessing doesn’t have any uranium) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 May 2010 11:04

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U.S., World: Is the U.S. buying Iran’s uranium-enrichment plan?

  • NO it and other nations are gonna put sanctions on ’em source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 May 2010 09:47

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World: Iran just blew everyone’s minds with their agreeability

  • before Iran seemed close to reaching
    a deal on enriching 2,640 pounds
    of uranium that pleased the West,
    then got all grumblely. Then it
    enriched more uranium.
  • now Iran actually signed an agreement
    with Turkey and Brazil to do
    basically the same thing, which
    is surprising, but now they have
    more uranium. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Feb 2010 09:05

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World: Ahmadinejad has delusions of making a nuclear deal with the West

  • There are some talks under way over the nuclear fuel swap. The case is not yet closed … we have already announced that we are ready for a fuel exchange within a fair framework.
  • Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad • Regarding hopes for a nuclear fuel swap despite the fact that they had already started enriching uranium. Iran already missed their chance; the UN’s deal required other countries to enrich the fuel for Iran so that it wasn’t at a high enough grade for them to build weapons. The chance that they’ll be sanctioned is pretty dang high. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Feb 2010 09:28

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World: Iran enriches uranium, God cheers, the rest of the world jeers

  • I would like to notify you and announce with a loud voice that – thank God – our chief nuclear negotiator announced that the produce of fuel at 20% started under the watchful eye of our scientists.
  • Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad • Announcing to a crowd that the country that sent worms to space is now enriching uranium at levels high enough to build their own reactors. He notes that they could enrich as high as 80 percent, but they have no need. 20 percent is high enough to anger the West. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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