We’re getting nuclear power in 2021 (2015?)

Wow. What I don’t get is this:

Where are they gonna place the plant? Every inch of our country is filled with life, human or otherwise and having a nuclear powerplant is gonna emit radiation that will seep into the soil, water and ionize air particles. I’m not a nuclear physicist but I do know that no matter how ‘radiation proof’ the structures are and despite ‘protective gear’ radiation is not containable. We’re gonna have thyroid cancer, double headed-crab-eating-squirrels, purple carrots, giant periuk keras that eat baby bunnies and maybe kill off a few hundred endangered species that are being homed in our generally green nation. Oh, did I mention the potential for superb hair loss that comes with just bathing in radiated water?

Don’t we have an abundance of alternative power sources? I mean, we have so many rivers and hydropower is really the main power generator in our lush paradise.  We have solar power possibilities, which while being expensive initially, is definitely more cost effective in terms of lower medical bills, lesser environmental damage and lower maintenance fee, or so I’ve read. Do I need to mention that we’re located pretty much on the Equator, so sunlight is available all year round? Screw windpower, that’s undependable with the monsoons and all… And weren’t we discovering the wonders of palm oil? Hydrogen-fueled things? Come on… if we can set the world record for most number of people drinking milk at the same time, I’m sure we can do something about this, no?

Are we really all that eager to appear ‘technologically advanced’? It’s not some political gimmick or attempt at power intimidation or a ‘struggle’ to gain place in the eyes of the world, now is it? Malaysia can’t be all that shallow minded. Please. Splitting atoms to create energy while being really cool in concept is scary. That same knowledge can be used to unleash havoc and I’m not too comfortable with that thought, even if it is for ‘defensive’ purposes only. Imagine if the different races at home decided that they wanted to have a go at each other (again!), we would face more than Molotov cocktails, cow heads and racial slurs. Are we MATURED enough to handle this responsibility? Though it pains me to say it about my own kind, I seriously doubt it.

And incidentally, don’t we have more pressing concerns? Let me name a few that’s got me all jittery, ya?

1.   

ss  1. Economic forecast: We’ll be broke by 2019. Unless of course the world ends in 2012.

2.   

      2. We have lost so many species and will continue to do so for our nature conservation efforts are nowhere near ‘the safe zone’ : we have the penyu, Sumatran tigers, orang utans, corals off Perhentian, tapir and many more that I don’t know about that are slowly going extinct.

3.   

      3. Horrible public transport, diverse road infrastructure. Yeah it’s extensive in the cities but just how DEPENDABLE is it? In the other parts of our fair land, I’ve seen potholes the size of hippos and roads the width of bicycle tracks.

4.   

      4. Education system. Our education system is constantly being revamped and while more and more are scoring straight As in national exams, what exactly is the QUALITY of that A? And our education system focuses on the Rs, which is good, but when it comes to international matters, we’re a pretty close-minded race. Really. Our Geography and World History knowledge is laughable compared to that of two or three generations ago. If we don’t understand them, how in the world are we gonna be a part of the ‘global communtiy’? Don’t get me started on our linguistic capabilities.

5.   

      5. Work, projects, pride in the nation. What one PM wants the other neglects and focuses on a whole different concept. While diversifying is pretty much a market priority, we do need some continuity too and it has to be made apparent to the general public. Let us know and appreciate each other’s contributions.

6.   

      6. Sports. What do we play exactly? Besides Nicole David, and LCW we have pretty much lost all hope in ever being a sporty nation and one has to wonder why. We’re Asians after all, aren’t we supposed to be lithe and built to the ground? We have a national sports school and so many incentives to encourage athleticism and yet… I’ll just leave that hanging.

7.   

      7. Garbage disposal and sanitation. We fought like dogs and cats over buying an INCINERATOR and we’re giving the silent nod for nuclear power? The logic of that escapes me. And sanitation… well, we need help. A lot of help.

For some one who shies away from all things political I have some pretty disturbing thoughts that stem from it. Everything I’ve expressed is the concerned viewpoint of a citizen over this nuclear power issue.

Let me end by a quote by Einstein on cold fission and another by the guy responsible for the Manhattan Project:

When you see something that is technically sweet, you go ahead and do it and you argue about what to do about it only after you have had your technical success. That is the way it was with the atomic bomb.  -J. Robert Oppenheimer-

To have security against atomic bombs and against the other biological weapons, we have to prevent war, for if we cannot prevent war every nation will use every means that is at their disposal; and in spite of all promises they make, they will do it. 

-Albert Einstein-

Address to the symposium "The Social Task of the Scientist in the Atomic Era" at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey (17 November 1946)  

It seems to me that neither one was too happy with the moral outcomes of nuclear technology. But do correct me if I am wrong, for I am just one person with a subjective opinion. 

Y’all have a nice day.