New Normal in Japan After Fukushima
Just Keep Smiling
Fukushima’s disaster task force has started issuing leaflets with a bird character called Kibitan telling children to stay away from pools and ditches where radioactive cesium from the damaged nuclear power plant might have accumulated.
The smiling, round Kibitan explains why radiation is dangerous, urging children to make a habit of washing their hands and gargling their mouths after coming in from the outdoors.
Radiation can make people sick if allowed to get inside their body, says the cartoon bird, which is a variant of the local narcissus flycatcher.
The bird is definitely well-informed on the dangers of radiation, and the autoradiographs of a dead Fukushima flycatcher posted in April by a Japanese photojournalist confirm that.
Below are the photos, from the blog Fukushima Diary.
‘hot’ enough to develop photo paper
A Ghostly Outline
The cute public safety cartoons in this century are as sinister as Duck and Cover was in the last. But it’s not all bad. You can send away for a pocket geiger on your cell phone.
From here in Rhode Island, it’s hard to vet internet content of blogs from Japan. On American news sites Fukushima is completely off the radar. On Japanese sites like Japan Times and Daily Yomiuri the nuclear crisis is off the front page but continues to develop. Japanese citizen journalists say their government is not giving them the whole truth. The news stream at Uhohjapan2 blog is deeply frightening.
The people of Japan have suffered enough in the wake of the disasters of 2011. They should not be further harmed by panic and despair. But the people of Japan are owed the truth. The world, also, needs to know the true extent of the nuclear contamination from the Fukushima disaster. Nations are rushing to build more nuclear plants, for energy and for war.
During the last presidential debate, when the topic was energy, I noticed an interesting omission from President Obama. He did not say the ‘N’ word. He did not mention nuclear power. Mitt Romney did, at least twice.
President Obama did support nuclear power as part of the mix, but I wonder if the global picture is looking different now. The economic costs and ongoing environmental effects will slow the rush to nuclear.
The Fukushima disaster is not over, but if we are lucky the damage will be limited, and if we are wise we will learn that dangerous, expensive and centralized power is not the way.
Curried Eggplant with Garbanzo Beans and Spinach
I absolutely freakin' love Indian food. Unfortunately, I have not had a great amount of success in replicating the deliciousness found at my favorite Indian food restaurant. ....until this recipe. This dish is simply omg-yum-drool-amazing and even better, it's the easiest thing ever! Inspired, I knocked out a quick batch of naan. Don't let the yeast intimidate you. Making naan is only slightly more work than this recipe, which is to say, easy-peasy!
Poverty and Stress Can Damage Children's Lives
The latest research studies from Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child demonstrate how "toxic stress" can severely damage children's minds.
Everyone needs to learn to deal with adversity, says Dr. Jack Shonkoff of the Harvard Center, and some stress is a good learning experience.
But the conditions associated with living in poverty harms children's development.
"The same brain flexibility, called plasticity, that makes children
Churches and Occupy to the Rescue after Sandy
Brita Rose at Common Dreams reports on the community response to Hurricane Sandy.
Light After the Storm – Local Churches Partner with Occupy Sandy in Grass Roots Relief Efforts
by Brita RoseIt was a beautiful sight — throngs of volunteers lining up outside a local church on Sunday, Day Five of the local recovery initiative spearheaded by Occupy Sandy. The number of willing helpers had tripled over the last three days alone, a response as dizzying as it was encouraging for the coordinators at the relief hub in St. Jacobi Lutheran Church in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, New York.
Occupy Sandy is an offshoot of the Occupy Movement, which, until now was by some pundits given up for dead. In collaboration with Occupy Sunset Park, 350.org, recovers.org and interoccupy.net, it emerged to meet the essential needs of storm victims while larger charities were already turning away willing volunteers, just a few days after the storm. It began organizing local relief efforts so that supplies could be immediately sent to the most devastated areas — beginning with Red Hook and The Rockaways. To their own surprise the Occupy activists found themselves doing so with an efficiency and speed that was sometimes outpacing government relief organizations. While the latter focused on essential infrastructure — pumping out subway stations and restoring transportation and power — independent groups were able to reach isolated areas by building community solidarity and mutual aid on the local level. Both entities were needed, as was becoming ever more apparent.
America's Poorest Neighborhoods Lost 91 Percent Of Their Wealth During The Great Recession: Report
Comment: One Nepali poet wrote, "God, kindly give me more trouble if you really love me"
Families living in poor neighborhoods lost almost everything during the Great Recession, potentially making it more difficult for them to gain a better life in the future, according to a recent report.
Households living in high-poverty neighborhoods saw a 91 percent decline in their overall wealth over the course of the downturn, according to a
Diane Ravitch Featured in The New Yorker
Truly, Diane Ravitch is an amazing woman — no matter what side of the education reform movement you are on, you must admit this. She is 74 years old and blogs about 10 times a day, runs all over the country defending public education and helping to build morale for an industry being brutally attacked, and still finds time work on a book. Since she started her blog last April, I have learned so much from her.
you can't hurry love
I’ve been reading sad books. Books about sad people. While I was reading Suzanne Scanlon’s Promising Young Women (which I reviewed here), I was rereading Two Girls, Fat and Thin by Mary Gaitskill, and at this point in my life I must have reread it five or six times. It’s always a bad idea for me to read this book—I’m always in a funk for a week after, sometimes longer, or perhaps but now it’s just lodged itself somewhere inside me and each time I reread it it’s like lighting a match.
Back to Blood -- Tom Wolfe
The real problem with Back to Blood is that you've already read it, most notably in The Bonfire of the Vanities and A Man in Full—and if you haven't read those, you should start with them. Back to Blood has the same assortment of obsessions and interests: there is the child with an unusual name and an elite pedigree: "Last week he totally forgot to call the dean, the one with the rehabilitated harelip, at their son Fiver's boarding school, Hotchkiss [.
K12 Says: Elections Present New Business Opportunities
Soon after the elections, the mega-corporation K12 convened a conference call with investors to boast about the opening of new markets for virtual charters in Georgia and Washington State.
K12 is the company founded by the Milken brothers to sell online schooling for-profit.
It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Its CEO, Ron Packard, has a background at McKinsey and Goldman Sachs.
Don't Just Honor Them, Hire Them!
Today we honor veterans, at least that's the idea if we can find the time between trips to the mall. I hope you read about or listen to their stories today. If you happen to come by this blog, on this important day, here is one important story. The unemployment rate among those who have served on active military duty is higher than it is for those who have not served, at all levels of educational attainment.
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