By Sylvia Gurinsky
Call me someone who remembers Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, and someone who is alarmed at Iran's saber (or missile) rattling, but I still don't believe nuclear power is a good thing in the long term.
Earlier this week, former Sen. Bob Graham of Florida had this column in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-forum06drillingsbjul06,0,5374423.story
He does fine until he gets to number 4. Graham has been a champion of Florida's environment, but he must also remember the two nuclear disasters mentioned at the beginning of this piece.
Where is this emphasis on nuclear power coming from (besides the nuclear industry)? Since when is something that can do and has done so much damage regarded as a "clean" energy?
And what has happened to solar energy? For all the mistakes former President Jimmy Carter made during his presidential term, the effort he made on solar power is not one of them. The sun will be with us for a while. It's been turned into a viable power source by those who choose to use it. And, if my Economics 101 lessons from two decades ago are correct, plentiful supplies should bring lower costs.
It's not a "phobia," Senator, that Americans have of nuclear power. It's a concern brought on by history - a history that, doubtless, many in political power have not learned from. Sen. Graham should know better. And a place with the nickname "The Sunshine State" needs to do better in bringing solar (and wind) power to its people.
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