Saturday, March 26, 2011

CNN: Radiation spikes 10,000 times normal - everything is fine

Why do these people even call themselves journalists. Just tell me the damned story, why is it necessary to spin everything? It is simply an insult to our intelligence to suggest that the water radiation levels spike 1,250 times than normal but "...in fact, in many cases, radiation readings have gone down." WTF...do you think we are idiots and we think "...a spike of 1,250 times normal" means something extreme is NOT going on...We do not need to be reminded that meaningless measurements upwind of the plant went down in the same time as they spiked 1,250 times normal somewhere else. Readings in the areas that went down will likely be up tomorrow when the wind blows that direction. Why not just report the rise as it is? Why not do the report of lower levels objectively or as a separate report rather than a qualifier to a clearly extreme situation?

We do not need to be reassured that these levels will infact do little harm to the aquamarine ecosystem or fish. It is just amazing how far you will go CNN, Reuters, Thompson to trump up a positive slant on something where it is not required. Fish are definately being harmed by this radiation. Do you think we are idiots? Would not you not do the opposite and make the same effort to distort facts in the pessimistic vein if it served your agenda? Why should we trust that you are attempting to report anything in good faith when you insert an unneccesary "...the effect on aquatic life may be relatively minimal." type BS. You know that its not likely to be minimal yet you go throught the effort to say it. Why just not say nothing? Just what is the meaning or objective of trying to talk this stuff down?

The events are exploding before your eyes CNN and you are not offering ANY credible service to your readers. You are simply encouraging people to tow the line, play the game and smile while they scream. This is the same crap we have to deal with in the economic reporting. You tell us the markets went up because of the great (manipulated and fraudulent) jobs numbers at 10:30 am and when the Dow is down 300 points at 4:00 pm you tell us the markets were down on those very same jobs numbers yet you still try to convince us that the numbers were good and things are looking up at the same time. Why is it necessary to editorialise and spin every report. Why is it necessary to take the only thing that you really require as a reporter, "CREDIBILITY", and shred it? The mass media especially the corporate shareholder owned media should be ashamed of itself. In some cases, information from the media can make a difference that is significant to one's life - in those cases, apparently we know we can not rely on CNN and most probably nearly any of the corporate government mouthpiece media firms.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

Levels of radioactive iodine in seawater just offshore of the embattled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant spiked to more than 1,250 times higher than normal, Japan's nuclear and industrial safety agency said Saturday.

Samples taken Friday morning from a monitoring station 330 meters off the coast were significantly higher than results from the previous morning, when the level was 104 times above normal.

The measurements also showed high levels of cesium and were taken outside the discharge canal for the plant's Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4 reactors.

Readings from a short distance away, outside the Nos. 5 and 6 units' discharge canal, showed lower but still high radioactive iodine levels some 284 times above normal.

These high levels suggest there may have been some sort of leakage directly into the ocean -- unlikely to be because of atmosphere emissions or rain alone, said an official with the Tokyo Electric Power Co., which operates the nuclear plant.

A Tokyo Electric official told CNN that authorities are not sure why the levels spiked. The official speculated that the radioactive iodine may have been swept off the coast recently into the Pacific Ocean or the tainted water may have seeped from turbine buildings for two nuclear reactors that have shown the presence of radiation 10,000 times the normal amount.

Still, an official with Japan's nuclear safety agency told reporters Saturday that -- while drinking such tainted seawater would be dangerous, given the radiation's potential to cause cancer -- the effect on aquatic life may be relatively minimal.

The latest data, from Friday, posted online by Japan's education, science and technology ministry show continuing evidence of airborne radiation in prefectures around the nation. Still, in no cases is the exposure considered harmful to human health -- and, in fact, in many cases, radiation readings have gone down.

In the Fukushima prefecture where the plant is located, officials had screened 87,813 people for radiation exposure as of Thursday, Japan's nuclear safety agency said a day later in a news release.

Of those 98 people had tested above limits for exposure, but once their clothes were removed and other measures taken, the exposure levels dropped and there was no effect on health.

The agency also said screeners have examined thyroid glands of 66 children ranging in age from 1 to 15 and found that the "level of exposure of no problem." http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/26/japan.nuclear.disaster/index.html?iref=NS1

Dylan Ratigan is one of the few people who would not deal with the limits that Jeff Immelt, GE, his Washington cohorts and CNBC wanted to push on him to spin data and stories to their liking.


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