Japan Still In the News

After the catastrophic earthquake, followed by the mega-tidal wave, it would almost seem as if the people had been handed enough! But then the explosions at the nuclear power facility added radiation poisoning to the equation.  My deepest sympathy goes to the Japanese people.  In their usual spirit of tenacity they were reclaiming their world even while the ashes were still falling.  It is very difficult to know the extent of their shock and sorrow in the face of all these terrible calamities.  I recall how this nation felt in the face of the 9/11 attacks, and surely the Japanese situation is even worse.

The death toll has been set at approximately 8,000, with hundreds injured.  But, in the shadows of these confirmed statistics, there is still the knowledge that over 11, 000 people are unaccounted for, and in the words of one official, "presumed dead."  There are stories of entire towns being emptied by the tsunamis.  Then, there is the radiation.

As was not unexpected, the official "talking heads" here in the United States unilaterally declared that the nuclear reactors in Japan were safe.  Later, the same people crowed the same tune as video of the cooling units exploding played ominously in the background of the TV screen.  The next day another explosion ripped through another cooling system at the Fukushima facility.  Again, like trained parrots the DC spokesmouths continued to assure us that there was "no danger."  Do you ever get tired of hearing that?  Wouldn't it be nice if just once...just once...the spokesmouths told us the truth?  Well, their sins have found them out, and the truth is that Japan, specifically the Tokyo area, is in trouble.  Radiation, of course in "low concentration" has crept into Tokyo proper.  The people have been "encouraged" to leave the city as fish and other food was found to be contaminated with levels of radioactivity that were "not acceptable
under Japanese law.  But again, no one is in danger.  Right?

Regardless of whether or not nuclear contamination is an issue (really, is there any doubt?) the Japanese people have been through so much.  Even now they live in fear as aftershocks constantly rumble through the earthquake zone.  The funerals and memorial services will continue for months as the dead are collected and buried.  Many others, however, face the reality of having no bodies to bury, and not even confirmation that their loved ones are dead...only the uncertainty of assuming their relatives were taken out to sea. 

The Japanese people have always rose to the occasion, and this time no doubt they will overcome this tragedy as well.  Now as they cope with the realities of this tragedy and the gigantic task of cleaning up and rebuilding, I salute the Japanese people and their nation for enduring through it all.