[justa-hairyape]

Some claim Chernobyl is what actually bankrupted the old Soviet Union. Japan obviously is in bad shape going into the future. BTW - Do you remember during those Chernobyl rains, did you ever get a metallic taste in your mouth when you were out in the rain ?

[Mr Radical]

"Do you remember during those Chernobyl rains, did you ever get a metallic taste in your mouth when you were out in the rain?"
To be honest, no I didn't notice anything unusual. It wasn't till after we got home that we heard about the accident.

"Some claim Chernobyl is what actually bankrupted the old Soviet Union"
Off topic, but I have my own theory about the timing of that. The USSR had been effectively bankrupt for years; but the difference between the affluence (for example the quality, availability and range of consumer goods) of the West over the USSR was becoming embarassing and difficult to sustain. And at that point, the marxists decided they had pretty much captured the West politically, morally and socially anyway, so they just dumped the old USSR model.