Nancy Foust's past comments

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  Nancy FoustJun. 01, 2013 - 09:30AM JST

  Just because something has a fancy title and make lots of proclamations doesn't mean it is a) accurate or b) worth the paper printed on. UNSCEAR is part of the over all IAEA mess and has a long track record of downplaying nuclear problems.

  What you want to ask is what data was used and does it realistically reflect the reality. How did they then use that data to make assumptions.

  If the data itself was fairly useless or known to be inaccurate that ruins the whole thing. Using iodine scans done weeks after the disaster as someone's total iodine exposure is bogus. Iodine 131 has a 16 day half life. People who were tested were tested far too late. Unless you adjust and attempt to back track to what their exposure at the time was, using that late in the game reading is misleading.

  One I saw mentioned in another article about this report cited workers would not see health impacts from their THYROID exposure to i-131 SOON. Never mind most of the workers didn't get the bulk of their exposures by inhaling iodine 131. Even thyroid exposure has some latency so they focus on one thing that turns out the way they want it and ignore the real problem like the number of workers with well over 100 mSv exposures from their work. Saying they will all have no problems at all would be foolish, inaccurate and that is why UNSCEAR avoids saying anything about it and focuses on something that was mostly irrelevant.

  This is all a PR game for the nuke industry who wants everyone to forget what happened. They have a rug to sweep this all under and you pesky people are getting in the way of their nuke Renaissance

  Posted in: No rise in cancer seen from Fukushima nuclear disaster: U.N.

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  Nancy FoustMay. 27, 2013 - 09:50AM JST

  Do these politicians have any idea how all of this reflects on Japan elsewhere? Hashimoto's week long misogynistic tirades & denying war crimes? Abe outright advocating taking away individual rights considered normal in most of the world. Undo-ing the constitution looks more like chomping at the bit to go to war than trying to modernize the WWII laws. I thought his desire to restart reactors was bad. WTF....

  Posted in: The deeper agenda behind Abenomics - constitutional change

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  Nancy FoustApr. 21, 2013 - 01:45PM JST

  Dropping the bomb was about dick waving at the USSR, not about ending the war with Japan. This needs to be seen for what it really was. Even back in the 1980's they were still using the "to end the war" excuse in history class. The US tried very hard to prevent images of what was done to Hiroshima and Nagasaki from making it into the media. People SHOULD be appalled.

  Greg Mitchell has a great series on the issue of dropping the bombs and the play by play of events that prove this wasn't about ending the war. Why the airshow thought this was ok in the first place is stupid on their part.

  Posted in: Hiroshima A-bomb re-enactment dropped from U.S. air show

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  Nancy FoustApr. 01, 2013 - 09:12PM JST

  "Reliable experts have said that there is no radiation problem that the level of radiation present is less that what is normally found in most parts of the USA."

  Maybe the parts of the USA at the Hanford nuclear site or the Nevada test site? No, the levels in the evac zone are far higher than places in the US. Your "experts" are not reliable...

  Posted in: No-go zone designation lifted for part of Namie town

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  Nancy FoustMar. 16, 2013 - 09:58AM JST

  A couple of things that matter greatly not mentioned enough in the media. TEPCO and GoJ lied to the US about radiation levels. The US wasn't actively monitoring things until around the 16th. Then the govt agencies went into panic mode. There is proof of this in the NRC FOIA documents.

  After the 16th when the Reagan realized levels were way higher than TEPCO or GoJ was telling US officials the US had DOE monitoring on the ground and took more action. I fully expect to eventually see action against the US military for what went on. There was clearly not enough precaution taken on the ship and none of the enlisted got iodine.

  It isn't just the air doses. Some had more concentrated exposures due to handling filters, contaminated gear etc. If you can find the actual video of the press conference it makes all of this make more sense.

  Posted in: 126 U.S. military members to sue TEPCO

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  Nancy FoustMar. 02, 2013 - 09:45AM JST

  I would not put much stock in the WHO being impartial or honest either. They are beholden to the IAEA by UN mandate. So the guys who promote nuclear power on an international level have the ability to edit what WHO says and does.

  Posted in: Japan riled by WHO's Fukushima cancer warning

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  Nancy FoustMar. 02, 2013 - 09:40AM JST

  I actually read the report. They didn't include readings from inside the 20km zone. They eliminated them from the calculations. This is directly out of the report on exposures used to create the cancer prediction models: "Doses within a 20-km radius around Fukushima Daiichi NPP were not assessed in the WHO preliminary dose estimation and therefore this geographical area is not included in this HRA. "

  The WHO exposure doses are totally generic. They used environmental readings and general food testing data from the government to create these generic exposures. The WHO work does not reflect what happened to real people.

