[hal ogen]

Did the Hiroshima and Nagasaki open air blasts cause the US to evacuate the West coast? Same for the open air pacific testing and the Nevada site open air testing. While some radiation may be coming out of the reactors just how much? So far the chicken little reaction seems parallel to their reaction to mercury release. Here in WDC a couple years ago the local government went apoplectic when a mercury thermometer was broken at a school. A PhD friend who is in the EPA division that deals with mercury said that by eating a can of tuna the kids got more mercury exposure. The government spend millions cleaning the school and cleaning kids homes. Heck, when I was a kid we played with mercury. I haven’t grown a third head or lost my liver...yet, I guess. People need to calm down and gain some perspective. The alternative is to stay in our basement, huddled and shivering because all the risks of living.

[SMARTY]

It is too late now, but I was wondering why they didn't fly over there, like they do with forest fires, and dump water on the thing before it got out of hand.

[FreedomPoster]

The hysteria has been amazing to watch. Until yesterday and the spent fuel fire, the amount of radioactive materials released were very minimal, based on reports I could see.

[Former Proud Canadian]

Thanks, Hal. Some of us are old enough to remember dozens and dozens of open air nuclear tests in the 40's, 50's and 60's. At times the superpowers were rattling nuclear sabers at each other, one atmospheric test after another. If you didn't live near the test sites in Nevada or the Pacific islands or wherever Russia tested, you were fine.

Nobody died from Three Mile Island. Many workers at Chernobyl died but only two people from the surrounding town died from the radiation. They had not been evacuated. There is no fallout danger in North America from these plants.

[glassylassie]

We used to play with mercury too. We had a jelly jar half full and would roll it around in our hands, splash it and dribble it down paper, squish it into bits and watch it reform larger puddles....we loved the stuff. It isn’t that harmful unless you breath the vapor or it it (fish)
We never drank it though:
http://www.newmoa.org/prevention/mercury/projects/legacy/religious.cfm

hijack/

[angcat]

Did the Hiroshima and Nagasaki open air blasts cause the US to evacuate the West coast?

I have been dying to ask that question.