Billions for Space Force; no clean water for Flint -- interview with Karl Grossman

CounterSpin, the popular radio program created by FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) features Beyond Nuclear board member, Karl Grossman, discussing President Trump's unpopular plan to create a "Space Force."

Listen here.

And here is the intro from Counterspin:

This week on CounterSpin: A popular internet meme says, “I have a question about Space Force; when is Flint getting clean water?” But while social media reflect complaints that the Trump administration’s plans to “address space as a developing war-fighting domain,” as Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has it, will mean still more resources channeled away from social programs to Warmongering, Inc., that line of questioning has so far had little place in corporate media coverage.

We’ll talk about the prospect of war in space with longtime FAIR associate Karl Grossman, journalism professor at State University of New York/College at Old Westbury, and author of the books Weapons in Space and The Wrong Stuff: The Space Program’s Nuclear Threat to Our Planet, among others.

Locals on the march in India to protest nuclear power plant

There has been almost no press coverage of a massive protest today (August 28) against the proposed massive French Jaitapur nuclear power complex in India. Pradeep Indulkar reports via Twitter that "Thousands of farmers and fisherman are on road today in #Jaitapur to protest against world's biggest proposed #nuclear power plant." (If you are on Twitter you can see video of the protest on his Twitter page, @IndulkarPradeep.)

Chinese news agency, Xinhua, appears to have the only coverage so far. Their story is below.

MUMBAI, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- Local people held a protest march on Monday to oppose land acquisition of the construction of Jaitapur nuclear power plant in coastal Konkan in western India.

Villagers including a large number of women gathered at Madban village in Rathnagiri district and shouted slogans against the proposed power plant, expressing their dissent in the proposal which will anticipate to create a great loss for the local residents' livelihood.

According to Press Trust of India's (PTI) report, the project was proposed 12 years ago and just started construction. Almost 80 percent of the land acquisition of the total 930 hectares owned by 2,500 persons has been completed.

However, some farmers and villagers are opposing the project, citing forced rehabilitation and loss of livelihood.

"The use of nuclear fuel, its impact on global warming and potential threat to fishermen, are issues not being properly addressed by the government," said Satyajeet Chavan, chairman of Janhakka Seva Samiti, who is the protest leader.

PTI report added, the plant will take over land that currently belongs to the villagers in five different fishing villages which are Madban, Varliwada, Karel, Niveli and Mithgavane.

The Jaitapur project will be the largest nuclear power plant in the world, with a collective capacity of 9,900 MW.

Australians fighting to stop four disastrous uranium mines

Two articles today on Beyond Nuclear International, our story-telling blog site, each describing the devastating effect of four proposed uranium mines in Western Australia and the need to preserve the beauty and quiet of the pristine outback.

Fighting for life in the "place of death" describes the now 40-year-long struggle to stop the Yeelirrie uranium mine, with Traditional Owners and environmental groups in court in an endeavor to stop it. Read the story.

And Marcus Atkinson and his colleagues and friends are on a 250km walkabout right now to draw attention to the beauty of nature and what will be lost and even destroyed by uranium mines. You can read his description of that experience -- The wind that sings through the spinifex grass -- here.

Is Bechtel out of the Wylfa B nuclear project?

On August 17, the Asahi Shimbun ran an encouraging story saying that construction firm, Bechtel, had pulled out of the unpopular Wylfa B Hitachi nuclear power plant project on the north coast of Wales (planned project pictured above in an unrealistic diagram that fails to show the devastating destruction of the surrounding countryside that will include hilltop removal).

The article said the US firm had bailed due to the obvious unprofitability of the two-reactor project which is facing growing public and political opposition as well as resistance from nature conservation groups. The paper said Bechtel withdrew due to the fact that "the drastic rise in construction costs would make it hard to make money on the project."

However, the next day, Bechtel was quoted by a UK newspaper, The Daily Post, as saying the withdrawal story was "categorically untrue." Observers in the UK are skeptical of this denial given the reality of the financial mountain the project faces and the reputation of the Asahi Shimbun which, as UK activist Pete Roche observed, "does not usually make mistakes."

Beyond Nuclear will be watchdogging this story with our UK colleagues to get to the bottom of what is really going on. The UK government has been considering public financing, given that no corporations are willing to take the full financial risk of building an unneeded, expensive and slow nuclear white elephant.

UN summit on nuclear disarmament in jeopardy

In less then two months the United Nations General Assembly will decide whether to hold the UN High-Level Conference (Summit) on Nuclear Disarmament, which has been planned for five years, or to yield to the pressure from pro-nuclear forces and cancel the event. The Basel Peace Office and Unfold Zero urge you join them in ensuring the Summit goes ahead.

Among other things, a nuclear disarmament summit could:

• Put pressure on additional governments to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons;
• Encourage nuclear armed and allied States to adopt policies to never use nuclear weapons first;
• Support the peace and disarmament process in North East Asia;
• Protect the Iran deal, which the US has left despite it being the best way to ensure Iran does not aquire nuclear weapons;
• Encourage nuclear armed States to announce the next cuts in their nuclear stockpiles, and agree to a framework to achieve zero nuclear weapons

Read the full article and sign the petition!