  So one person might get a slight over estimation, then the one who actually did end up exposed gets an unrealistically low estimation. the fact that the 20km zone is removed from all of this makes it worthless.

  Posted in: Japan riled by WHO's Fukushima cancer warning

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  Nancy FoustFeb. 21, 2013 - 09:24AM JST

  US grocery prices have gone up to about double what they were around 2006. We also have more and more problems with contaminated foods (e coli, lysteria, salmonella) and the general quality of many products has gone down to increase profits. About 70% or more of the food in the typical grocery store is produced by a handful of big agriculture/food conglomerates that own most of the major food brands. Be careful what you ask for. That corporate food supply will only be cheap until they are entrenched and then it will become expensive again.

  Posted in: U.S. says Japan must negotiate on rice to join TPP talks

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  Nancy FoustFeb. 18, 2013 - 01:27PM JST

  Basroil wrote this: "2) They only included nodules over 5mm in the initial report back in 2001, all others were disregarded. The Fukushima data shows just 0.5% of cases with nodules over 5mm, not the ridiculous 30% everyone complains about. That's a whole 60x smaller result."

  You fail at reading both the actual testing results and every media outlet that has reported on it. The thyroid nodule rates are up into the 40% range.. unless you area accusing all of the newspapers in Japan to be spreading rumors...

  Posted in: No ill health effects seen in residents near Fukushima plant yet: researcher

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  Nancy FoustFeb. 18, 2013 - 01:25PM JST

  It has only been two years. Cancers have a varied latency period. There are a number of locals that were exposed that have cited various medical problems they cite as being from radiation exposure. There is no formal study underway to document or verify these. That doesn't mean they are not happening. The health survey has botched a number of the methodologies used in the estimates for exposure. So now various experts have complained that the health survey declaration of "no harm" may be wildly inaccurate. Meanwhile the GoJ and WHO have declared the entire thing a non issue. The reality is the only official surveys are an unreliable mess and it is pretty sure based on what various experts have put forth as actual evidence that exposures differ from the govt. numbers. Exposures seem to vary widely in who got how much of what based on many factors. Of course the powers that be want to make all of this a non-issue so they can restart reactors and get back to business as usual. Leading up to the 2nd anniversary this has kicked into high gear with various shills in the US and Japan suddenly declaring everything is peachy.

  Posted in: No ill health effects seen in residents near Fukushima plant yet: researcher

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  Nancy FoustJan. 20, 2013 - 01:43PM JST

  5 people were also shot at gun shows in the US today. These people don't represent the wider array of views on the issue that constitutes the majority of people in the US. Reporting like this just encourages the view outside the US that the entire place is full of dumb rednecks.

  Posted in: Thousands rally against stricter gun control in U.S.

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  Nancy FoustJan. 15, 2013 - 10:53AM JST

  Ah the new push to end "harmful rumor". Expect more of these types of news stories blaming the whole thing on those pesky consumers and their "fears".

  The government failed and has done nothing to regain public trust when it comes to food. The only thing that will regain consumer trust is a detailed system that can not be gamed to prove the food you hold in your hands isn't contaminated.

  BTW the US govt. isn't any better on this issue. The intervention limit is 1200 bq/kg. The FDA pulled some pre-disaster products off store shelves in the US, tested it and declared there to be no problem. Their follow up testing involved foods highly unlikely to be contaminated and they refused to document the location in Japan the item came from. Sure something from Okinawa isn't going to show contaminated and it is "Japan" so they call it good.

  Posted in: Nuclear fears contaminate sales for Tohoku farmers

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  Nancy FoustDec. 28, 2012 - 10:56AM JST

  Rokkasho is likely over an active fault. Nothing like a plutonium extraction facility going all "Daiichi". This obviously impacts Japan. The rest of the world is not amused with the massive pollution in the Pacific or the fallout that wafted over the US and Canada from Fukushima. The US govt has its heads up their backsides about as bad as the LDP do. Both are tone deaf unless you happen to have a billion dollar company and buckets of cash.

  It will be interesting to see what stunts the LDP tries over the next year to dismantle the progress made. I hope when Abe visits those living in temporary housing there are some independent media documenting it. I can't even imagine being in that situation other than I doubt I could be civil to the guy wanting to restart reactors after what happened.

  Posted in: Abe gov't to review zero-nuclear policy

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  Nancy FoustDec. 21, 2012 - 11:14PM JST

  The US is not some monolithic culture and a small subculture of gun obsessed rednecks do not represent the entire country. Most people are just sick of the constant public massacres. Even people I know that are pretty big gun enthusiasts admit we need some better regulation. Even the NRA has admitted there will probably be more regulation.

