Only 'Unevolved Apes Want Nukes!': Japanese Demand End to Nuclear Era
Thousands rally in Tokyo as nuclear restarts loom

Agence France-Presse reports:
Protesters later marched through the capital, holding anti-nuclear banners including one which read: "No Nukes! Unevolved Apes Want Nukes!"
They also demonstrated outside the headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Co, operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant which was crippled by meltdowns after the March 2011 tsunami.
[Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe], whose LiberalDemocratic Party has close ties with the nation's powerful business circles, has repeatedly said he would allow reactor restarts if their safety could be ensured.
Japan turned off its 50 reactors for safety checks in the wake of the disaster but has restarted two of them, citing possible summertime power shortages.
And RT adds:
Shortly after the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, the Japanese government pledged to fully abandon atomic energy by the 2030s. However, in about a year authorities realized their promise was a hasty one, as the archipelago nation had hardly any other means to ensure sufficient electric energy supply but to return to nuclear power generation.
Earlier this year two nuclear reactors were put back into operation in Japan and plans were announced to restart six more by the end of 2013.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has repeatedly promised the reactors would only be restarted if their safety is ensured by a special supervising body - Nuclear Regulation Authority. But his words could never quell the anti-nuclear moods in the country, where the tsunami disaster took 19,000 lives and lead to some 150,000 residents of the Fukushima area being displaced.
It's estimated the post-disaster clean-up would take about 30 to 40 years and cost around US$15 billion.


__________________________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |

Agence France-Presse reports:
Protesters later marched through the capital, holding anti-nuclear banners including one which read: "No Nukes! Unevolved Apes Want Nukes!"
They also demonstrated outside the headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Co, operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant which was crippled by meltdowns after the March 2011 tsunami.
[Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe], whose LiberalDemocratic Party has close ties with the nation's powerful business circles, has repeatedly said he would allow reactor restarts if their safety could be ensured.
Japan turned off its 50 reactors for safety checks in the wake of the disaster but has restarted two of them, citing possible summertime power shortages.
And RT adds:
Shortly after the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, the Japanese government pledged to fully abandon atomic energy by the 2030s. However, in about a year authorities realized their promise was a hasty one, as the archipelago nation had hardly any other means to ensure sufficient electric energy supply but to return to nuclear power generation.
Earlier this year two nuclear reactors were put back into operation in Japan and plans were announced to restart six more by the end of 2013.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has repeatedly promised the reactors would only be restarted if their safety is ensured by a special supervising body - Nuclear Regulation Authority. But his words could never quell the anti-nuclear moods in the country, where the tsunami disaster took 19,000 lives and lead to some 150,000 residents of the Fukushima area being displaced.
It's estimated the post-disaster clean-up would take about 30 to 40 years and cost around US$15 billion.


__________________________________

Agence France-Presse reports:
Protesters later marched through the capital, holding anti-nuclear banners including one which read: "No Nukes! Unevolved Apes Want Nukes!"
They also demonstrated outside the headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Co, operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant which was crippled by meltdowns after the March 2011 tsunami.
[Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe], whose LiberalDemocratic Party has close ties with the nation's powerful business circles, has repeatedly said he would allow reactor restarts if their safety could be ensured.
Japan turned off its 50 reactors for safety checks in the wake of the disaster but has restarted two of them, citing possible summertime power shortages.
And RT adds:
Shortly after the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, the Japanese government pledged to fully abandon atomic energy by the 2030s. However, in about a year authorities realized their promise was a hasty one, as the archipelago nation had hardly any other means to ensure sufficient electric energy supply but to return to nuclear power generation.
Earlier this year two nuclear reactors were put back into operation in Japan and plans were announced to restart six more by the end of 2013.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has repeatedly promised the reactors would only be restarted if their safety is ensured by a special supervising body - Nuclear Regulation Authority. But his words could never quell the anti-nuclear moods in the country, where the tsunami disaster took 19,000 lives and lead to some 150,000 residents of the Fukushima area being displaced.
It's estimated the post-disaster clean-up would take about 30 to 40 years and cost around US$15 billion.


__________________________________