  The gun obsession in the last decade along with all the trumped up rumors that "Obama is going to take all the guns" was fomented by the NRA. The bulk of the NRA's funding does not come from individuals. It comes from gun manufacturers. The NRA turns around and gives political groups like ALEC huge amounts of money and sit on their board that writes gun law proposals their affiliated politicians then try to pass in different states. This is how we ended up with crazy law like "stand your ground" and others that loosened gun ownership and lowered the bar for things like conceal-carry in public. So much of the current gun obsessed culture has been directly funded by the gun companies. People run out and buy more guns after rumors they will all be seized come out and the ability to use them in public is less restricted. Right now any moron can carry a gun in public, they don't have to prove they have any clue about safety or proper use.

  The issues in the US also involve the lack of access to mental health care. All heath care has been held hostage by private industry who are making huge profits while fewer and fewer people can access or afford needed health care. When this happens with people with serious mental illness we end up with people shooting up schools and movie theaters. I think there will be change. People in general are fed up and more are starting to realize the involvement of the gun industry in the public discourse and how they have manipulated the public conversation for far too long.

  Posted in: From Davy Crockett to Dirty Harry, guns tied to U.S. identity

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  Nancy FoustDec. 08, 2012 - 11:49AM JST

  There are thousands of abandoned pets in the evacuation zone in Fukushima. The groups feeding and trying to rescue those animals could really use that 6,000 yen.

  Our dog loves whipped cream, a spoonful is one thing, part of a cake, he would be doing the technicolor yawn all over the floor.

  Posted in: Pooches have their cake and eat it for Christmas

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  Nancy FoustDec. 05, 2012 - 12:38PM JST

  There is plenty of this in the US. Corporations treat employees like disposable cups. There is no job security in many places. Longer hours, heavier workloads all with the threat that you could be booted out the door at any moment. This has become the norm for office, retail and manufacturing.

  Even those who do find full time permanent work the pay vs. cost of living has been rapidly getting out of balance over the last 10 years. There are plenty of young people who can't afford to have kids between daycare and related costs vs. one person's paycheck. There really isn't any social support system in the US anymore even though politicians like to make it sound like the US is full of moochers.

  I know many in the US being mandated by their employers to work 50-80 hours a week for salary (no overtime) meaning your per hour pay is very low. Japan has their own version of this mess but it stems from making capitalism more socially important than everything else.

  Posted in: Japan in 2030: A country from which families have disappeared

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  Nancy FoustNov. 11, 2012 - 09:40AM JST

  Aladdin's comment is both totally off base and rather immature thinking. Not everyone in that region wanted the nuclear reactors and only those in the host town benefited. People's homes, lives and possibly their health were ruined if they wanted the plants or fought them tooth and nail. Radiation doesn't select who it exposes.

  If you had everything taken away from you by a greedy company and complicit government you would want compensation too. It isn't a handout, it is the basis for a lawsuit. If the government put as much effort into helping people that they did into trying to deny the scope of the disaster everyone would be better off. Well everyone except the nuclear utilities.

  Posted in: Gov't draws flak for underreporting radiation readings in Fukushima

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  Nancy FoustNov. 01, 2012 - 12:38PM JST

  In the US much of the hype about this book was manufactured by the media. I wonder how much they were paid to have features about how this book was sweeping the country. i know nobody in the US who has read it or even has any interest in it. There are copies of it everywhere in the US ,including the grocery store collecting dust so I really think this may have been more of a good marketing hype than an actual trend or popular book in the US. I am sure some people saw the hype on TV that everyone is reading it and went right out to buy a copy.

  Posted in: 'Fifty Shades' aiming to seduce Japan

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  Nancy FoustOct. 04, 2012 - 10:41AM JST

  Tell these Japanese workers about "right to work" states in the US. Right to work = fire you with no notice without needing a reason whenever they feel like it.

  Posted in: How companies go about forcing employees to quit

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  Nancy FoustSep. 30, 2012 - 12:39PM JST

  Lowly, it already happened in the US at least on a local level. The massive crackdown on any level of intoxicated driving along with a refusal to improve public transit has killed nightlife in many less urban places. It isn't just drinking, being out driving after dark will get you randomly harassed by the police many places. Things like road checkpoints where you find yourself stuck for an hour or so unable to leave and forced to submit to police interrogation happen far too often in some states. You don't have to be guilty of anything to find yourself harassed simply for daring to leave home on a Saturday night.

  Posted in: Why they don't want us dancing at nightclubs